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Ismael Ford

Ismael is an entertainment and advertisement copy writer, which is an occupation that he has held for over twenty years. Prior to his career in advertising, he worked for the Department of Recreation and Parks for the City of Los Angeles. Ismael received his Associates Degree in Liberal Arts from Santa Monica College, then furthered his education by graduating from California State University, Fullerton with a bachelor's degree in communications.

In addition to Ismael’s extensive career work, he has volunteered at the Children’s Hunger Fund and the Hollywood Education Literacy Program, which instructs adults on how to read. Aside from spending time with family and his philanthropist efforts, Ismael enjoys hiking, jujitsu, and reading.

Ismael’s greatest accomplishment lies within the family he and his wife raised. His oldest son of two, Frances, is fifteen years old and is on the spectrum: as they are both very active members in the FAA community.

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Wendi Gaines

Wendi has been an admitting clerk for twenty three years. She has been working at Huntington Hospital for the last thirteen years as well. She received her medical secretary certificate from a vocational college for admitting through a specialized program.

Although Wendi is a very accomplished woman, she is most proud of her seven children. She is also the administer of the gospel at her church, a Foothill Autism Alliance board member and a Door of Hope board member. Through these organizations, she volunteers much of her time and has found communities that have helped her and her son Emmanuel, who is on the Autism spectrum, feel accepted and loved.

She loves being around people and thrive in social environments. Religion and philanthropy is a guiding factor throughout her life, which bleeds into her music taste: she enjoys Christian rap, Toni Braxton, and Whitney Houston. Wendi always makes time to watch movies, especially

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Dr Anita Ghazarian

Dr Anita Ghazarian, has a Doctor of Optometry. She is the Vice President of Ban SUP, the Environmental Lead of Indivisible Alta Pasadena and the Steering Committee member of 350 Southland Legislative Alliance. Professionally, she is residency trained in pediatrics and vision therapy and has been working at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles for 26 years. She has just received the LA County Commision on Disabilities service award. She is the mother of two adult children, one on the autism spectrum.

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Suzette Major

Suzette Major serves as the Director of Finance & Operations for Crestview Preparatory School, a “neighborhood school” that balances true respect for childhood and a love of learning that extends beyond the classroom. She is introducing digital practices that will enable the school to provide the tools, support, and structure to allow the advancement of learning principles in an increasingly digital world. Prior to joining Crestview, Suzette served as Finance and Benefits Director at Exceptional Minds, a computer animation studio and non-profit digital arts school for young adults on the autism spectrum.

Suzette holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of California at Los Angeles and is currently a candidate for a Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management and Leadership from Arizona State University. She is a longtime FAA Board member and will soon assume the role of FAA Treasurer.

Suzette resides in Glendale, California with her husband, Clarence, her two sons, Gad and Asher, and two adorable labradoodles, Hope and Joy.

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Leticia Andujo

Leticia is a retired English High School Teacher having worked for the Alhambra School District for four years and the Los Angeles School District for 32 years. She received her AA degree from East Los Angeles Junior College and her BA in English and Teaching Credential from California State University, Los Angeles. She is a single mother of a 29 year old autistic son, Diego. Her work in education, in helping students, special education students, parents and the community at large has always been a major focus and priority . Joining AASC and becoming a Board Member is her way of giving back, especially to the Spanish speaking community, and helping to open doors in support of all autistic youth and their parents.

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Patricia Herrera M.S.

Patricia is a trained Marriage Family Therapist (MFT) with a career dedicated to the development of innovative, cost-effective models of care coordination to improve health outcomes for children and youth with special health care needs. In her role as the Program Director for the 211 LA Developmental Screening and Care Coordination Program, Patricia has fundraised over $5,200,000 in foundation support, and created dozens of unique partnerships with community-based service organizations.

Patricia has extensive experience in program design, project implementation and contract administration, as well as, experience involving personnel management and new systems and process development. Patricia has also worked with a variety of populations including severely “at risk” children, youth and their families, individuals with developmental disabilities, senior citizens and caregivers tackling service access disparities and inequities. Previously, Patricia was at the forefront of the development of Family Resource Centers statewide during nearly 20 years at the Frank D. Lanterman Regional Center. She assisted FAA in forming their non-profit organization and obtaining funding from Lanterman Regional Center for the “Autism Power Pak”, the first autism resource directory developed by parents for parents with children on the autism spectrum.

Patricia has a Masters Degree in Counseling from California State University Northridge and a Clinical Psychology Degree from Colombia, South America. When Patricia is not busy rocking the world of those in her programs, she can be found rock climbing with her son David and husband Jonathan.

