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Naperville Grade School Begins To Cope With Loss Of Slain Teacher

NAPERVILLE, Ill. (CBS) –- Parents and children on Monday were trying to come to grips with the weekend stabbing death of Naperville second-grade teacher Shaun Wild.

Outside Spring Brook Elementary School, the sign read, "Mr. Wild, we have lost someone special."

"For a 24-year-old man, he had more compassion for children than I have ever seen in any 24-year-old man my entire life," parent Karen Santos told CBS 2's Vince Gerasole.  "He saw more in my daughter than she ever saw in herself and it made her work."

Wild had been in the classroom for barely a year but was a remarkable young teacher, Principal Dave Worst said.

"Shaun was one of those people that everybody who met him was a better person because of that," Worst said.

The parents of his second-graders and their children were invited to the school to receive counseling on the violent circumstances of Wild's death.

Wild was at Frankies Blue Room in Naperville late Friday night. His college buddy, Willie Hayes, had been stabbed by a man he didn't know, and Wild came rushing to his aid only to be fatally wounded.

Authorities say Dan Olaska, 27, was insulted when Hayes commented on the beer he was drinking from a wine glass and a fight ensued. The 27-year-old, with no criminal history and employed as an aviation manager, has been charged with first-degree murder.

Olaska's parents released a statement Monday, saying, "Nothing could have prepared us for this tragedy. Our hearts and prayers go out to the Wild family and all other people involved."

Children encountering the death of a beloved teacher are also finding meaning in Shaun Wild's life.

"It's really like losing a family member more than your daughter's teacher," parent Vishal Mehta said.

Also Monday, funeral arrangements were announced for Wild, who hailed from Wisconsin.

His visitation will be held Thursday at Brown Deer High School in Brown Deer, Wis. Visitation begins at 5 p.m., with a memorial service starting at 7 p.m.

A private funeral will be held Friday at Our Lady of Good Hope Catholic Church in Milwaukee.

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