Junior Noa Ramirez has lived in eight different places throughout her life because of her parents’ careers. She was born in the Dominican Republic. At three years old she moved to New York, living first in Manhattan and then in Brooklyn. Ramirez moved to Florida when she was six and Puerto Rico at age 10. At 12 years old, she moved to two different cities in Washington state before finally settling in Portland in 2021.

Ramirez views her many moves with a positive outlook.

“A lot of people ask me if I’m a military kid […] My dad works in the hotel business. I don’t really mind moving,” said Ramirez. “I feel like it’s made me a more open-minded person. The culture in every place is so different, so I feel lucky to experience that.”

One of Ramirez’s favorite hobbies is collecting perfumes that remind her of certain memories.

“I usually go through my mom’s stuff and I try to find the fruity smells. Whenever I’m walking by random places, especially in the mall, if I’m just going in and I test [a perfume], and I’m like, ‘Oh this reminds me of that [memory],’ I’m getting it. Even if I don’t like it, I’m getting it ’cause it reminds me of a memory,” said Ramirez.

In addition to contributing to her perfume collection, Ramirez finds her mother to be her biggest role model.

“I spent a lot of time with [my mom] growing up. She was who I was [similar to] the most, and I think she really influenced me in my morals and what I see right or wrong,” said Ramirez.

Junior Wilhelmiina Alberti finds Ramirez to be a reliable and optimistic person.

“She’s a friend of mine that I know I can go to for anything. She’s helped me through tough times […] I really appreciate that she can uplift my mood, and even when I’m not in the greatest mood, she respects that,” said Alberti.