Alumni Ruffa Mae Fortin is currently a Special Events Coordinator at Dave and Buster’s.
Ruffa Mae Fortin
class of 2016
PROGRAM OF STUDY: NURSING
"My favorite part of it was going to the VA hospital in Senior Year for clinicals. It was so fun getting to know the patients that we worked with and of course, finally getting the hands-on experience that you wait four years for!"
CURRENT CAREER: HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
"I am the Special Events Coordinator at Dave and Buster’s. I plan events from birthday parties to large corporate buyouts and I can definitely say that it has been one of the most enjoyable times in my life. Although I am not back to work yet because of COVID-19, I look forward to returning!"
"Coming in as a freshman, I was such an introverted tween and that all quickly changed, thanks to Mrs. Penrod in Freshman Studies class. She always encouraged us to be strong and confident in the individuals that we would become in society. I truly never acknowledged the impact that SWCTA has had on my day to day life until I was about to walk across the stage to graduate."
FUTURE?...
@ruffzfortin
"I honestly don’t have just one favorite moment because I really loved all of my time at Southwest. Between meeting some of my life-long friends along with the most impactful and inspirational teachers, to the flag football games, HOSA, Grad Nite at Disneyland, and meeting my best friend and high school sweetheart, I can say that there wasn’t a moment worth forgetting."
HOW SWCTA HELPED...
"My dream from a very young age was to become a Nurse and that was the path that I was on for a while in college, until I realized that I wanted to help people but in a different way. I quickly learned that I can be happy and still fulfill my passion for helping others through event sales. In the future, I would love to plan events like weddings or venture off on a bigger scale and plan conventions!"
FAVORITE SWCTA MOMENT...
ADVICE?...
"Always remember that the world is your oyster. Wake up every single day, set yourself up for success and work hard for the things that you want out of this lifetime. Remember that success is not defined by how many numbers you have in your bank account, but by the day-to-day experiences and relationships that you have in your life. Regardless of the good and the bad, always be proud of yourself because only you can be the best at being YOU!"
![At the first senior event of the school year, seniors Philipos Alebachew and Rediate Hunde show off their childhood backpacks for a photo to commemorate the moment. One of the final senior events, field day, will take place Thursday.. “Our main theme of StuCo for the year is nostalgia, and we wanted to bring back that and just have a fun thing for our whole class,” Event Planner Amani Rahman said. "[The Senior Field Day] theme is bubble guppies because we also wanted to bring back your childhood like what we did for the senior sunrise.”](https://southwestshadow.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/IMG_9533-1200x800.jpg)
