Portland Magazine
April 1, 2023
DURING THE EARLY days of Covid, Major Maribel Ortega de Pacheco’s eldest son asked why she couldn’t stay home with him for online kindergarten. Maribel told him that she was “a boss” at work and had to go in. (Her actual title was a little too long to ask him to remember.) When he relayed to his teacher that his mom was at work as “the boss of the United States of America,” well, we think he was only overstating things a little bit.
She was out taking care of things for the benefit of us all. As a Logistics Officer for the Oregon National Guard, she deployed soldiers to assist in the PPE distribution efforts to Portland-area hospitals. She also helped organize the immunizations during the clinics at MODA, sent soldiers to Salem and Wilsonville, staffed the 411 call centers, and even deployed trained soldiers to local wildfires.
Now she is at University of Portland teaching a foundations class to first-year Army ROTC students, and she organizes twice-a-year field training exercises where UP’s Army ROTC cadets join up with those from PSU and Eastern Oregon University. About her work with UP students, she says, “It’s great to mentor them and make them proud of wearing the uniform in general.”
A native of Hermiston, Oregon, Maribel’s Army service began when she and her twin sister enlisted at age 17. They saw their service as a way to attend college, and it eventually led to her earning an MBA and a fruitful career path. In 2010, she deployed to Camp Sharana, Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
This past November, Maribel joined students at UP’s Veteran’s Day ceremony. She brought her sons, who asked if they could wear their Special Forces Halloween costumes. On the weekends, you’ll most likely find Maribel on her boat on the Columbia River fishing for steelhead, sturgeon, walleye, or salmon, with her husband and sons.
University of Portland
5000 N. Willamette Blvd.,
Portland, Oregon 97203-5798
503.943.8000
This website uses cookies to track information for analytics purposes. You can view the full University of Portland privacy policy for more information.
