BY MEGAN ANDERSON - SUN NEWSPAPERS
After following the clues toward a 4-inch golden star, Inver Grove Heights resident Jeff Huebscher became $500 richer.
Huebscher, 24, is the winner of the Golden Star Treasure Hunt, which was part of the activities surrounding Inver Grove Heights Days, Sept. 6-9. The treasure hunt was sponsored by both the Inver Grove Heights Parks and Recreation Department and Sun Newspapers, which provided the $500 reward.
The city started putting the clues for the treasure hunt at 7 a.m. Sept. 6 at City Hall. The city planned to post five clues a day, with up to 15 clues. But all it took was half a day and four clues before Huebscher solved the case.
When Huebscher arrived at 11 a.m., he was ready to begin the hunt. After reading the clues, he said he thought about the possibilities where the golden star could be. "I went to one park and looked around for a bit, but didn't find it. So I sort of gave up."
But later, something clicked as he drove past Skyview Park. "I thought, 'Oh, it's got to be at this park,'" he said.
Sure enough, he found the golden star hidden underneath a bush near the warming shed at Skyview.
He recalled how one clue said that fall is the "time of year for leaves to change, but some of them don't," which made him think about pine trees, leading him to Skyview.
"I was pretty excited, jumping up and down," he said. As he made his way to City Hall, Huebscher called his girlfriend and told her that he found the treasure.
Not wanting anyone to see it before it was official, he said he ran through City Hall with the golden star underneath his shirt. Huebscher was declared the winner, marking the end of the treasure hunt.
Huebscher, a Simley High School graduate, said the prize could have been hidden at any public property in Inver Grove Heights. "But there's not a million parks, so I just kind of narrowed it down."
This isn't the first time he's participated in the treasure hunt. "I almost found it last year, so that made me really want to find it this year," he said.
Plus, Inver Grove Heights Days has been something he's participated in since he was younger. "I like doing all the different activities for Star City Days," he said. "It's just something I do every year. And 500 bucks isn't too bad either."
His girlfriend was excited that he won and his co-workers teased him about what he should do with the money. "They started joking around that I had to bring in a case of beer," he said. "But they're all pretty jealous because I got to be in the parade."
But Huebscher really used his prize money to purchase a TV at Best Buy.
The seeker said he's not planning on trying to find the treasure again next year. "I'll probably give someone else a chance."
But he is planning on participating in the $4,000 treasure hunt for the Winter Carnival in St. Paul. What would he do with that prize? "I'd probably put that money in the bank."
Copyright 2007 SunThisWeek.