Ruth Ko once performed with Don Ho at Disneyland. Last week, the publisher of Orange Coast magazine shared the stage with six other businesswomen award winners.
The women were honored at the Business Journal’s 11th annual Women in Business awards luncheon at the Hyatt Regency Irvine on May 26.
Ko, who dropped out of school in 10th grade, was honored for her work building Orange Coast magazine. Before going into advertising, Ko was an actor.
She appeared on TV shows “Charlie’s Angels” and “Green Acres” as well as in commercials and at Disneyland with Hawaiian crooner Ho.
The other businesswomen award winners:
Judi Partridge, chairman and chief executive of Anaheim Hills-based Eastwood Insurance. Partridge founded the insurance brokerage in 1989, which now has yearly sales of $54 million.
Michelle Bab-cock, executive vice president of operations at Costa Mesa-based Donahue Schriber, which owns and runs shopping centers. Babcock is the only woman on the company’s five-member executive committee.
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Stewart: worked as IHOP server as teen, later at Taco Bell |
Jill Gwaltney, chief executive of Costa Mesa-based Rauxa Direct, and President Johanna Bracken. Rauxa does marketing for big companies and has yearly sales of $34 million.
Aleen Agranowitz and Gladys Gleason, founders of the Speech and Language Development Center in Buena Park. The center works with kids and young adults with language, learning and behavior disabilities.
About 1,000 people attended the awards luncheon, which featured a keynote speech by Julia Stewart, chief executive of Glendale-based IHOP Corp.
