Fund established for severely injured student

The friends and family of a UW–Madison graduate student who was injured in a New Year’s Day attack in Puerto Rico have set up a support fund on her behalf.

Patricia Sanchez Vazquez, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Bacteriology, was seriously burned in the incident.

Five of her family members were killed and two others were seriously burned when Sanchez Vazquez’s uncle allegedly set fire to a celebratory gathering in Florida, Puerto Rico.

Her mother and father also were injured in the attack. She lost her brother, his fiancee, her sister, her grandmother and a cousin.

It is Sanchez Vazquez’s intention to return to UW–Madison to complete her studies, but no timetable has been set. All funds raised will support her recovery.

Donations can be sent or delivered to any UW Credit Union location and designated for the “Friends of Patricia Sanchez Vazquez.”

Donations also are accepted online here via PayPal.

Cards, notes or other items may also be sent through Richard Gourse of Bacteriology, rgourse@bact.wisc.edu.

UW-Madison Dean of Students Lori Berquam said the university is providing counseling to Sanchez Vazquez’s friends and colleagues and stands ready to help assist her eventual return.

“All of campus is sending Patricia our thoughts and prayers,” Berquam says. “We’re looking forward to the day she returns to Madison.”