First and foremost, thank you, muchas gracias. There will never be the words to fully express our gratitude for the colossal support and solidarity poured into our family in the last week.
One week ago, today the life of our daughter, our sister, Guadalupe (Lupe/Lupita), her classmates, and the MSU community at large was forever altered by a horrible act of violence. Lupita was attending her weekly IAH211C class in Berkey Hall, a class which was held in the evening from 7-8:50pm.
When we heard that Lupita was one of the victims of the shooting, we did not know the extent of her wounds, and we wouldn’t know till hours later. Soon after paramedics arrived to Berkey Hall she was taken to the hospital and had to undergo surgery immediately. Since everything went on lockdown following the shooting, nobody could give us answers and our restlessness only grew. As a family, we immediately started travel/booked travel from out of state. We thought the next time we’d reunite all together as a family at Michigan State’s campus would be for Guadalupe’s graduation day. We never imagined being back under these circumstances.
Lupita sustained two bullet wounds, one of which impacted five major organs. Unfortunately, her Spleen was the organ that received the immediate impact and had to be removed. Other organs impacted included her lungs, colon, stomach, and diaphragm. Because of the trauma her organs received during the shooting followed by the trauma of a major surgery like the one she went through, doctors tell us her organs will take some time before they can perform their functions again.
She is making slow and steady progress. She is mostly off of all the tubes she had the first day we arrived. Doctors are working with her to exercise her lungs and get them to breathe on their own. She has also started physical therapy. She’s been able to get out of her bed on a walker and with support, walk to the door of her room and back. Though the physical side of her recovery is showing small improvement, her mental and emotional side will be it’s own challenge.
Remembering that night and talking about it bring her great sadness, anxiety, and fear. One of the first things she wanted to know when she could talk was “How are my classmates?”
As happy as we are seeing her make small improvements, we cannot deny that we are still pained and heartbroken because she should not be here in a hospital. Lupita and her classmates should have been safe.
Once she is able to, Lupe looks forward to being able to go home to Florida and continue recovery there in the comfort of our home. She is still motivated to finish her classes for the semester but at the moment, we are encouraging her to take her recovery one day at a time.