Hundreds of people on Saturday packed the Samoan Assembly of God in San Francisco to pay their final respects to slain UPS worker Mike Lefiti.
Lefiti, who is known to almost everyone as "Big Mike," and two other UPS workers were killed on June 14 at a UPS facility in San Francisco when a fellow colleague opened fire before turning the gun on himself.
"This death took me by surprise because when I heard about it, the first thing I said was I hope that’s not where Mike worked," a loved one of Lefiti said during Saturday's service. "Went through the day not hearing nothing."
When news broke that Lefiti was one of the victims, family and community members recounted fond memories of the 46-year-old father of five and Hercules resident.
Lefiti was described by some as having the ability to put a smile on anyone's face at any given time, and despite his large and intimidating physique, he was "just a huge teddy bear," a person on his delivery route said. Lefiti's death prompted those he delivered packages to in the Diamond Heights neighborhood to construct a makeshift memorial in his honor.
His death also challenged others to cherish time with those closest to them.
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"Check in with your loved ones," a funeral attendee said. "You never know what's going to happen. So whether it be a text message, a phone call, FaceTime, you got so many avenues to say 'I love you' to somebody. Do it, because you may not get that chance again."
Lefiti was laid to rest at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma.
