Mesa Pediatrician Dr. Ruth Tan Lim has been an advocate of the arts for many decades.

In early October, Lim made an undisclosed donation to Arizona State University’s Media and Immersive eXperience Center in downtown Mesa. Her donation not only provided seed funding for the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts to establish a community artist residency, but the MIX Center’s production shop will also be named after her.

Lim’s philanthropy was inspired by her travels around the world and a little bit of history. Especially Maria Theresa, who was the ruler of the Hapsburg monarchy from 1740 to 1780.

When visiting Vienna, Lim learned about how Theresa was a big advocate for the arts, especially during peacetime.

“She had 16 children. And if they have no war, they can be creative and

See Full Page