MERRILLVILLE, Ind. -- Mourners packed a church Monday for the funeral of a retired Lake County police chief who was killed along with a state trooper last week when a van struck them as they were bicycling to raise money for fallen comrades' relatives.

Our Lady of Consolation Church, which holds 1,200 people, overflowed, and those not able to get in could watch the service for Gary Martin on a video screen. Motorcycles lined up outside, and more than 400 police officers processed into the church and into the overflow area.

"We come because we want to be here," said Indiana State Police Superintendent Paul Whitesell. "It's a matter of shared concern, shared empathy and shared admiration and respect for shared vulnerabilities. When one of us falls, it's a major portion of all of us. So we want to make sure that they know how much we appreciated their sacrifice."

As many as 800 cars could join the procession following a hearse carrying Martin's coffin from the Merrillville church to St. Mary's Russian Orthodox Cemetery in nearby Gary, said Sgt. Jeff Carie of the state Fraternal Order of Police Memorial Team.

During visitation Sunday at a Crown Point funeral home, hundreds of people turned out to pay their respects to the 62-year-old Martin.

"He was a great professor, a good friend and a good mentor to a lot of people," said Troy Czarnecki, a former student of Martin's at Indiana University-Northwest.

Martin, a 25-year veteran of the Gary Police Department before moving to the Sheriff's Department in 2002, also taught hundreds of police officers in criminal justice classes at Indiana University-Northwest.

He and Indiana State Police Lt. Gary Dudley, a 26-year veteran who served as commander of the Indiana State Police Academy, were struck and killed Aug. 22 by a support van along a western Indiana highway.

The deadly accident happened when a freight truck plowed into the back of the van that was assisting 10 riders taking part in a 1,100-mile trek that raises money for Indiana Concerns of Police Survivors, which benefits fallen officers' families.

Danny Overley, an Indiana Fraternal Order of Police specialist in planning officers' funerals, said the two services were expected to draw thousands of mourners from across the nation.

Keith Gill, president of the Indiana State Police Alliance, said law enforcement groups from New Jersey to New Mexico have contacted the alliance seeking details about the funerals.

Visitation for Dudley is from 2 until 8 p.m. at Connection Pointe Christian Church at 1800 North Green Street in Brownsburg. The funeral is at the same church on Tuesday at 11 a.m.