Growing up in Portugal, Natalia dreamed of becoming a pilot in the Portuguese Air Force (PAF). Although less than 20-20 vision made that career path impossible, Natalia joined the PAF as an F-16 fighter jet crew chief. During training, she met her future husband, a United States Air Force member sent to train her crew. The couple moved numerous times between Portugal and the United States, finally deciding to settle permanently in the Lebanon Valley area.
Natalia started at LVC in 2011 in the Office of Spiritual Life and Community Service before transferring to the Breen Center for Career and Professional Development. She enjoys seeing the students grow, graduate, and succeed. The best part of her job is hearing from students after they’ve gone on to succeed in their careers, sometimes not knowing for years the impact of the connections they made during their time in the Breen Center.
In her free time, Natalia enjoys learning languages. She is fluent in four languages and is in the process of learning Italian. She plans to also study American Sign Language, Russian, and Chinese. She described her dream vacation as spinning the globe, randomly picking a spot on it, and allowing herself one year to learn the language before visiting.