Funeral being held Tuesday for former U.S. Sen. David Durenberger
COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. -- Minnesotans gathered Tuesday to honor the life of a former U.S. senator.
Republican Dave Durenberger passed away last week at the age of 88. The late senator's funeral was held in Collegeville Tuesday morning.
Durenberger exploded on the political stage in 1978, as part of what's known as the "Minnesota Massacre." The event catapulted Republicans into unexpected control of Minnesota's two U.S. Senate seats along with the governor's office.
READ MORE: Former U.S. Senator David Durenberger dies at age 88
He served 16 years in the Senate, carving out a reputation as a national expert on health care reform.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar spoke at the funeral, describing a breakfast she had with Durenberger soon after she was first elected to serve in Washington.
"Through the bluster of Washington, he found ways to bring those Benedictine values and that tradition of a belief in public service to the rest of the country," she said. "And in sticking to those values of stewardship, he made such incredible progress."
After his time in Washington was over, Klobuchar said "he did not stop mentoring and trying to do good. And as a result, he did good."
Gov. Tim Walz also spoke at the funeral.
"Dave's ability to be in the moment with anybody - you can rest assured that the person he met in a coffee shop in Albert Lea held the same attention the Dalai Lama had," he said.
