What's in a Name?

Olivia Garcia-Colon

Olivia Garcia- Colon- Filipino (mother); Puerto Rican (father); Julia Nichols' little brother Rafael's lifelong best friend, Olivia Garcia-Colon was born in Hawaii to a military family and moved to New York after her father's retirement from being an officer in the Air Force. She and Rafe met sometime in the fourth grade when they were nine, during which Olivia's father moved his family next door to his. She claims that because of her father's frequent travels with the military, her family would be stationed in one place for two years or so and then move out once her father got orders to relocate elsewhere, making it somewhat difficult to form and maintain lasting friendships. She's always the worst at keeping secrets and loves eating sweets, although she isn't afraid to speak her mind and can be sarcastic. Olivia considers Rafe to be the first true friend that she met upon her big move to New York, as the two quickly bonded when him invited her to come over to his house and watch cartoons with him. This would lead to several more friendly encounters between the two that would eventually deepen their bond as they engaged in fun, if reckless activities together. They would often start rollerblading in Rafe's living room or scarfing down jawbreakers that they would purchase at the local convenience store, much to her mother's chagrin. She could be very rambunctious and childlike when she really wanted to be and was not particularly discriminating as to how she went about enjoying herself, moving about at a frenetic pace. Olivia has a polarizing personality, but at her core, she thinks of herself as a born leader, which often leads to her not letting others have a chance to take control. Although she is extremely bossy, competitive, critical and even sassy at times, she can be civil and polite to her fellow classmates under some circumstances. 

She is very energetic and has a hammy personality that often makes her stand out among the students at her school. She was diagnosed with ADHD as a child and recalls being a bit of an irrepressible force from the time she was in kindergarten, giving her teacher a hard time due to her inability to follow orders. Olivia has strong opinions she likes to share and generally has no filter in her mouth, which can cause her to be very direct with her confident and assertive demeanor. Her mother encouraged her to begin participating in sports in order to allow her to do something more productive with her time. She is considered to be one of the best athletes in her grade level and received the "athlete of the year" award on campus. She still sleeps with a stuffed elephant she keeps as well that she was given during her childhood to this day that she has named Ella Funt. Olivia is also shown to be quite altruistic to others and has a compassionate side that tends to show around her family and friends, volunteering to be a lunchtime helper at her school. Caring and compassionate, she is good with small children as well, being the eldest of two younger brothers and a baby sister and frequently sings her younger siblings to sleep. She has a good singing voice that is soft and melodious and learned to play the ukulele while her family was stationed in Hawaii and plays it periodically for fun. She is quite clumsy and prone to injury as well, a trait some people find endearing that she will often brush off with self-deprecating humor. Olivia is also very talented at hula dancing and often taught her siblings to dance with her to entertain soldiers stationed in Hawaii while she was looking after them. She remembers admiring her mother very much and greatly esteeming her beauty and intelligence, feeling humbled by all the sacrifices she made as the matriarch of their household. 

She often likes to multitask and pursue activities such as drawing pictures in between commercials and watching television. She is particularly close with her older half-brother Bernardo, who speaks with a slight Batangueño dialect and comes from her mother's first marriage back in her native Philippines. Until recently Olivia spent every weekend at Bernardo's house, but his family has moved since his father decided to take on a new job in Fresno, so in-person visits can only take place a few times a year now. She plays soccer and is a member of her school's cross-country team, causing her to maintain a C+ average to be able to participate. She is also a member of her school's choir and once earned a solo performance for their spring concert, during which she sang "Walking on Sunshine". She complains that her father will only eat "arroz con habichuelas rosadas y alitas de pollo", which are rice and beans with deep-fried chicken wings, and wishes they could enjoy more American cuisine. Olivia nevertheless enjoys her mother's lechon, which her family truly loves to eat during the holiday season with their relatives. As a person with a surprisingly dark sense of humor, she is also a massive fan of the popular series American Horror Story, which she will often watch with morbid curiosity. She has a laidback, casual approach to interacting with people and is seen as being friendly to most of those she meets, being characterized for her jovial spirit. She is the most outgoing among her friends, who generally describe her as cheerful, kind, optimistic, charming, and a "clever mimic". While she can sometimes pout, roll her eyes, or feel cross, Olivia doesn't often scold others and rarely loses her temper, even as her siblings endlessly annoy her. She is a thoughtful and considerate girl who tends not to take herself too seriously, often not giving others a chance to get a word in and carrying with her a supply of twizzlers.