Yamilet Ayala González rose to fame after winning the Miss Universe Puerto Rico pageant in 2015 at the age of 21. She was crowned by Miss Universe 2014, Paulina Vega of Colombia. After winning, González went on to compete in the Miss Universe 2015 pageant, where she placed as first runner-up, becoming the second Puerto Rican contestant in history to place in the top three.
How old is she?
Yamilet is a twenty-year-old beauty born in New York City. She is the daughter of Dominican immigrants and has three siblings. Growing up, she moved around a lot with her family due to the lack of affordable housing for low-income families. She attended high school in Brooklyn before transferring to Governor Livingston High School in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey where she graduated as salutatorian of her class and received an academic scholarship to attend Rutgers University.
After deciding that college wasn’t for her at the moment, Yamilet focused on acting and modeling while also working at Planned Parenthood as a sexual education educator and advocate.
What does she do now?
Yamilet is a recent college graduate from the University of California Irvine who is currently working as an associate at Yelp. She has been with the company for about one year. In her spare time, she enjoys going to concerts and exploring new places with her friends. When asked what she wants to do in the future, she said that she doesn’t want her career path to be set in stone and that she would like it if it could change throughout the years. One thing is for sure though; Yamilet loves spending time with her family!
Where did she grow up?
González was born in the Dominican Republic and moved to New York City when she was only four years old. She spent most of her childhood in the Bronx before moving to Union City with her family during high school. Her first language is Spanish so when she arrived at Union City High School, she had a difficult time adjusting.
González remembers being one of only three Hispanic students in class during her freshman year. I remember feeling like I didn’t belong there, González said. To combat this initial feeling of isolation, González made a conscious effort to get involved with student clubs and extracurricular activities like theater and cheerleading while at Union City High School.
How many siblings does she have?
Yamilet is the youngest of seven children. She has two older sisters and four older brothers. Her oldest sister died in a car accident when she was younger. Yamlet’s father walked out on her family when she was six years old and they never saw him again. This left her mother with the burden of raising all seven kids as a single parent without any help from anyone else.
She had to work two jobs just so they could survive living in poverty in the Dominican Republic, which led her away from home for extended periods of time. This led them to grow apart and lose touch with one another until their mom became terminally ill and passed away due to cancer when Yamilet was 18 years old.
Who are her parents?
Yamilet’s parents are Mireya and Julio Ayala. Mireya is a former pharmacist who now works in public health and Julio is a professor of history. When she was young, her family moved from Cuba to New Jersey so that they could have more opportunities. Her father has been teaching in the United States for over 30 years. He says that his favorite part about living here is how people can always tell you what they think without being afraid of retaliation. He also says he loves how open-minded people are in this country.
She got her degree from Rutgers University with honors and worked as an assistant editor at Conde Nast Publications before leaving because she didn’t like it there. She then found a job at Birchbox where she currently works as their social media manager.
Yamilet does not believe in marriage but does believe in monogamous relationships with someone you care about deeply for life, even if you’re not ready to tie the knot just yet!
Her latest accomplishment? Getting accepted into graduate school for writing!
Who is her boyfriend?
In addition to being an entrepreneur, González is also a social media influencer and blogger. She was born in Cuba and moved to the United States when she was young with her family. Her boyfriend’s name is Luis Alberto Rodriguez Gomez. The two have been together since 2013 and share a daughter named Luna.
Do they have any children together?
Yamilet and her husband have two children together. Their first son was born in 2013 and their second son was born in 2015. They also have a daughter from her previous marriage. The couple has been married since 2010.
Yamilet is originally from the Dominican Republic but has spent most of her life in the United States.
She is currently living in Westchester County with her family, but she’s considering moving back to Santo Domingo when she retires.
Her favorite food is chicken soup because it reminds her of how much she missed it while living abroad for many years as an immigrant and being away from home.
