Whitney Joy Engler died on March 27, 2015, in Davis, CA. Born in San Diego on September 4, 1987, Whitney grew up in the Scripps Ranch community, graduating from Scripps Ranch High School in 2005. In 2010, she earned a BS in Brain Behavior and Cognitive Science with a minor in Biology from the University of Michigan where she rode on the equestrian team. She was a member of the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Class of 2015 at UC Davis and will be awarded a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree posthumously in May. While at the University of Michigan and at UC Davis, Whitney received more than a dozen awards and scholarships, including those from the Westminster Kennel Foundation, American Humane Association, and in March, the Floyd Tuition Support Scholarship.

Whitney was an incredible individual in both her personal and professional life. She was fiery, caring, had a laugh full of joy, and could see the light in almost any situation. She was always aware of how ridiculous life could be and reveled in it, but she was also able to make the best of things when life got hard. Most of all, Whitney was an incredible friend who was always there for anyone, in good times and bad. She especially excelled in animal behavior, training, and shelter animals. She would have been an amazing veterinarian. Her hobbies included biking, dog agility, horseback riding, gardening, and surfing. Whitney is survived by her brother Wes, her father Dennis, her mother Virginia, and her loved pets, including Australian shepherd Rose, cats Zayne, Indiana, and Chique; and Eos, a red-crowned Amazon parrot.

Commemorative services were held at veterinary colleges all across the country on April 2, and a celebration of life at UC-Davis on April 3. A memorial mass will be celebrated at St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church in Scripps Ranch on April 27 at 1:00pm. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Whitney J. Engler Memorial Scholarship Fund, UC Davis Foundation, PO Box 1167, Davis, CA 95617.