As Stepdaughter Graduates, Stepfather Killed in Wright County Crash

A St. Michael man was killed in a two-vehicle collision Saturday afternoon as, hundreds of miles away, his stepdaughter received her pharmacy degree in commencement ceremonies in Brookings, S.D.

Monticello High School graduate Amber Olson was a decorated track athlete for the Magic, and traveled southwest to continue her career at South Dakota State University.

Though injuries and studies pulled her out of track, she completed her goal of becoming a pharmacist Saturday in ceremonies. Her stepfather, Gerald Jenson, had stayed behind because of work obligations, Olson shared on social media. Her mother was in attendance.

Jenson was traveling in his Pontiac Vibe along County Road 35 near the historic Immanuel Lutheran Church in Buffalo Township, near the county highway’s intersection with Edmonson Road. He collided at the intersection with a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck driven by 40-year-old Eric Fobbe of Buffalo. The two cars careened into the cemetery adjacent to Immanuel, with Jenson’s car striking the church. The truck, which rolled, struck several headstones before coming to rest on its roof.

Fobbe and two young children were extricated from the car, according to Wright County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Lt. Todd Hoffman. They were transported to Buffalo Hospital, where they were treated for non-life threatening injuries, by Allina Ambulance.

Jenson was airlifted by Air Care Ambulance to Hennepin County Medical Center for his injuries, but he did not survive. Reports state he died at the hospital.

Hoffman was Wright County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating the crash. Drugs and alcohol are not suspected, he told KARE 11 in a report. Conditions were dry on the roads due to good weather last weekend.

There is damage to the church and to the headstones that will need repair, Hoffman told KARE 11 staff.