Crossroads distillery asks KC to make a toast in honor of founder lost in weekend motorcycle wreck
July 22, 2025 | Tommy Felts
Update: A crowdfunding campaign has been launched to support the family of the late Jeff Evans. Click here to learn more or to donate.
With doors temporarily closed early this week (July 21-22) to mourn the loss of co-founder Jeff Evans, the team behind Mean Mule Distilling is asking its community to “grieve with us, raise a glass with us, and share the stories and laughter he gave us.”
Jeff Evans, Mean Mule Distilling; courtesy photo
Evans passed away in a motorcycle accident over the weekend, the popular Crossroads-based distillery announced Tuesday in an Instagram post.
“It’s with shattered hearts that we share the loss of our founder and friend,” the note read. “Jeff was the heart and soul of Mean Mule. His spirit, humor, and craftsmanship shaped everything we are. Alongside his wife and our cofounder, Meg, Jeff built more than a distillery — he built a community.”
The business was closed Monday and Tuesday at 1733 Locust St., but expected to reopen Wednesday, with Mean Mule encouraging people to submit “Jeff Stories” to be shared with Evans’ wife and team.
Click here to add memories of Jeff Evans.
Click here learn more about a GoFundMe campaign to aid the Evans family.
“Our team needs time to grieve and process this immense loss, but we … welcome all who knew and loved Jeff to come by in the coming weeks,” the post read.
“Supporting our business is supporting us. If you’d like to honor him, find a bottle or can of Mean Mule at your local shop and make a toast to him.”
Click here to shop online or here to find Mean Mule products locally.
Potential memorial service details are expected to be shared at a later time.
“We don’t yet know what the coming days, weeks, or months will look like, but we’ll keep you updated here as we find our way forward,” the post said.
Evans’ fellow entrepreneurs were among the first to express shock and begin sharing condolences on social media Tuesday.
“So incredibly sad. I’m heartbroken,” wrote Jordan Fox, the serial founder of Foxtrot Studio, Garden House Cafe, and High and Dry Cactus. “Jeff was an immense presence and an absolute joy to be around. He truly cared and he let you know that. He was a true friend to so many and I know that the response to this will be felt and seen throughout the community because he was a real, quality human.”
Click here to contribute to the Jeff Evans crowdfunding campaign.
2025 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Hollywood Animation Academy secures home at Centriq; set to begin first classes in January
Hollywood Animation Academy is leaping from the drawing board to live action in January with its first group of enrolled students. Founded by veteran director and animator Gavin Dell, the trade school is set to prepare students for jobs in the film, gaming, and television industry. Dell, an Overland Park native, returned to Kansas City…
KC duo opens candy shop at Mizzou, bringing familiar flavors to students far from home
COLUMBIA, Missouri — A pair of Mizzou students from the Kansas City area are providing international students on campus with a taste of home. Kogo’s Kandies sells candy and treats from other countries, with the goal of fostering a more inclusive campus environment at the University of Missouri, said co-founders Jacob Burrell-Kogo and Henry Accardo.…
Custom digital avatar tech, affordable housing startup among Scale’s third cohort
Startland News’ Startup Road Trip series explores innovative and uncommon ideas finding success in rural America and Midwestern startup hubs outside the Kansas City metro. This series is possible thanks to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, which leads a collaborative, nationwide effort to identify and remove large and small barriers to new business creation. COLUMBIA,…
Vytelle doubles its bovine IVF lab capacity; outpacing goals since its $13.2M round
A five-year plan initiated by Vytelle’s Series A funding round called for the agtech startup to double its laboratory capacity to produce bovine embryos through in vitro fertilization. Just a year later, the Lenexa-headquarted company already has opened its fifth new lab. Vytelle’s latest facility — in Franklin, Tennessee — is accessible to beef and dairy…