NARANJA, Fla. -- A Monroe County deputy will be laid to rest Tuesday after he was killed in the line of duty last week.

Friends and family gathered at the Palm Woodlawn Funeral Home in Naranja Monday night to remember the 38-year-old Deputy Nick Pham who died the day before Thanksgiving when his unmarked cruiser crashed with a tractor-trailer in the Florida Keys.

"It’s just a sad tragedy that it happened to somebody of his character," said friend and former co-worker, Corporal Connie Moore of the Florida City Police Department.

Pham was remembered as a man who had high respect for the badge, someone who took great pride in his family.

The husband and father was on routine traffic patrol at the time of the crash. Pham died at the scene. Investigators believe his emergency lights were activated at the time of the crash. But detectives said it could take weeks before they determine who was at fault.

The truck driver was unhurt in the crash.

Pham once worked as a Miami-Dade Corrections officer and as a patrolman with the Florida City Police Department before he joined Monroe County as a deputy in 2004.

"It’s hard for me to move forward because he worked for me. I trained him. When you become that close to someone, it’s just hard to remove him from your memory or your thoughts," Moore said. “I just pray for peace for the family and the kids and hope God can see them through and make this an easy transition for the family."

Funeral services are scheduled for Tuesday at noon at the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Cutler Bay. Hundreds of law enforcement officers from across Florida are scheduled to take part.