In the Spotlight - Tina Ruiz

by Meghan Clark

Tina's efforts on the EAC board focus on marketing and getting the word out about our organization. No person is better suited for this task than Tina. With a stellar smile and generous personality, she is someone who easily gains friends and wins the confidence of those around her.

Tina's job also brings out the smile in people who meet her. When she tells someone that she works for The Cheesecake Factory, people automatically smile and usually start talking about their favorite dish.

Tina was born and raised in Simi Valley, just like her parents. She graduated from Royal High School. Tina never strayed very far from home and she and her husband live in Simi Valley.

One of the many reasons Tina's satellite has orbited around Simi Valley for most of her life is her love for her family, both immediate and extended.

Tina admits she is a workaholic but her true life calling is her passion for family. She and her husband, Tony, are almost empty nesters and Tina tries to make the most of every moment with her family because of the joy they bring her. Tina's kids are a daughter (21) and a son (17). Anyone who has met Tina would agree that you are surprised to find she has kids in that age bracket. Having two kids and being a workaholic certainly agree with her.

Because of her passion for family, Tina and her husband are coordinators for a local non-profit organization with a mission to save marriages and keep families together. She and her husband recently traveled to Italy to attend an international conference on marriage and family and had a once-in-a-lifetime experience: a private audience with Pope Benedict! The Simi Valley Acorn ran an article describing Tina and Tony's work at http://www.simivalleyacorn.com/news/2008/0829/Neighbors/.

When she's not spearheading the non-profit causes, Tina's idea of unwinding is a good cup of coffee, reading the newspaper and talking to her husband. She and her husband are ready participants for all things “social” and try to connect with friends over dinner usually once a week.

Her career path has also kept her close to her roots. In 1988, she worked as a receptionist in the recruiting department at Rockwell International in Thousand Oaks. In the “it's a small world” category, it was Irene Escoto-Garcia, the Secretary for our EAC board who interviewed and hired Tina for that position.

After Rockwell, Tina continued her career in Human Resources at great companies like Seagate Technologies, Amgen and Countrywide. She has been with The Cheesecake Factory since 2005 and is responsible for staff relations, employment law training and other HR Projects.

Tina has been attending EAC since 1999 and enjoys their fully packed hour of information at a great value. Each program features experts with information relevant to her daily HR duties. Tina says she chooses the EAC over other HR organizations because the topics are always timely and she has gotten more information at a lunch event which allows her to get back to the office in a timely manner.

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