How Do You Find A Word That Means Maria?

I hope this is the last of this sort of post I have to write in a long, long while, but today is the last day for yet another Jezebel staffer: Editorial assistant Maria-Mercedes Lara.

Maria first came into the Jezebel fold in April 2007, after the then-college senior wrote us in response to our call for interns. Not only did Maria get the gig, but she quickly became indispensible, helping us research posts, scour the latest women’s magazines, and prep for fashion week, among other things (including telling hilarious stories about her time working for such retailers as Anthropologie and American Apparel). And here’s the thing: at the time Maria applied for an internship, she knew nothing about who or what we were beyond what we’d described vaguely in a call for interns posted on sister site Gawker in March of 2007, three months before we even launched. Translation: She gave us a chance.

By late2007, it had become clear that it was time to bring Maria officially into the fold, and she was hired as an editorial assistant that December — five months before she even graduated from college! — where she continued some of the work she’d done as an intern and branched out into doing her own posts when time and circumstances permitted. In short, Maria has been consistently hardworking, dependable, and cheerful, and it’s been a pleasure to watch her grow and develop, both behind-the-scenes and on-site.

Speaking of, here — and in no particular order — are some of her (and our) favorite posts:

•American Apparel’s Dov Charney Explains It All For You On SNL

•Label Whores: Selling Fake Fashion: Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad

•Tit For Tat: Confessions Of A Re-Sized Bra Shopper

•Anthropologie Doesn’t Care About Black People

•First Things First: What Kind Of Dog Should The First Puppy Be?

•Election Day Images: Yes We Can Wait Happily In Line To Vote

•Hey, What Did You Spend Your Stimulus Check On?

•Why Do People Care When A Woman Cuts Her Hair?

I am very, very sad to see her go, and sorry that she is one of the victims of company-wide downsizing and restructuring, but I plan to have her back from time to time for special projects and shits ‘n’ giggles. Please give her your best wishes and most fond remembrances, in the comments.