Craig Middle School is mourning the loss of a man who always had a smile on his face, who was passionate about his job as band director, and who wanted his students to be great musicians.

Cecil Darby, who turned 65 just last week, died early Tuesday of an illness believed to brain cancer, said Jack Nall, principal at Craig.

Darby complained Friday of not feeling well before school started, and after a trip to the nurse's office, he went home, where he was found unconscious, Nall said. Darby was taken to a local hospital and then was flown to a hospital in Lubbock, where he later died.

"He wasn't one to complain about not feeling well," Nall said. "He never misses class."

Craig band students were told of Darby's death in a meeting Tuesday morning with Nall, counselors and Paul Walker, the band director of Abilene High School.

Walker, who lives near Darby, said band students were very emotional after hearing the news.

"They're all shocked. It all happened so suddenly. Some of them instantly started crying," Walker said, adding that many students wrote notes to Darby and his wife, Carol, who is the school's orchestra director, during the meeting. The students also spent time sharing stories about Darby, Walker said.

Nall said Darby was loved by his students.

"Mr. Darby was a good band director. He wanted his students to be very successful, very well trained (in music) and to make good grades."

Cecil and Carol Darby have been instructors at the school since its opening two years ago. Previously, Darby was an instructor at Lincoln and Clack Middle Schools, and also taught at a middle school in Pampa, Nall and Walker said.

Darby wasn't just a fixture in Abilene schools, he was well known in the Big Country as a businessman and public servant, according to Dois Pace, who had known him since 1965.

Darby served in the Army for several years after being drafted during the Vietnam War era, and when he left the military, he returned to teaching, said Pace, who lives in Andrews. He took over his father's lumber store in Ballinger, running it for many years, he added. Darby also served on the Ballinger City Council during the early '80s, according to Reporter-News archives.

"Cecil is a great person, very loyal and a tremendous friend," Pace said. "He was always there whenever need be ... he had a very good sense of humor that was very dry. You were always gonna laugh around him."

Craig library aid Kathy Zabloudil said Darby was always smiling.

"He was a terrific guy. We're all shocked," she said.

Traci Crawford, a former student of Darby's who graduated last year from Abilene High School, said she remembers Darby as always banging his wand on a music stand.

Crawford heard of the news Tuesday while visiting Abilene High School and went to Craig to see how her former teachers were handling the news. She said she played the trumpet under Darby's tutelage. According to Pace, Darby was himself a trumpet player.

Darby helped her with a solo ensemble, and thanks to him, she got a medal, Crawford said.

Funeral arrangements were still pending and were not immediately available.