Guadalupe Huapilla-Perez was one of eight students hit during a mass shooting at Michigan State University (MSU) on Monday evening (February 13). Three of those students were killed. Huapilla-Perez, a junior hospitality business major, and four others are currently in critical condition at the hospital.
Huapilla-Perez’s older sister, Selena, said that while they “are happy that Lupe remains with us,” they are “devastated by the violence that has impacted so many,” including their family. The family has set up a GoFundMe account that has reached over $350,000 as of press time.
“Lupe is incredibly hard-working, focused, and ambitious, choosing a career path that’s never been explored in our family,” Selena wrote on her sister’s GoFundMe page. “It allows her to travel, learn, and challenge herself. She’s always one to stand up for our community and speak out for those marginalized voices like our own.”
AT MSU, Huapilla-Perez was on a scholarship through the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP). She is the daughter of migrant farmworkers. Selena said that the family traveled from their home in south Florida to be with her sister but are “now eyeing costs that will further burden us at this incredibly difficult time.” Doctors told the family that a full recovery would take months of care and rehabilitation.
“She is a long way from returning to us as she was,” Selena wrote. “Being away from home, our family will be unable to work while monthly bills will continue to mount. Our family is incredibly moved by the love and support others are pouring into us. I thank you all so much for helping us proceed at a time we couldn’t have imagined. We hold Guadalupe and all other victims in our hearts.”
Learn more on how you can help MSU student Guadalupe Huapilla-Perez at her GoFundMe here.