In the days since Erin Piacenti was killed in an apparently random attack in Times Square, her name has appeared in headlines alongside some of the most painful details imaginable.

She was only 32.

She had just returned to work after maternity leave.

Her daughter was five months old.

And she was heading home when the attack happened.

But Erin’s family does not want the circumstances of her death to become the definition of her life.

They want people to remember the woman who existed before the headline: a devoted wife, an accomplished professional, a loyal friend and, most importantly, a mother whose lifelong dream had finally come true.

A fundraising campaign created for Erin’s infant daughter, Madison, is now giving the people who loved her a way to help protect the future Erin had only just begun building for her child.

The family described Erin as a thoughtful daughter and sister, a devoted partner to her husband, Frank Piacenti, and an “incredibly loving mother” to Madison.

For those closest to her, that is the story they want remembered.

Becoming a Mother Had Been Erin’s Dream

Among all the details shared by Erin’s family, one stands out.

Becoming a mother had been a lifelong ambition.

When Madison arrived five months before Erin’s death, her family said the baby brought her extraordinary joy.

That makes the timing of what happened on Aug. 31 especially devastating.

Erin had spent months at home with her newborn daughter.

That Monday was her first day back at Bank of America following maternity leave.

She completed the workday and began heading home.

She never reached her family.

Police said Erin was stabbed in the abdomen shortly before 4:30 p.m. in Times Square in what authorities described as an unprovoked attack.

The fact that she was returning to Madison after her first day back at work has become one of the most heartbreaking details of the case.

Her Family Says Her Life Was Bigger Than the Attack

After a violent death, there is a danger that the victim becomes known primarily for what happened to them.

The crime becomes the first sentence.

The suspect becomes part of their name.

Their final moments receive more attention than the years that came before.

Erin’s family is pushing against that.

In describing her, they emphasized the relationships and qualities that defined her long before Aug. 31.

They remembered an exceptionally bright and accomplished woman who brought warmth and energy to the people around her.

They remembered a daughter and sister.

A friend.

A wife.

And a new mother.

The family specifically made clear that Erin should not be defined simply by her death or even by her impressive position at Bank of America.

Her professional title was only one part of her life.

Erin and Frank Were Building Their Future

Erin had met Frank while attending Fordham Law School after studying at the University of Pennsylvania.

Their relationship eventually led to marriage, and just weeks before Erin’s death, the couple had celebrated their second wedding anniversary.

Their life was changing rapidly.

About a year earlier, Erin and Frank had moved from their apartment on Manhattan’s Upper East Side after buying a home in Chester, New Jersey, approximately 40 miles outside New York City.

Then Madison arrived.

The couple had also recently returned from a road trip and was preparing for the next chapter of family life with their new daughter.

Those details now make the loss feel even more abrupt.

This was not a family looking backward.

They were making plans.

They had a new home, a new baby and a marriage still near its beginning.

Now a Fund Has Been Created for Madison

In the aftermath of Erin’s death, her family created a GoFundMe with a very specific purpose.

The money is intended to support Madison and her future.

The family explained that the fundraiser gives friends, colleagues and even strangers moved by Erin’s story a practical way to honor her by helping care for the daughter she loved so deeply.

The initial goal was $250,000.

Within hours of being launched, the campaign had already raised more than half of that amount.

The speed of the response reflected the impact Erin’s story had already had on people far beyond her immediate circle.

Her family has also asked for privacy during this period.

Rather than sending flowers or making other gestures, a spokesperson said those wishing to show support could contribute to the fund created for Madison.

It turns the public response toward the one person who represented Erin’s greatest joy.

Her daughter.

The Attack Unfolded in Minutes

Police said Pamela Cisneros, 49, attacked Erin shortly before 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 31.

Moments earlier, authorities said Cisneros had also stabbed 68-year-old Tak Kam after he exited the subway.

Kam, who was visiting New York to see his son, was taken to Bellevue Hospital and was expected to recover.

NYPD officers in the area quickly confronted Cisneros.

Police said she refused commands to drop the knives she was carrying.

Officers ultimately shot her, and she was later pronounced dead.

The NYPD Force Investigation Division is reviewing the police response.

Those details remain important to the investigation.

But for Erin’s family, they are not the details that explain who she was.

She Was More Than a Bank of America Vice President

Erin’s career was impressive.

At only 32, she was already a vice president in Bank of America’s business selection and conflicts division.

But her family’s tribute deliberately places that accomplishment alongside something more personal.

Professional success did not define her alone.

She was deeply devoted to the people around her.

And motherhood, according to those closest to her, had become the greatest source of happiness in her life.

That is why Madison now stands at the center of the family’s effort to honor Erin.

The baby is only five months old.

She will grow up largely through the stories, photographs and memories other people preserve for her.

The fundraiser cannot replace her mother.

But it can help provide some of the security and opportunity Erin would have wanted to give her herself.

The Life Her Family Wants People to Remember

There is no way to separate the tragedy of Erin Piacenti’s death from the timing.

Her first day back from maternity leave.

A commute home.

A five-month-old daughter waiting for her.

A family only beginning to settle into a new home and a new stage of life.

Those circumstances are why the story has affected so many people.

But her family is asking the public to look beyond Erin’s final afternoon.

Before she became the victim of a Times Square attack, she had spent 32 years becoming someone else entirely.

A gifted student.

A successful professional.

A loyal friend.

A daughter and sister.

Frank’s wife and partner.

And finally, after years of wanting it, Madison’s mother.

The crime explains how Erin’s life ended.

Her family wants the world to remember everything that came before it.