Grand Ledge man killed in crash was MDOC employee, U.S. Army vet

GRAND LEDGE — Jose "Joe" Diaz worked in a prison, surrounded by darkness and drama, but he was the opposite of that image: Smart. Funny. Positive. Passionate about his family.

That's how family members described the U.S. Army veteran and state Department of Corrections employee on Tuesday, four days after a tragic crash in rural Eaton County took his life.

"He had an infectious laugh; everyone knows him for his laugh," said his wife, Nicole. "When he would laugh, his body would shake. He didn't stay still and laugh."

"His family was his world," son Diego Diaz said.

"He was everyone's Uncle Joe," another family member said.

The crash happened about 10:10 p.m. Friday on St. Joseph Highway at Cochran Road, southwest of Grand Ledge in Oneida Township, just a couple of miles away from his home. Diaz, 55, was driving east when he lost control before striking a fence and a tree, Michigan State Police said. He was ejected from his vehicle and was dead at the scene, they said.

A memorial service is set for 11 a.m. Tuesday (Dec. 17) at Trinity Church, 3355 Dunckel Road. Visitation was set for 10 a.m. that day.

As of Wednesday morning, a crowdfunding campaign had raised more than $10,800 to help the family.

Joe and Nicole Diaz are from the Lansing area and had been together since they were teenagers. Both served in the U.S. Army. They have three children: son Joaquin, daughter Olivia and son Diego.

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Joe Diaz did three years of active duty and six years in the reserves, leaving the Army in 1997, Nicole said. His job at the Ionia Correctional Facility, also known as "I-max," was difficult, but he refused to be drawn in by the "drama" and never brought his job home, the family said.

Joe loved traveling, and they went to destinations far and wide, including Mexico, Costa Rica and Canada, the family said. He loved hiking and the outdoors, and there were a lot of trips to Colorado, they said.

For Nicole's birthdays, he insisted on the two of them going up north, she said.

"He was a Christ follower," Nicole said. "He did have faith, and we were very comforted by that."

Contact Ken Palmer at kpalmer@lsj.com. Follow him on X @KBPalm_lsj.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Grand Ledge man killed in crash was MDOC employee, U.S. Army vet