Maria Amador, director of education at the Miller School of Medicine’s Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, has died, according to a statement from university president Donna E. Shalala.
According to reports from The Miami Herald, South Miami police say Amador’s husband Pablo shot her and two of their children Wednesday morning before turning the gun on himself.
“Today we mourn the terrible loss of a special member of the University of Miami family,” Shalala said in her statement to the university community. “[Maria] was beloved by her colleagues and the many people she served with dedication and compassion.”
Amador is survived by two children, 16-year old son Javier, who escaped the house and called 911 on a cordless phone, and 20-year-old daughter, Beula ”Bea” Beatriz Amador, a sophomore majoring in music education in the Frost School of Music.
“We will do all we can to help [Bea] and wrap our arms around her as she deals with this tragedy,” Frost School Dean Shelly Berg said in the statement.
The university has established a fund to assist Bea and Javier through this tragedy. If you wish to contribute to this fund, please send a check payable to The University of Miami, P.O. Box 248073, Coral Gables, FL 33124. Please include on the checks that funds are for the benefit of the Amador Family.