FHS senior Zoe Soares job shadowing at The Union in hopes of becoming a journalist

Hi! My name is Zoe Soares, I’m 17, and I’m a senior at Fairfield High School in Fairfield, Iowa. I went to Maharishi School from preschool to around 10th grade! I was born in North Carolina, but I’ve lived here in Fairfield for about 15 years now! Some facts about me are I have one sister, Emily, two guinea pigs, and I used to work at a bunny shelter. I have worked at our local grocery store Everybody’s for about a year now, and I also babysit here and there! My mom, Elyse Soares, is from New Jersey, and my dad, Andy Soares, is from Brazil, and moved here in his early twenties. When I was younger, I became fluent in Portuguese, but as I grew up, I lost the ability to speak the language, as I used English more and more.

My favorite class in school currently is Pre-Calculus taught by Michelle Higgins. Although it can be difficult sometimes, I enjoy doing math, and Mrs. Higgins teaches it in a way that makes it not only seem easy, but also enjoyable and fun!

Although I enjoy math, I’ve always had a bigger love for writing ever since I was a little kid. I grew up with a mother who loved to write as well, so I feel this has influenced me in my love for it now, and my goal to become a journalist. I didn’t always want to be a journalist, though. When I was little, I had some interesting ideas of what I wanted to do with my future. At 12, I wanted to be an astronaut, (my parents were not thrilled with this idea) and all through middle school and a little bit of high school, I wanted to be a singer.

All through this though, I’ve always had a knack for writing. Nowadays, I still love singing (just a little less) and am involved in Vox Choir at my school, as well as acting, art, and I like to read in my free time (one of my favorite authors is probably Adam Silvera). Currently, I’m planning to study journalism at an undecided college. Ultimately, it would be super interesting to be a traveling journalist. I love traveling, meeting new people and new faces, and learning about cultures or places that are different than what I’m used to, so this sounds super exciting to me!

Speaking of travelling, I have never been out of the country (though my family is planning on going to Brazil next year) but I’ve been to various places in the United States, and my favorite is probably New York or Philadelphia. I love big cities-my dad lived in New York City for a good portion of his early life in the US- and my dream is to move to New York City one day as well. That’s a big reason why I want to travel a lot. Living in a small town has its perks, but it can make you feel stuck sometimes; I feel more cut out for busier cities, and lots of people. I tend to be shy, but I always love meeting new people and making new friends! Right now, I’m doing job shadowing/internships at the Southeast Iowa Union as well as the Iowa Source to get some experience and practice in before I go to university. I’m very excited to be helping out in whatever ways I can, and getting valuable experience for my future!

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