A 2023 Virginia Tech Criminology graduate who interned on mass-shooting research and later chased sustainable fashion in London, Carly Parauda passed away without warning on November 13, 2025, at the very start of her new life abroad.She had just settled into the University of Westminster, eager to learn how clothing could heal the planet instead of harm it, asking classmates big questions about culture and style every day. Before London she proved her steady heart at KinderCare, reading stories and calming tears, then kept tables running smooth with warm hellos at Avellinos. In New York she studied centuries-old antiques at Dienst + Dotter, tracing craftsmanship that
A 2023 Virginia Tech Criminology graduate who once spent her mornings analyzing mass-shooting data and her afternoons dreaming about better futures, Carly Parauda passed away without warning on November 13, 2025, at the very start of her new life abroad. She was only weeks into her program at the University of Westminster.
where she had thrown herself wholeheartedly into the world of sustainable fashion—fascinated by the idea that clothing could heal the planet instead of harm it. Friends say she asked big, generous questions in class every day: *How do garments carry culture? How do we design without waste? How do we honor the hands that make what we wear?*
London had energized her. She walked everywhere, notebook in hand, scribbling ideas about textile upcycling and community workshops. But long before she crossed the Atlantic, she had already proven who she was: steady, patient, and endlessly kind. At KinderCare, she was the one who read stories with voices that made children giggle, who soothed tears with a calmness that seemed far older than she was.
When she wasn’t with the kids, she was greeting families at Avellinos, making even the busiest evenings feel smooth with her warm hellos and the natural ease she brought to every interaction.In New York, she shifted worlds again, studying centuries-old furniture and antiques at Dienst + Dotter. There, she traced craftsmanship that outlasted its makers, studying the ways objects carry memory and meaning.
Colleagues recall her fascination with every carved detail, every patina, every story hidden in wood and fabric—an early sign of the curiosity that later drew her toward sustainability.Carly Parauda lived her life with intention, reflection, and a generosity that touched every community she joined. Her sudden passing leaves a profound ache, but her spirit—curious, brave, and imaginative—remains etched into every place she once called home.
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