Interesting Stuff
Santa Memory Of Long Ago
December 25, 2020 
We got the following Christmas note from David Zarkin, a former Statesman staffer who was obviously strolling down memory lane from his Minnesota home.
“Vernon Bisterfeldt, a Boise cop, working off duty as a Santa, nabbed a shoplifter in 1965 at Welles department store on the Boise Bench.
“I was doing rewrite on the Statesman night desk and wrote up a short story with a photo from a staff lensman.
“Backlash came the next day when a reader called in to complain that I ruined the Santa story for her kids. Sorry.”
To insure more advertising-free Boise Guardian news, please consider financial support.
Comments & Discussion
Comments are closed for this post.
© 2020 Boise Guardian. 
Dec 25, 2020, 1:37 pm
Vern Bisterfeldt: a gentleman and a truly great Idahoan. As a cop, a county commissioner, a city councilman, always looking out for the public good.
Dec 26, 2020, 10:32 am
The then cop often gave us the gift of a Santa. Sending us rowdies home with a warning and a threat to have our parents put us on the naughty list next time. Back when most cops were viewed as respected community members in the early sixties, not just heartless enforcers.