Brenda Lizeth Barillas Ruiz

Norwalk-La Mirada Adult School

Nominated in 2022

Brenda Lizeth Barillas Ruiz came to the United States from Guatemala when she was 18 years old with her parents in pursuit of a better life. She enrolled in evening ESL classes at the Norwalk-La Mirada Adult School and completed three levels of ESL in two years. During that time, she learned both conversational and academic English, study skills, and even some computer skills to further her education. Through group projects and presentations, Brenda's confidence to communicate in English further improved.

After completing her ESL classes, Brenda decided to pursue a career as a Pharmacy Technician. She enrolled and successfully completed her classroom portion of her Pharmacy Tech training at the Norwalk-La Mirada Adult School and has been accepted to start her internship hours at the Long Beach Memorial Hospital.

Brenda is excited about the career that awaits her as a Pharmacy Technician soon. She loves working and helping people. She looks forward to being able to give back to her family and community in her new position in the healthcare industry. And her advice to anyone who's struggling with learning a new language is, "Don't give up. It is not easy but not impossible either."