Nora Ingrida Moolenkamp

Nora Ingrida Moolenkamp passed away the afternoon of July 04, 2016 from complications related to pancreatic cancer. Nora was born April 4, 1957, in La Crescenta, California, to Karlis and Klitija Kalejs. She was raised with two siblings, her older sister Lija and younger brother Valdis, with whom she was very close. She attended Crescenta Valley High School, graduating in 1975, and subsequently moved on to attend California State University at Northridge as well as University of California at Davis to begin work on her Bachelor’s degree. She and her first husband, Peter Auseklis, moved to Oregon in September of 1978, and it was there that Nora began working in the tech industry. Nora bookended her distinguished career with positions at Intel—a company she was employed with for a total of more than twenty years. Her most recent post was in the field of Project Management, as well as some work with the Sales and Marketing division. Her supervisor and friend, Roya Zainali, spoke of her saying, “Nora exemplified professionalism managing strategic and tactical projects…Her excellent communication skills were admired by the management, stakeholders, and technical team. Her integrity and patience—which always brought sanity to chaos—were second to none.” She earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Management from the University of Phoenix in 2003, and her Master’s degree a few years later from Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) in Management in Science and Technology.

Nora’s only child, Talia, was born in March of 1987. They were incredibly close, and Nora always admired her nonconformist and tenacious approach to life. After spending a few years in San Francisco after high school Talia returned to Oregon in 2008, and they grew even closer. They shared countless meals, bottles of wine, hikes, and evenings together—times that both of them regard as some of the most simple and best moments in their lives. Nora met her second husband, Walter Moolenkamp, during Cycle Oregon where the two immediately connected after sharing dinner together one evening. They became inseparable and began flying back and forth to Walter’s home country: Holland. It quickly became clear that they were two people who should always be together. They were married in January of 2010, and built a life together that was full of tremendous love, laughter, and adventure. They traveled together extensively—both internationally and domestically—and loved to ride bikes together, attend concerts, and explore the outdoors.

Nora had a profound love for music, playing the flute (though this was short lived since it made her dizzy!) and violin, as well as singing in a high school acapella group and various choirs in her adult life. She also loved to cook, and her culinary prowess shone brightly even in her early years with an experimental phase in the medium of mud pies. While her technique and repertoire grew significantly from there, her family cites these early moments as the place where she really cut her teeth in the world cuisine. This passion also expanded into an appreciation for (good) wine; Nora loved to go tasting around the Williamette Valley with friends and family, and joined a few clubs that felt more like extensions of family than places of business. Nora was an avid reader—a hobby that began at a very early age and only grew as she got older. She was reading third grade level books as a four year-old, and she always maintained a thirst for knowledge could never be satiated.

Her incredible intellect was only ever outshone by her kindness and generosity, qualities that almost everyone mentions when they think of Nora. She was very active in volunteering with numerous organizations, particularly after her diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in 2014. She worked closely with the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCan) doing advocacy work, both locally in Portland as well as multiple trips to Washington D.C. to speak with Senators and other important government officials to support and engage people in the community that had so directly and profoundly helped her during her journey with cancer. While Nora ultimately lost her battle with this perilous disease, she was an unflinching example of what strength and resolve can do for those waging similar battles. For all those who had the privilege to know her, her unforgettable smile, unrelenting positivity, and immense heart are experiences none of us could ever forget.