Lasvegas, NV : North Las Vegas Police detective killed in crash mourned as kind public servant on Tuesday, January 17th 2017

Days before Christmas, Detective Chad Parque told his wife about a teen in the North Las Vegas Police Explorer Program who couldn't afford to buy supplies. She didn't think much about it until a package arrived at her house after her husband's death.

In the box "she sees a brand new pair of work boots" he had bought for the teen, said Metro Police Sgt. Todd Richter, honoring Parque during a Tuesday afternoon service at Henderson's Central Christian Church.

Parque, 32, had also taken out an old shoe shining kit in order to shine the teen's boots or teach him how to do it. "Even after he's gone, he's still making an impact and he's trying his best to serve his community, which if you know Chad, that's him," Richter said.

Hundreds of people — including Parque's family, police from Nevada and several other states, firefighters, and community members — gathered at the church to celebrate the detective's life.

Parque died Jan. 7, hours after suffering critical injuries in a crash on Martin Luther King Boulevard, near Carey Avenue, caused by a wrong-way driver, police said. The 10-year veteran was on duty and had just left the North Las Vegas Justice Court.

A low rumble from North Las Vegas Police, Metro Police and Nevada Highway Patrol motorcycles broke the somber quiet at the church's entrance minutes before a truck carrying Parque’s American-flag-draped casket, which was accompanied by an honor guard, arrived.

Two family members, one apparently his wife, were flanked by two officers. One of the women carried Parque's police-uniform hat. Scottish bagpipes and drums sounded off during parts of the procession and ceremony.

Once inside, the solemn mood was lightened by anecdotes from police representatives. About a dozen wreaths and several plants decorated the stage. On either side of the podium were two photos of Parque, one in his police uniform and a black-and-white image of him, his wife, their daughter and their dog.

Parque's interest in joining the police force began when he was a young boy.

At age 15, he got in touch with the Metro Police Explorers program and hung around the program's representatives until he turned 16 and was able to officially join. While in the program, he climbed the ranks from sergeant to captain.

Around age 20, Parque moved on to the North Las Vegas police department as a civilian report taker.

Not long after, he went on his first ride-along with Detective Michael Yarter, who related the following story:

Parque's excitement radiated during the supervisor's briefing with officers. "Chad looked like a kid in the candy store," his eyes were wide open and he wanted to touch everything in the car, Yarter explained.

And as the story goes, Parque would have the first interaction with a suspect within the first five minutes of the broad-daylight ride-along.

Parque turned to Yarter and told him about a teen who was walking down a North Las Vegas street carrying a stereo.

The teen took off when he saw the cruiser and before Yarter could say anything, Parque, who was only equipped with a police radio, took off running after him. Eventually —with Parque's help — police tracked down the suspect.

Parque was "so happy," Yarter recalled.

In his years as an officer and later a detective — a rank he was promoted to last summer — Parque aimed to be a role model to the younger suspects he would encounter during arrests, and who appeared to be headed toward a life of crime, North Las Vegas Police Chief Alex Perez said.

Perez read a post that popped up on one of the agency's social media accounts after Parque's death: "I was so mad at you for coming to court on me and getting that judge to give me that nine months, (but) you saved my life in 2011 and I will never forget."

"Quite often officers don't get to see the outcome of their good intentions in this job, but Chad always tried his best to make his impact," Perez said.

The speakers onstage and several of Parque's colleagues featured in a video highlighted Parque's work ethic and personality. For example, his favorite color was blue, he kept a tidy desk with a wall dedicated to family photos. He and another officer were "sneaker heads" who went out some Saturdays to different stores looking for new and hard-to-find models.

One of his superiors said Parque's detective skills were so outstanding, he was always eager to read his reports to learn new tactics.

Parque and his wife had been together from the time they were 16. Their daughter is 3 years old.

A photo montage in the video showed Parque, who was a New York Yankees fan, and his little girl walking upstairs hand-in-hand in vertical white-and-black striped jerseys.

The procession left the church about 2:45 p.m. toward Parque's final resting place at Palm Mortuary at Jones Boulevard and Deer Springs Way in northwest Las Vegas.

The crash that killed Parque remains under investigation, spokeswoman officer Ann Cavaricci said Tuesday. It still isn't immediately clear why the woman in the car that hit the detective was on the wrong side of the road.

Parque is the third North Las Vegas police officer killed in the line of duty since the department's 1946 inception.

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North Las Vegas Police detective killed in crash mourned as kind public servant