Stephanie Ruiz, East Los Angeles-Montebello Young Careerist for 2016, will share experiences from her March trip to Thailand at the dinner meeting of the East Los Angeles-Montebello Business and Professional Women on Wednesday, April 27, 2016 at MERCI Board Room, 525 N. Chandler Avenue, Monterey Park (Networking starts at 4:30 P.M. with dinner to be before 5:00 P.M. Price of the dinner will be in the $10-$15 range). The program and dinner is open to all interested people, but reservations are required so there will be enough food. Call or E-mail Linda Wilson (626) 307-5650 or lindalwilson@juno.com to make a reservation or for questions.

Ruiz was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. She obtained her B.A. in Social Work from California State University, Los Angeles. She has three years experience working
in the field of Social Services and has spent the last three years working with homeless youth, emotionally disturbed teen girls and individuals with developmental disabilities. She is an active volunteer at The Compton Initiative, which is a non-profit organization that is committed to bringing hope and restoration to the City of Compton. She has also been coordinating an annual fundraiser for homeless on skid row during the holidays for the last eight years. Her future plans include pursuing a Master’s Degree in Social Work and to do volunteer work aboard.

According to Wikipedia, Thailand, formerly known as Siam, is the world’s 51st largest country and the 20th most-populous country with 66 million people. Its capital and largest city is Bangkok. It is the only country in Southeast Asia never colonized by the west, which has helped it keep its own unique culture. On her trip to Thailand, Ruiz had a chance to experience its culture and traditions. She will share these experiences at the East Los Angeles-Montebello BPW meeting on April 27th.