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Yudi Bennett

Yudi Bennett is a passionate advocate for all those with special needs, especially young adults with autism. She is the co-founder and past director of Exceptional Minds, an innovative visual effects and animation school and studio for artists on the Autism Spectrum.

Yudi comes from the motion picture world. She has been a member of the Directors Guild of America since 1978 and received their Frank Capra Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003. She is also a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences with credits in over 30 movies, including “Broadcast News” and “Kramer vs. Kramer.” Yudi is the co-founder and past president of Foothill Autism Alliance and currently serves on the FAA board. She has also served on the board of the Uniquely Abled Project, a vocational program that trains adults with autism to work in manufacturing.

Yudi is inspired everyday by her son, Noah Schneider, a young animator who was diagnosed with ASD in 1997. She is fond of quoting Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Her dream is to see all young adults with autism in meaningful jobs, leading independent and productive lives.

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Faustino Carver-Orozco

Faustino will be receiving his Cinema and TV certificate from Los Angeles City College in 2020. Though he is young, he has lots of experience within the media field such as interning at KLCS TV station and PBS. In addition, he has done extensive volunteer work with the Professional Child Development Center from 2012-2017.

Faustino himself is on the spectrum and is a valuable member to the FAA board because he is able to provide a first hand opinion from a young adult with Autism. He also films and takes photos at various Foothill Autism Alliance events.

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Monica Lee

Monica Lee. MD, is an obstetrician gynecologist with Medical Affairs and Clinical development experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Her areas of expertise include Phase 1-4 clinical trial research, Medical Monitoring, Women's Health, Pharmaceutical & Biotech consulting.

Monica also has clinical and nonprofit experience. She has leadership experience as Women's Health Medical Director at Northeast Valley Health Corporation overseeing 20 providers. NEVHC is an organization of 15 clinics in Los Angeles area providing care to the underserved population. Monica's other leadership experience includes serving on the Hospital Medical Leadership Committee at Cedars Sinai Medical Center.

Monica is a single mother to Bodhi, a 12 year old boy with profound autism. Her hope is to integrate her son into society and instill independent living skills. Her hope is to one day find the cure for autism, or better yet, a successful prevention. She is a passionate skier.

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Clarence Major

Clarence Major is an accomplished Production Designer (www.clarencemajor.design) and an advocate who works globally. Major’s professional achievements in Production Design are extensive and impressive. He graduated with honors from the prestigious Art Center College of Design in Environmental Design and studied Human Development at Pacific Oaks College.

In addition, he has held a position as a graduate advisor at the Art Center College of Design. His role as a seminar speaker at the USC School of Cinema Arts and the American Film Institute in Los Angeles has allowed him to share his expertise and insights with the next generation of filmmakers and artists. Major sits on the parent advisory board for DEI for Crescenta Valley High School. He is the former chair of the DEI Committee for the Art Directors Guild of America, where he created a strategic plan for the organization. Major lives with his wife in Glendale, California. They have two sons. Their eldest son, Asher, is a public speaker and tennis player with Autism.

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Ita Moses

Bio coming soon.

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Leslie Muralles

My name is Leslie Muralles I have a bachelors degree in business administration and work in the healthcare industry for the past 32 years. When I’m not working I’m busy volunteering at my son’s school in the choir department or driving around to my son’s activities.

I have two children one is 27 years old and my 16 year old son who is high functioning autistic. He was diagnosed when he was older in middle school. He loves music , dancing , video games , swimming , math and technology design. He loves animals.

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Michael Wilkins

Michael currently serves as the Senior Vice President of Member Services at First City Credit Union. He’s been in this job for just under three years. Previously, he has held various positions with other institutions such as SVP Retail Services, Vice President Retail Services, VP Branch Manager and Banking Officer. Michael received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration / Accounting from California State University, Long Beach.

In addition to his work as Senior VP, Michael has also volunteered for the Los Angeles Unified School District Academic Decathlon as a Student Interviewer, Speech Judge and Super Quiz Proctor. He is quite accomplished in all aspects of his life. He has been in the Financial Services industry for over 30 years and was an Executive for $700MM with 130+ employees. Michael and his wife just celebrated their 25th anniversary and bought their dream home.

Michael is an FAA board member who joined because of his son Brandon who is on the spectrum. Brandon is 16 years old and was diagnosed when he was close to two years old. He is a sweet and intelligent young man who is thriving at school where he has made many friends. Michael and his family feel that FAA is very helpful and he was honored to volunteer as a board member.

In his free time, Michael enjoys playing golf, cooking, and visiting museums.