2-vehicle crash in Red Wing kills activist for refugees, developmentally challenged

Frank Anderson of Zumbro Falls died in a wreck in Red Wing.

January 30, 2018 at 12:57PM
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A two-vehicle crash in Red Wing killed a 63-year-old man who spent many years doing relief work in war-torn parts of the world, was an advocate for the developmentally challenged and helped found the Rochester Farmers Market in 1985.

Frank Anderson of nearby Zumbro Falls died late Saturday morning at the scene of the wreck parallel to Hwy. 61, police said.

A motorist told police about a car leaving the road "at a high rate of speed" and then pointed out tire tracks in the ditch near Charles Avenue and S. Service Drive, a statement from police read.

An officer located Anderson's car pinned beneath a large pickup truck.

Officers found Anderson in his car. He was unconscious, and emergency responders' efforts to revive him did not succeed, police said.

"Frank was dedicated to relief work in war-torn areas" with the American Refugee Committee in Southeast Asia, the Balkan Peninsula and Afghanistan, according to his online obituary.

He also was a "committed advocate for the developmentally challenged," while working at Bear Creek Services in Rochester and ARRM in St. Paul, the obituary said.

He was an avid farmer, animal lover, hunter, fisherman and musician, the obituary noted. He bought 180-acre Surin Farms in Zumbro Falls in the 1980s and in 1985 helped start the Rochester Farmers Market, according to the Rochester Post-Bulletin.

Anderson graduated from Benilde High School in St. Louis Park and received his undergraduate degree in English education and literature from the University of Minnesota.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482

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Paul Walsh

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Paul Walsh is a general assignment reporter at the Minnesota Star Tribune. He wants your news tips, especially in and near Minnesota.

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