Parents told daughter might be alive if she wore seatbelt
University of California, Davis animal science and Chicano studies student Isabel Blanco Vasquez told her father a few months ago, "Dad, this time next year, I'm not gonna be Isabela Blanco Vasquez."
"Why? Are you gonna change your name or something?" her father, Pedro Torrez Vasquez, Jr., responded.
"No. People are gonna have to call me 'Dr. Isabel Blanco Vasquez,'" she had said, emphasizing the word "doctor."
Tragically, Isabel, or "Izzy," would not get to realize that dream. The 24-year-old was killed in a car accident on Highway 65 near Lincoln on Oct. 29 around 1:20 a.m. when the car she was riding in overturned.
Izzy, the California Highway Patrol reported, was not wearing her seatbelt and was ejected from the car when it crashed.
Her boyfriend, 26-year-old William Bryan Cubias-Martinez, was also injured in the crash. After being treated at a local hospital, he was transported by the CHP to Placer County Jail on charges of vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence of alcohol resulting in bodily injury. He was being held on $500,000 bail.
"She made a mistake. He made a mistake. And tragedy is everywhere," Torrez Vasquez said. "The community lost a very beautiful girl."
Torrez Vasquez and Imelda Blanco Vasquez – his wife and Izzy's mother – want their daughter to be remembered for her bright personality and her significant impact on the community.
"I personally did not know she had so many people she had touched until we just recently found out," Torrez Vasquez said. "We were in awe. And I just felt that people needed to know who she was."
Izzy deeply cared for the people around her. She struggled with depression and anxiety but was "a fighter," her father said, and she wanted to help other young people who were suffering as well.
"[Izzy] always wanted to be there for you. No matter how hard the day was for her or anybody else, you'd always have a friend in her," Blanco Vasquez said.
In high school, one of the ways Izzy helped her peers was by establishing River Valley High School's Gender Sexualities Alliance (GSA) club. Her parents said that the Yuba City-Marysville area is generally unaccepting of LGBTQ folks, and that Izzy recognized this and wanted to support queer students.
"They don't accept LGBTQ people. But she didn't care," Blanco Vasquez said. "She said she just wanted to make sure the kids were okay, that the kids have the support, and we have to have GSA."
Izzy took her LGBTQ advocacy beyond her campus to the broader Yuba City community by volunteering with Tri-County Diversity Youth (TCD), an LGBTQ non-profit serving Yuba, Sutter and Colusa counties. Her parents said she organized TCD's awareness walk in Yuba City.
"She stood on the side of the road with all her friends so [the community] can see that gay rights are human rights," Blanco Vasquez said.
Izzy's compassionate nature extended to animals too, from the smallest snail on the sidewalk to the sheep she tended to in the UC Davis Barn Residency Program. As a child and teen, Izzy rescued dozens of cats and dogs, bringing them into her family home and nursing them back to health.
Her parents said she once rescued a dying dog named Flex from an abusive owner. Izzy stayed up all night in the garage tending to Flex. She started a GoFundMe to fund his vet bills and talked to UC Davis to see if they would perform surgery on him. Izzy even called the police on Flex's abusive owner and later gained custody of the dog.
As a loving daughter, sister, aunt, niece, cousin and granddaughter, Izzy's bright personality, inclusive nature and humor brought her family great joy.
"She was the energy that just filled the room," Torrez Vasquez said. "She had a way to walk into the room and just make you laugh right off the bat...Everybody's mood would change."
While the Vasquez family continues to mourn their beloved daughter, they also want others to understand the dangers of drunk driving and the importance of wearing a seatbelt.
"The loss to our family is great. Not just our family, but her friends, her teachers, the community, is losing a very, very special kid. Tragically taken from all of us because of drunk driving," Torrez Vasquez said.
"And not wearing a seatbelt," Blanco Vasquez added.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, seatbelt use can save lives. In 2022, 50% of vehicle passengers killed in accidents were not wearing a seatbelt. The NHTSA also states that if front seat passengers buckle up, they can reduce their risk of fatal injury by 45% and moderate to critical injury by 50%.
Torrez Vasquez said a police officer he talked to at the crash site told him Izzy likely would have survived had she worn her seatbelt.
"That just broke my heart," Torrez Vasquez said. "It's very hard to see a beautiful soul and person lose their life because they unsnapped it."
Blanco Vasquez urges everyone to wear a seatbelt, no matter where or how far you're going.
"I don't want anybody to go through what we're going through because you don't have your seatbelt," she said.
Torrez Vasquez said he urges people to drink responsibly and take measures to make sure you don't get in the driver's seat intoxicated, whether that's arranging a ride, calling an Uber or staying the night at a hotel.
Torrez Vasquez also urges parents to build open communication with their kids regarding responsible drinking.
"Kids are afraid to talk to their parents because their parents are gonna get mad," Torrez Vasquez said. "Teach your kids to not be afraid to call you. Parents need to be ready, understanding. If they call you for help, do not get mad at them. Go over there, pick them up, bring them home. When they wake up the next day, then talk about it."
Izzy's parents hope to carry their daughter's legacy by continuing to support the causes she was passionate about. Blanco Vasquez said she will continue to support LGBTQ kids through TCD and being a safe person to talk to. Torrez Vasquez said they hope to establish a foundation to help pet owners who can't afford veterinary care can get treatment for their animals.
Blanco Vasquez said she and her daughter shared a moral code: "you have to make the change." Blanco Vasquez said she will continue to live by this code.
"I will continue with that," she said. "That will be [Izzy's] legacy."
