Dave St. Peter’s first involvement in the Twin Cities pro sports market was as an intern in communications for the North Stars for six months in 1989. The other intern in that department was Judd Zulgad, now a featured attraction on numerous podcasts for the outlet cleverly titled “SKOR North.”
St. Peter’s timing was solid, as he left Dec. 31, 1989, to take an internship with the Twins. The North Stars were about to embark on the ownership chaos involving the Gund brothers wanting out, the arrival of Howie “the Hairdo” Baldwin and wife, Karen, as alleged owners, and finally Norm Green — briefly heroic during the 1991 playoff run, later vilified for moving the franchise to Dallas in 1993.
The first assignment was to be the Twins’ marketing contact with Leaf Brands candy company. The daily presence of these treats caused St. Peter to develop an affinity for Milk Duds and he said: “I must have gained 15 pounds that summer.”
The Twins offered him a full-time job — in retail sales, running the Twins merchandise store at the Hub shopping center in Richfield.
“We were coming off a poor season, and we were selling more hats and jerseys for other teams than the Twins early in the year,” St. Peter said. “And then we made it to the World Series, and it was crazy.
“People were lined up Monday and Tuesday. We opened early on Wednesday. And then the snow started. We were shut down for three days.”
Thirty-three years later, St. Peter shook his head in dismay at those lost tens of thousands and said: “The Halloween Blizzard. It killed us.”
As St. Peter’s career with the Twins progressed, there would be other obstacles that seemed mightier than a 28.4-inch, two-day snowstorm. That has made the blue-collar kid from Bismarck, N.D., a memorable survivor as he officially stepped down as the president and CEO of Minnesota’s baseball organization Tuesday.
