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“He was literally the most caring and sincere person ever,” she said. “He would sacrifice everything he had for me and his students.”
Dan O’Kane, a Dayton native, spent many years working for Radio Shack before becoming an entrepreneur to spend more time with her, Colleen O’Kane said. He began teaching as a long-term sub in the Beavercreek school district in 2000 and worked at Toledo schools before moving into the Urbana district.
Dan O’Kane was a sports fanatic who rooted for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team and attended more than 10 Final Fours, she said.
“I went to a Notre Dame game almost every year with him through college,” Colleen O’Kane said. “We just celebrated his 60th birthday at the Final Four in Texas.”
O’Kane was a caring teacher at Urbana, evident by the outpouring of grief and support by his students on social media when his death was announced. He taught marketing and business basics and developed the school’s DECA program, Colleen O’Kane said.
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“He just loved his students,” she said. “And he did a lot for them.”
She said many of his students have reached out to her to tell her that Dan O’Kane had a big impact on their life.
“I think it is an overwhelming loss to the Urbana community,” Colleen O’Kane said. “The emails and text messages I received from people who don’t know me personally but want to tell me how much he meant to his students are amazing.”
A viewing will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Walter and Lewis Funeral Home, 642 S. Main St. in Urbana. A memorial mass will be held at 10 a.m. Friday at St. Mary Catholic Church, 231 Washington Ave. in Urbana.
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In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to be made to Urbana City Schools for the Dan O’Kane Scholarship.
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