Fire Victim Jennifer Mendiola: Doctorate, Dancing And A ‘little Goth Flair’

Doctorate, dancing and a ‘little goth flair’ [...] next year, she would have been Dr. Mendiola when she received her doctorate in health psychology from UC Merced. The Sacramento native’s family confirmed Wednesday that Mendiola, 35, died in the fire that ravaged a warehouse in Oakland during an electronic music show Friday night. [...] Wednesday, Mendiola was considered missing. “It’s agony to watch him suffer,” said his sister, Anna Mendiola. During the separation, she dated Micah Danemayer, a 28-year-old electronic musician who also died in the fire. “Whenever she danced, everyone in the room would stop what they were doing and look at her, because she was the most beautiful thing in the room,” Anna Mendiola said. For the past few years, Jennifer Mendiola had split time between the couple’s Oakland home and UC Merced, where she was on the verge of completing her studies. The intimidation factor was off the charts. [...] “she had an amazing sense of style,” her sister-in-law said. A memorial page on Facebook is filled with tributes and photos — showing Jennifer smiling, at parties, decorating a Christmas tree.