Portland is known for attracting a nomadic crowd. Here we are again at another interview and I am speaking to someone who has been – or lived all over – the place. Yet, they end up here, do they not?

Tajuana Stovall is one of those people. Whether it was Bend, or multiple places in California, she’s hopped around the West (Best) Coast a bit and she’s found her home.

“My Portland story is full of endearing and funny memories,” she says.

About Tajuana Stovall

She once got “friendship married” to one of her best friends. They invited all their friends to her friend’s “big, beautiful, classic Portland Victorian 1900s home that we called ‘The Hideout’,” as she puts it. She goes on to explain how they dressed the house in sheets and Christmas lights and held a fake wedding ceremony.

Sounds like just the thing a Portlander would do.

This all may sound silly, but could it be related to her profession as a nanny. She’s been keeping watch over the little ones for over ten years now, and likely gets her boundless energy for the fun a bit from the kids she spends time with.

Still, she is very serious about what she does.

“Over the years, I have held multiple positions with multiple families,” she says, “helping to raise kids from ages zero to ten; teaching them the best ways I believe a positive contributor to society should behave. I have a lot of important values that I share with my children.”

Part of the values she takes such pride in instilling these children are many we can relate to as Portlanders.

“I get the kids involved in a lot of local activities, such as recycling, planting trees; I teach them how to be kind, how to be thoughtful, how to consider others & the world, how to respect themselves & others; how to be a good person,” she explains.

Through it all, she runs a side gig managing social media marketing for several companies as well as spending time with her boyfriend, friends and family, who also live in Portland.

We could rattle off the Portlander activities she does – from disc golf to road trips and waterfall hikes. The point is, she fits right in.

A Love For PDX

“On any given day in PDX, I can walk past a man in drag, wearing a hula outfit, a pirate, a person in a bear suit, a bunch a scandal-y clothed individuals waiting in line for a show, a group of people riding tall-bikes, a person playing the trombone while riding a unicycle; & none of it is weird to me anymore,” she assures us.

“Nothing is weird to me anymore,” she says with finality.

That’s just what Portland does. It’s what the city is all about, and if one person can appreciate it, it’s Tajuana, proud to be a PDX Person doing her part to keep our city moving forward!

“This is where I fell in love for the first time, where I met all of my best friends, where I found out who I am; Portland will always be my home.”

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William Bessette – PDX People Contributor

William Bessette is a journalist and freelance writer who has been covering politics, entertainment, culture and travel for over thirteen years. When he’s not profiling Portland-area restaurants and residents, you can find him reporting on national and international travel and eco-tourism through his travel brand, Floppy Hat Adventures. 

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