Minnesota Funeral Set for Bobby Vee

Funeral is noon at St. John's Abbey Church in Collegeville

Fans will say a final goodbye to 1960s pop star Bobby Vee next week.

Vee died Monday of advanced Alzheimer’s disease at age 73. He had been in hospice care in Rogers, northwest of Minneapolis, in recent weeks. 

Vee’s funeral will be held Wednesday, November 2, 2016  at noon at St. John’s Abbey Church in Collegeville. Visitation is set for Tuesday, November 1.

Born Robert Velline in Fargo, North Dakota, Vee was 15 when he filled in at a Moorhead concert after the 1959 plane crash that killed rock ‘n’ roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson. That launched a career for Vee that included chart-topper “Take Good Care of My Baby,” “Run to Him,” and other hits.

Vee retired from performing in 2011 after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.