I went to bed on Sept. 24, 2023, knowing that something was not right. It was a Sunday, and our daughter had not called. The next day, one year ago this week, I received the worst phone call — one that any parent would hope they never get. It was from a Baltimore Police Department detective who informed me that our daughter and Nico’s sister, Pava Marie LaPere, was found deceased. We flew to Baltimore the next morning.

In the year that has passed, the Johns Hopkins University, the city of Baltimore, its tech community and the state of Maryland have been nothing short of amazing for the love that you have all shown Pava, our devastated family, EcoMap Technologies, UpSurge Baltimore and the other amazing entities and organizations that Pava was so deeply committed to.

We are reaching out to thank you all — Gov. Wes Moore, House Speaker Adrienne Jones, Senate President Bill Ferguson, State’s Attorneys Ivan Bates and Aisha Braveboy, Del. Elizabeth Embry and all other members of the House of Delegates and state Senate, Johns Hopkins University President Ron Daniels, and Christy Wyskiel and Josh Ambrose from the Pava Marie LaPere Center for Entrepreneurship — for all you have done, collectively, to remember and honor Pava in such a loving and caring way. We are forever in your debt.

While the grief from Pava’s preventable murder continues to challenge us all, we must remember the good work she did in her short 26 years on this planet. The strong foundation that she laid, and all of the amazing progress that is being made in her name, and in her honor, in her adopted home state of Maryland.

From our family to yours, thank you Baltimore and the entire state of Maryland, for loving our daughter, Pava Marie LaPere.

Frank, Caroline and Nico LaPere