About 200 members of the Madison community took time out Sunday to remember University of Wisconsin junior Brittany Zimmermann, who was killed last Wednesday.
UW students, faculty, staff and members of the Madison community, including Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, joined the family of the slain 21-year-old for a candlelight vigil and memorial service.
UW Dean of Students Lori Berquam said the university was convinced to hold the service by a group of students, including Wisconsin Union President John Barnhardt and Associated Students of Madison Chair Gestina Sewell.
“It’s providing an opportunity to grieve, an opportunity to remember and honor Brittany for her contribution as a student and really to acknowledge that she’s one of us,” Berquam said.
She added it is necessary for people to be able to come together because everyone is affected by the tragedy.
“It could’ve been any of us,” Berquam said. “It could have been you. It could have been me.”
Friends and family members addressed the crowd to speak about Zimmermann and the type of person she was.
Whitney Krogman, a UW junior who graduated high school with Zimmermann, said she was a very level-headed, down-to-earth person.
“She was the straightest arrow ever,” Krogman added.
Members of Zimmermann’s family also described Zimmermann as kind, enthusiastic and full of life.
Zimmermann’s lab partners for her parasitology class said she always had on a smile and loved to talk about her three cats. She made every day brighter, they added.
Rod Welch, UW professor and department chair of the medical microbiology department, said the department will always miss someone who was so passionate about her studies.
“Really, what is a shame here is we lost somebody who wanted to dedicate her life to helping others,” Welch said.
Cieslewicz did not speak in front of the crowd, saying he attended the service to “be part of the community, part of the grieving process” and to extend his condolences to Zimmermann’s family.
David Spencer, a UW senior and friend of Zimmermann’s boyfriend, Jordan Gonnering, said the service was “a great event to show support for a wonderful person.”
“It helps a lot to see all of this support,” Spencer said.
He added Gonnering and Zimmermann made a great couple and though Gonnering was not at the service, he would have appreciated the show of support from the community.
“I spoke briefly with him, and he’s obviously very distraught over the situation,” Spencer said. “It’s going to take a lot of time.”
Barnhardt and Sewell said the important aspect of the evening is that the community comes together to cope with a tough situation.
“The one thing we all have in common is we are all Badgers,” Sewell said. “What that means is we are all family.”
Berquam agreed, saying it is important to “keep the light of Brittany alive.”
“The world is robbed of someone who could have been an amazing leader, a gifted woman, a giving community member and we acknowledge that, and we know that, and we have to grieve that as a community,” Berquam said. “We have to link arms for strength. This is a time on campus we will come together as a family.”
McKenzie Aschenbrenner, a UW junior and longtime friend of Zimmermann, said the homicide has made her and her friends question their own safety on campus.
“We have shady characters in Madison, and you can’t hide that and cover it up,” Aschenbrenner said. “We jump when someone knocks on our door now. We look at each other to see who’s going to get it.”
Cieslewicz said the homicide has hit the community very hard, and he acknowledges community members probably do feel less safe than they used to.
“It really creates a sense of unease in the community and that’s why I think it’s so important that we get to the bottom of what happened here and solve this crime,” Cieslewicz said. “To have this many unsolved murders at one given time is a real burden for the city.”
Berquam added UW will provide a BadgerBus this morning at 6:45 a.m. to take people to St. Andrew’s Parish in Stratford, Wis. for Zimmermann’s wake.
