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
Frank Keck: Benefits of developing a strong workplace culture
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary about workplace culture are the author’s alone. Check out a previous column by Frank Keck here. “We know that engaged managers and employees are much more likely to remain in an organization, leading to fewer hires from outside the organization. This results in: Lower wage costs for…
Downtown space levels up with ‘Novel Coworking’ name change
About seven months after arriving in Kansas City, one of the area’s newest coworking spaces has announced a name change. Chicago-based Level Office — which opened a studio in downtown Kansas City in February — announced Monday a rebrand to become Novel Coworking. The revamp more accurately represents the company’s mission to amplify its customers,…
Photos: KC Coworking Day sings virtues of big ideas in startup spaces
KC Coworking Day is a celebration of people whose vision exceeds their circumstances, said Bob Martin. “If you’re an entrepreneur, and you have a vision, I hope your vision is so big that you’re uncomfortable sharing it with everybody — that there’s only a handful of people to whom you’re going to say, ‘This is…
Digital Sandbox startup Fast Democracy building non-partisan social database for tracking legislation
Today’s political climate demands not only a better-informed public, but accurate tools to help voters arm themselves with timely information, said Sara Baker, co-founder of Fast Democracy. The Kansas City-based startup — one of four early-stage businesses recently accepted into Digital Sandbox KC — aims to help people “touch their democracy” through its non-partisan web…