Dayton Shooting Victim, Who Died in Son's Arms, Laid to Rest as Funerals Begin After Tragedy
Derrick Fudge, a victim of the Dayton mass shooting who died in his son’s arms, was laid to rest in Ohio on Saturday, one week after the tragedy that killed an additional eight people.
The funeral service for Fudge, 57, took place at St. John Missionary Baptist Church in Springfield, Ohio.
Mourners included Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley, as well as a crowd of people who didn’t know Fudge, but came in support of his many friends and family, WHIO reports.
His funeral program included a message from family members that read, “Your prayers, calls, visits, flowers, cards, food and other expressions of love have truly helped get us through this difficult time,” according to the local outlet.
RELATED: ‘Great Father’ Died in His Son’s Arms in Dayton Mass Shooting: ‘I Told Him I Love Him’
Fudge was enjoying a night out with his son, Dion Green, and other family members in Dayton’s Oregon District when he was shot outside of a bar.
Gunman Connor Betts was fatally shot by police 30 seconds after he opened fire.
“I saw him breathe real light, like a fish when you take it out of the water,” Green, 37, told PEOPLE of his dad. “He just looked at me, and I looked at him, in my arms. I told him I love him. Man, he was a great father. Everybody who knows him, they can’t say anything bad about him.”
RELATED VIDEO: PEOPLE’s Call to Action: Contact Congress to Ask What Is Being Done to Stop the Epidemic of Gun Violence
Fudge’s sister, Twyla Southall, told PEOPLE her brother loved cooking and painting, and was excited to paint the bedroom of his granddaughter, Green’s daughter Niara.
“He was a good guy. He loved his family. And he was happy and content with what he had and where he was, and just enjoying his life,” she said.
RELATED: Victims Identified in Dayton Mass Shooting That Killed 9, Injured 27
Green, Fudge’s only child, said he enjoyed fishing, playing cards and barbecuing with his dad.
Victims Beatrice N. Warren-Curtis, 36, Nicholas Cumer, 25, Logan Turner, 30, Saeed Saleh, 38, and Monica Brickhouse, 39, were all laid to rest on Saturday in funerals taking place in West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio, according to their obituaries.
Funerals for Lois Oglesby, 27, and 25-year-old Thomas McNichols will take place on Monday in Ohio, while services for the gunman’s sister Megan Betts have not been made public.
