Ruben Ruiz represents the hundreds of students who have graduated from our programs and gone on to earn college/university degrees.
He, like so many of our alumni, are about to embark or already on the path to meaningful careers that KidWorks helped them imagine and bring into reality.
Name: Ruben Ruiz
City: Santa Ana, CA
Role at KidWorks: Alum
How did you first become involved with KidWorks?
I first became involved with KidWorks during elementary school. I will soon graduate from Grand Canyon University with a degree in engineering.
Share the most meaningful experiences you’ve had at KidWorks? What made them impactful to you?
The most meaningful experience I have had with the program were summer programs. It was a great time being with the other students I had grown up with, go to the summer camp near Yosemite and volunteer around the community.
Can you talk about some of the biggest obstacles KidWorks' programming overcame when you were involved.
I think the biggest obstacles Kidworks has overcome has been it’s influence in the surrounding community. KidWorks has been able to provide a safe place where less fortunate youth, like myself, discover what they want to become and achieve more than they ever thought possible.
What does KidWorks mean to you? Looking back, how did KidWorks help to shape your life? How did KW help to influence the person you are today?
Kidworks is a place I can always go to for help and a place where people of all walks of life can be positively involved in the local community. It gave me multiple opportunities to succeed that I wouldn’t have had otherwise.
KidWorks has also taught me the importance of giving back. I currently serve in the ROTC program at Grand Canyon and upon graduation, I will commission into the army.
What are your dreams for KidWorks over the next 10, 20, or 30 years?
I would like Kidworks to further its influence, potentially to other states, and become a national sized organization to spread it’s message and love of one’s community.