I am heartbroken that my Gunnar Lab "little sister" Dr. Carrie DePasquale suddenly passed away this weekend. She was a brilliant scientist, a fun-loving soul, and one of the most passionate, caring people I've ever met. The world is certainly darker without her in it.

Carrie had just defended her dissertation this summer in @GunnarMegan's lab, and I've heard from others that she was the youngest person to obtain a PhD in the @UMN_CEHD Institute of Child Development's history. She was truly remarkable. https://conservancy.umn.edu/handle/11299/215141

She applied for and received an F32 from NICHD on her first round (seriously, what a badass). She had just started started her postdoc with Dr. Erika Lunkenheimer at Penn State, and she was so excited about the training she was going to receive there.

Here's a photo of her at @devpsybio last year absolutely crushing her presentation with the graphs she was so proud of creating. I was so proud of her. I want to share her fantastic science here so that others can read her work: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=3eaJTO0AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao

Beyond her brilliance, Carrie was an incredible person. She was kind, hilarious, outgoing, and so much FUN. I will miss sharing our weeks on our Friday writing calls with @briemreid. I am crushed that I can no longer buy my "little sister" a drink at @devpsybio and @SRCDtweets.

What I loved most about Carrie was how passionately she cared for others. She was a tireless advocate for first gen students like herself. She served families at the Minneapolis Crisis Nursery. She was adamant about using her life and career to positively impact others.

This photo was posted on her social media, and I had to save it because it perfectly captures how I see Carrie. At the Gunnar lab table with a huge smile. Carrie's legacy is one of fearless advocacy and love. Please keep her loved ones in your thoughts. We all miss her so much.

Here is a lovely write-up on some of the work that Carrie was doing at the Crisis Nursery that shows her big heart and passion for helping families. It hurts to be reminded of who the world lost, but Carrie really was one-of-a-kind: https://www.crisisnursery.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/GMCN_Newsletter_2016_Fall.pdf