'He really dedicated his life to this city:' Friends, city officials remember community leader killed in crash involving Milwaukee Co. deputy

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) --- At an event called Real Men, Real Talk on Monday, part of the conversation was about a man who used his voice and life to help the community. 

"Ceasar was a local hero," said Director of the Office of Violence Prevention Reggie Moore. 

He was talking about Ceasar Stinson, 47, a man who had been his friend for more than a decade. 

"It’s a loss for our entire community," Moore said. 

Stinson was killed Saturday in a crash involving a Milwaukee County Sheriff's deputy at 10th and State. According to the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office, the crash happened around 11:14 a.m. Saturday between a on-duty sheriff's deputy who was in an unmarked Sheriff's Office SUV and a vehicle Stinson and another person were in. 

In a statement, Sheriff Earnell Lucas said, “Our entire community grieves the loss of Mr. Stinson, a man who has made significant contributions to the quality of life in the city of Milwaukee. We pray that his family is comforted in knowing that his life had an impact on youth in our community. May his memory continue to inspire his family, friends and all who loved him.”

According to Milwaukee Public Schools, Stinson worked for the district since 2002. He had spent time working as a Legislative Policy Specialist. 

"Ceasar was a very intelligent and thoughtful individual who was a strong team member. He was passionate about young people in the district as well as in the community. His death is a great loss to Milwaukee Public Schools and also the entire city of Milwaukee," a statement from Superintendent Dr. Keith Posley said in part. 

"Every time you talked to him he had words of affirmation and encouragement," said Moore. "He always challenged everybody to work beyond what your vision, what you felt was an achievable goal, he always pushed you further."

 "When I saw that Ceasar had died in a crash, I didn’t know what to do, I didn’t know how to get up out of the bed 'cause this is somebody who's literally poured into me," said State Representative David Crowley. 

Crowley said he met Stinson when he was 18 or 19, organizing with a youth development organization. 

"He was a great family man, not just with his own, I felt like I was one of his children the way he poured into me."

"One of the things Ceasar always said was 'You can’t sit on the sideline, you gotta get in the game,'" said Kwabena Antoine Dixon, Stinson's friend. 

Dixon invited Stinson's family to be recognized at the Real Men, Real Talk to show them what an impact he had, and to show those in the crowd what it looks like to make an impact on people's lives. 

"We call Ceasar a man of culture, of style, of, you want to say, aficionado," said Dixon, "He was a man’s man, everything about him is. I would like to hang out with that guy."

The Milwaukee Police Department was called to the scene to investigate the crash. The department has not released any information yet about what led up to the crash. The Milwaukee County Sheriff's office says the deputy involved in the crash was discharged from a hospital. He was placed on administrative leave, per the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office policy.