LIBERTY, MO. ? Even as their minivan filled with floodwater, Robert and Melissa Rogers tried to comfort their four children, singing Bible songs and praying.

The waters eventually carried the suburban Kansas City family’s minivan off the Kansas Turnpike near Emporia on Saturday as they returned from a family wedding. The children’s bodies were found on Sunday. Melissa Rogers’ body was found Tuesday, along with the body of Al Larsen, 31, of Fort Worth, Texas, who had been in a separate car.

The Rogerses’ neighbor, Mica Broyles, said the Rogerses’ faith and calm came as no surprise. The couple was active in the Northland Abundant Life Worship Center, where they helped with youth Bible quizzes, and Robert sometimes played piano.

“Their whole life is to glorify God,” said Broyles, who talked Monday to Robert Rogers.

Rogers told Broyles that when the water got to the steering wheel, he broke out a window of the van but was swept out of the vehicle. He had retained hope that his wife had survived until her body was found.

Now, Rogers, 37, tries to rebuild his life without his family. And former classmates, teachers and neighbors begin to mourn the deaths.

Robert and Melissa married on New Year’s Eve of 1991, said Broyles, who lives across the street.

The couple’s first child was always grinning, always helpful 8-year-old Makenah. The second oldest, 5-year-old Zachary, had Down syndrome and the family had learned sign language to communicate. Next came 3-year-old Nicholas. He was the baby until the family adopted 21-month-old Alenah from China.

Lorie Liechti, with Children’s Hope International, recalls the day she showed the couple Alenah’s picture. “They both started crying,” Liechti said. “That was their daughter. They were just thrilled.”

Robert Rogers, left, hugs unidentified family members for a prayer next to the Rogers family minivan that was moved to the edge of the Interstate 35, near Emporia. Rogers' wife, Melissa Rogers, was found dead Tuesday, two days after the couple's four children's bodies were recovered. The family drowned after raging waters swept their vehicle off the road.

Liechti said the couple had always wanted to adopt a child. And news that Alenah was thought to have a congenital heart disease didn’t dampen their enthusiasm. When Alenah arrived in America, they found she did not have a heart condition.

“We wish we had a whole bunch of families like them,” she said.

Melissa sometimes wrote notes to her children’s teachers telling them she was praying for them. She invited Makenah’s kindergarten teacher to the family’s home for dinner.

“They were just an incredible family, deeply spiritual and committed to their faith and very, very loving,” said Becky Gossett, director of early childhood education for the Liberty public school district. “Melissa would do anything for her children.”

Makenah and Zachary had attended Liberty schools — Makenah for kindergarten and first-grade and Zachary for preschool. Melissa had decided to homeschool them this year, said Jim Dunn, the district’s spokesman.

Though Makenah was no longer a student at Alexander Doniphan Elementary school, her former classmates and teachers were struggling with her death. The school notified the staff Monday and had a staff meeting Tuesday morning to remind teachers to send sad youngsters to the counselor, said Principal Jay Niceswanger, who himself was struggling with the deaths.

“When I think back on Makenah, one thing I remember is her smile,” he said. “I can just remember visiting her class. You could always count on Makenah being the one helping other kids and that smile on her face.”

By just after lunch, counselor Becky Starnes had seen about 10 children and fielded phone calls from concerned parents.

Near the school and outside the family’s home in Glenaire, a tiny town surrounded by the city of Liberty, an impromptu memorial was growing. One message read: “I miss you. Love Bobby. P.S. Thank you for playing with me.” Another mourner had written a message to Makenah on a pair of pink ballet shoes. And in children’s handwriting on a card made of construction paper was written, simply, “I’m so sorry.”

Normally, Broyles’ children would be playing with the Rogerses’ children on the spot now filled with balloons, pictures, flowers and more than a dozen teddy bears.

Broyles was grateful for the outpouring. “That’s what he needs to know,” Broyles said. “That the entire community is behind him.”