Ruben Arenas ’05
October 29, 2025
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ruben and his son Carlos decided it was time for a big change. After five years of leading educational programs at East Los Angeles College as Vice President of Academic Affairs, Ruben stepped down from his position. In August 2022, he and Carlos each packed two bags and moved to Bangkok, Thailand.
Since then, Ruben has been working remotely as a software engineer鈥攎ost recently for Adyton, a company that builds apps to make life easier for U.S. service members. He feels lucky to be working alongside his best friend from high school and one of his former students from ELAC, which makes the job even more meaningful.
Carlos will finish high school in May 2026. He鈥檚 thinking about college either in Bangkok or Los Angeles鈥攂ut he鈥檚 not a fan of being pressured to decide just yet.
Not long after moving to Bangkok, Ruben met Nontawat 鈥淏alloon鈥� Moonradab. After a short courtship, they fell in love. When LGBTQ marriage was legalized in Thailand in 2025, they tied the knot at their local district office with family present. Now, Ruben, Balloon, and Carlos are happily settled into life in Bangkok. They travel whenever they can鈥攕o far visiting about 15 provinces in Thailand (only 60 or so left!) and taking trips to Singapore, Taiwan, Japan, and Vietnam.
Ruben鈥檚 been learning Thai and practices whenever he gets the chance鈥攖hough Balloon lovingly keeps him humble by saying, 鈥淲rong!鈥� after nearly every attempt.
Balloon is looking forward to his first trip to the U.S., once he can get a visa approved. In the meantime, friends and family often visit them in Thailand, keeping their home full of laughter and good food.