COMFREY — The Minnesota State Patrol reported an 81-year-old Comfrey man died in a two-vehicle crash at the intersection of Highway 71 and Highway 30 at Amboy Township, Cottonwood County at 10:13 a.m. Monday.

Jerry Lee Evers of Comfrey was driving a 2007 Chevrolet Silverado westbound on Highway 30 when he collided with a 2022 Nissan Rogue driven southbound on Highway 71 by Scott Bruce Burdorf, 54, Montevideo. Evers did not wear a seat belt and died in the crash, according to the State Patrol.

Burdorf wore a seat belt and was transported to a Windom Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Alcohol was not involved. The Windom Fire Dept. and ambulance, Jeffers fire and first responders assisted on scene.

Brothers Jeff and Bob Veerkamp knew Evers well and shared their thoughts about him.

“He liked to stay busy. He farmed, growing corn and beans and raising cattle and hogs and he had a trucking company,” said Evers’ son in law, Brown County Commissioner Jeff Veerkamp who manages the Comfrey C (convenience) store.

“He’s a big icon in town. He never gave up. He never retired. He was a very active guy, still buying land, farming big with pigs and cattle. He’s been here his entire life. He owned County Line Feed and Seed, until big hog operations around here began,” said Bob Veerkamp.

Working for Evers in 2012, Bob Veerkamp said he cared for couple thousand head of cattle and seven or eight thousand pigs that Evers owned.

“Jerry (Evers) came into the C store every morning for (soda) pop and to see what’s going on. We’re a tight little group out here in the middle of nowhere,” Veerkamp said.