A weekend car accident on U.S. 31 near Union Township claimed the life of a Lapaz man.

And while his wife and three children mourn his death, others in the community say the loss is even more widespread.

WNDU’s been getting calls and e-mails about Dwayne Cross since we reported the accident on our news Saturday.

We learned that in this accident, the community really lost someone special.

Cross' friends and family say his contribution was his dedication to his kids, and that in turn had an even bigger impact.

“Saturday morning when it happened, I mean, it came as just a huge shock to the family, I did a huge part of crying away from them,” said Michelle Cross, Dwayne’s wife.

Michelle thinks the way she told her 3 children that their father had passed away helped them deal with the terrible news..

“I let them know that even though we're not going to see his body anymore, his body's not going to play with us, we can talk to him anytime we want; and he's up there with Jesus and he's up there being an angel watching us,” Michelle said.

That's given Michelle and her children some comfort; the kids didn't even miss a day of school.

But their school is missing Dwayne, too.

“He was the epitome of parent involvement. He was here about 3 times a week. He always said that his job at Notre Dame gave him the freedom to be the kind of parent he wanted to be,” said John Farthing, Principal of Laville Elementary.

Dwayne worked the midnight shift part-time for Notre Dame Security Police, freeing up his days to be with his family.

“He would eat lunch with them. He would play out at recess with not only his kids, but other kids here at Laville. It’s been rough all week on the kids and the teachers everyone knows some thing's missing,” Farthing said.

Dwayne volunteered as a mentor at the school, and coached a soccer team at Newton Park.

Michelle says family was always Dwayne’s focus.

“It’s not about bringing home the money. It’s not about working all the time. It’s about being a good dad to your kids and loving them and playing with them all the time and building a legacy in them. Instead of anything else, you're building a legacy in them,” Michelle said.

Michelle says frankly she's surprised at how much of an impact Dwayne had at the school, and surprised at the tremendous amount of support her family's received over the last few days.

Cross will be receiving full military honors at his funeral, because he served in the Marines.

Funeral arrangements are as follows:

Funeral services will be held at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 16, in the Lakeville United Methodist Church. Rev. Steve Cox and Rev. Larry Dimick will officiate.

Military services will follow. Friends may visit with the family from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 15th, in the Palmer Funeral Home, Lakeville, and one hour prior to services in the church on Thursday.

Fellowship meal will be served at the Lapaz Community Building immediately following the funeral services.