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Martin Kane, shown with daughters Ashlyn and Addison, served as the assistant kitchen manager at the Cody’s Original Roadhouse in Lake Sumter Landing. He died April 17 after being diagnosed with cancer a few days earlier.

Employees of Cody’s Original Roadhouse in The Villages and area residents gathered Friday to pay tribute to a colleague who died suddenly of cancer last month.

A remembrance gathering was held at the Lake Sumter Landing Cody’s restaurant, where 37-year-old Martin Kane worked as the assistant kitchen manager. Kane died April 17 at Brandley Hospice House in Summerfield while surrounded by family members. He had worked at Cody’s for 10 years, according to owner/operator Allen Musikantow, who said his staff was in shock after hearing of Kane’s death following a brief battle with cancer.

A GoFundMe page was created after Kane’s death to raise money for his family, including his daughters Ashlyn and Addison, ages 12 and seven. As of Friday, $13,490 of a $20,000 goal had been raised by 151 donors. The page, which can be accessed by clicking HERE, also had been shared 498 times.

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Members of the Duffers Club of the Vietnam Veterans of America donated $820 to help Martin Kane’s family during the remembrance event for him at the Cody’s Original Roadhouse restaurant in Lake Sumter Landing on Friday morning.

On Friday, Cody’s staff members gathered at the popular eatery and remembered their friend and colleague. They were joined by Patty Tekampe, the director of provider and community relations at Advanced Dermatology, who committed to help with any shortfalls in funds for Kane’s family, Musikantow said.

Members of the Duffers Club of the Vietnam Veterans of America also attended the memorial. The group pitches in each week while playing golf and donates funds to a needy server in The Villages. On Friday, they provided $820 for Kane’s family, Musikantow said.

Musikantow said his entire staff and several area residents attended the event and added that a plaque in remembrance of Kane will hang in the kitchen of the Lake Sumter Landing eatery.

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Patty Tekampe, director of provider and community relations at Advanced Dermatology, poses with Dean Turner, director of operations for the local Cody’s Original Roadhouse restaurants, during a remembrance for Martin Kane on Friday morning. Kane died of cancer last month and Tekampe committed to help with any shortfalls in funds for Kane’s family, according to owner/operator Allen Musikantow.

Kane also worked as a manager/butcher for many years in the culinary industry. In his spare time, he enjoyed golfing, bowling, baseball and spending time with his daughters, according to an obituary published on legacy.com.

Kane, who was from Houston, Texas, was survived by his parents, Martin A. Kane Sr. and Irene Sanderfer Kane; daughters Ashlyn and Addison Kane; sister, Diana Fitch; brothers, Bobby Fitch (Angie) and James Fitch; and numerous aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and close friends, according to the obituary.