They wanted to pay their respects to the star linebacker who died Tuesday. And every single one of them seemed to be wearing a seat belt.

	Chiefs fans, from left, Vivian Franklin, Kirbie Begeman and Kim Franklin participate in a candlelight vigil for Derrick Thomas held at Arrowhead Stadium on Wednesday night.

"It relieved a lot of grief, knowing that he touched so many lives," said Ira Truss, among those who spent hours at a candlelight vigil.

In the long run, persuading people to wear seat belts could be the most enduring legacy of all for the nine-time All-Pro who died Tuesday, 16 days after being thrown from his car on an icy Missouri highway.

"This morning, when I took my daughter to school, we were talking about Derrick and she helped me decorate the car with Chiefs' stuff," Jeyn Miller of Shawnee, Kan., said.

Before they pulled out of the driveway, 6-year-old Stephanie spoke up.

"Mom, you decorated the car for Derrick," she said. "Now put your seat belt on for him."

Miller wiped away tears.

"I never used to use my seat belt," she said. "Now I'll never fail to use it."

Fans also gathered to remember how Thomas touched their lives and the lives of others.

"He was an inspiration in my life," Paul Truss said.

Added former Chiefs player Otis Taylor: "He lived life. He really enjoyed it."

Fans also spent the day placing wreaths and mementos at Thomas' home in Independence, east of the stadium.

"It's because of Derrick Thomas," 6-year-old David Weaver said.

Three men were riding in Thomas' car that snowy afternoon heading for Kansas City International Airport. Michael Tellis, Thomas' best friend, died instantly when the car skidded and flipped over several times. Thomas suffered a broken neck and back and was facing the possibility of lifetime paralysis before he died from a blood clot in an artery between his lungs and his heart.

A third man, who was wearing a seat belt, walked away with only minor injuries.

From Chiefs fans to coaches, a city mourning one of its most popular athletes has taken notice.

"I've had several tickets for not wearing seat belts," coach Gunther Cunningham said. "I never wore them. But last week, I was halfway to work and realized I didn't have it on and I panicked.

"I pulled over and put it right on. I'll wear it every time I drive now."

At least he can quit lying to his wife.

"Every morning -- every morning -- I get up and she says the same thing. `I love you. Please wear your seat belt,"' Cunningham said.

"And every morning I've said I will. Until this happened, I never did. But I do now. Every time I buckle up, I'll know why. And I will buckle up."

Lt. Chris Ricks of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, who spoke with the officers who investigated the crash, would like nothing better.

"That would be a tremendous legacy for Derrick and for his family and the Chiefs," Ricks said. "We don't know what would have happened if he'd had his seat belt on. But we do know the one person in that car who did have his seat belt on walked away from it."

Thousands of fans, some visibly shaken, streamed into the Arrowhead Stadium parking lot where two radio stations were doing a simulcast and collecting donations to Third and Long, Thomas' foundation that promotes reading among young people.

About $12,000 had been raised by early evening.

One of the stations, KYYS-FM, ran out of 20,000 stickers bearing Thomas' jersey No. 58 and promised to print more.

Three hours after they began accepting donations in two cardboard boxes, workers had to go to a bank across the street to open an account because both boxes were stuffed full.

"They wouldn't hold any more," said Max Floyd of KYYS.

Some people dropped in loose change, others stuffed checks into the box, and one man in a business suit took a $100 bill out of his pocket and dropped it through the slot.

"This is so sad, it's hard to talk about," Robin Henson of Kansas City, Kan., said. "I'm a school bus driver, and those kids this morning were just devastated. They all felt like they knew him."

At the front entrance of the stadium, people laid flower wreaths and hand-written poems, pictures of Thomas and teddy bears wearing Chiefs jersey No. 58.

Cunningham spent Tuesday and Wednesday calling Chiefs players all over the country to give them the tragic news and help them over the shock.

One, linebacker Greg Manusky, had heard the announcement on his car radio and stopped at a store to buy several items on his way home.

"The bill was $58.58," Cunningham said. "We talked for more than half an hour."