David "Dave" R. Torigian

David “Dave” Russell Torigian more commonly called Dave or Papa, was born on February 3, 1952 in Aberdeen, South Dakota to George Torigian and Eunice Blake Torigian, both of whom preceded him in death in addition to his older sister, Conni Torigian Hieb.  His younger sister, Merri Torigian Hokana still resides near Aberdeen.  For those who don’t know, you can get to Aberdeen by following the yellow brick road - look it up!

Dave grew up looking and (usually) acting older than he was, allotting him opportunities to work and drive at a young age, most often at the family produce and beer distribution company.  After a couple years at the college down the street from his childhood home, he took the advice of a university speaker who encouraged all students to “get serious or get out”- he dropped out and moved to Minneapolis to start anew.

After moving in with six strangers (some of whom would become dear friends) and studying at Control Data Institute, Dave eventually took what he thought was a 6-month temp job at Honeywell Solid State Electronics in Plymouth, MN.  There he eventually met Mary Bolduc Torigian who was able to crack the code to get to know the quiet and private man.  This time very much getting serious, Dave was married to Mary for over 43 years, and he remained at Honeywell for nearly 50 years.

Mary and Dave lived together in Crystal until they moved to Hopkins earlier this year, and they had two children- Stacie Torigian Settergren (37) and Alec Torigian (34).  Stacie lives with her husband, Matt, and three children, George (7), Annika (5), and Connor (2) in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota.  The grandkids can be found bringing smiles to the faces of pretty much everyone they meet, much like they always brought to Dave.  Alec lives in northwest Indiana and can be found pretty much anywhere but there.

A strong-willed, quiet, faith-filled, and caring family man, Dave was quick to lend a hand and always put others first.  His legacy will live on in all those for whom he was a role model and friend.

All are welcome to join at the St. Joseph Catholic Community Parish Center at 8701 36th Ave. N. in New Hope for a visitation at 12:30 PM followed by a funeral Mass at 1:30 PM.  The rite of committal will immediately follow the funeral service at Gethsemane Cemetery at 8151 N 42nd Ave. in New Hope followed by a coffee social back at St. Joseph’s.

For memorial contributions, the family has suggested donations to the Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE) using the information listed on this website https://ace.nd.edu/support . (ACE is an organization that Dave supported in the past, and the ACE community's flexibility and care, especially in the last couple years, immensely lightened the Torigian family load.)

An on demand video recording of Dave's Mass will be available later in the afternoon.