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Friday, February 07, 2025

The UF Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering will hold a candlelight vigil tonight in memory of two UF engineering students who died last month.

Daniel Sacks, 19, and Maria Bahamon, 20, died Jan. 26 in a single-car accident in Mississippi, where they were sharing an apartment and interning at the same utilities company.

Both students were studying industrial and systems engineering.

The ceremony will be held in the Reitz Union Amphitheater at 6 p.m.

Joseph Hartman, UF department chair of industrial and systems engineering, said the vigil is an opportunity for students to reflect on Sacks' and Bahamon's lives.

Students who were close to the two will share their memories with the crowd, and other students in attendance are also welcome to speak, Hartman said.

"I thought it was important that all students who knew them and wanted to remember them had a chance," he said.

He said he is not sure exactly how many students to expect, but he would not be surprised if 100 people attended. Professional counselors will be on-hand at the vigil to talk with any students who need help, he said.

"We just wanted something that seemed appropriate and serene," Hartman said. "It (the amphitheater) seems like a nice setting, and the candlelight just seems like a nice way to do it."

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