Bui Simon (born Porntip Nakhirunkanok (; ; ); February 7, 1969) is a Thai philanthropist and beauty queen who won Miss Universe 1988. Simon is president and founder of the Angels Wings Foundation. She is on the Board of Regents of

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private university, private Christianity, Christian research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ, with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pepperdine's main campus consists ...

, the Board of the

Children's Museum of Indianapolis The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is the world's largest children's museum. It is located at 3000 North Meridian Street, Indianapolis, Indiana in the United Northwest Area neighborhood of the city. The museum is accredited by the American Al ...

as a Distinguished Advisor and also is on the Board of Governors for the Dream Foundation.

Biography

Porntip Nakhirunkanok was born in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

, Thailand. Her nickname is "Bui" (, , ), which is her preferred name. It means "to sleep like a baby" in Thai. In the early 70's, she was brought to the United States by her family. She attended Washington Irving Middle School and Franklin High School in Los Angeles. In August 1988, Nakhirunkanok was presented the Thai Royal Medal of Honour, Most Exalted

Order of the White Elephant __NOTOC__ The Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant (; ) is an order (decoration), order of Thailand. It was established in 1861 by King Mongkut, Rama IV of the Thailand, Kingdom of Siam. Along with the Order of the Crown of Thailand, it is r ...

, by King Bhumibol Adulyadej for her service in helping children in need. She received a second Royal Decoration in 2001, Companion of the Most Noble

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand (; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama V of The Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) for Thais, the royal family, governmental employees, and foreign dignitaries for their outstanding serv ...

. In 1989, she was named United Nations Goodwill Ambassador of Thailand by Air Chief Marshal Siddhi Savetsila, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand. As Goodwill Ambassador, she addressed the UN General Assembly concerning the

Convention on the Rights of the Child The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (commonly abbreviated as the CRC or UNCRC) is an international international human rights treaty which sets out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of ch ...

. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

from

. In 2002, she married Herbert Simon, an American businessman who is the owner of the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

basketball team and

Simon Property Group Simon Property Group, Inc. is an American real estate investment trust that invests in shopping malls, outlet centers, and community/lifestyle centers. It is the largest owner of shopping malls in the United States and is headquartered in Indian ...

. The home she and her family had lived in, and all belongings, were destroyed in the

January 2025 Southern California wildfires From January 7 to 31, 2025, a series of 14 destructive wildfires affected the Los Angeles metropolitan area and San Diego County in California, United States. The fires were exacerbated by drought conditions, low humidity, a buildup of ve ...

Pageantry

In 1983, at the age of 15, Simon took part in the

Miss California Teen USA The Miss California Teen USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of California in the Miss Teen USA pageant. It was formed in 1983. This pageant is part of the Miss USA Organization. California is in the to ...

where she was placed first runner-up. Upon her return to Thailand, she participated in the 1988

Miss Thailand Miss Thailand (; ), is a beauty pageant held in Thailand for Thai women first held in 1934 under the name of Miss Siam (; ). The winner and runner-up of the pageant represents Thailand at Miss Cosmo, Miss Global, Miss Planet International, Miss C ...

pageant held in Bangkok where she won the right to represent Thailand at the Miss Universe pageant. Aged 19, Simon was crowned as Miss Universe 1988 by outgoing titleholder

Cecilia Bolocco Cecilia Carolina Bolocco Fonck (born May 19, 1965) is a Chilean actress, TV host and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universo Chile 1987 and Miss Universe 1987. Bolocco has worked as a journalist on the Spanish language editi ...

on May 24, 1988, in

Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...

, Taiwan. She became the second Thai woman to win the title after Apasra Hongsakula who won Miss Universe 1965. Simon became the first woman ever to win both the Miss Universe and Best National Costume award in one pageant. At the time of Miss Universe 1988, Simon weighed , and stood at . Simon crowned her successor,

Angela Visser Angela Visser (born 18 October 1966) is a Dutch actress, model and beauty queen who was crowned Miss Universe 1989. She is the first and so far the only Dutch woman to win the title of the Miss Universe 1989, Miss Universe. Visser, who had previ ...

of the Netherlands, at

Miss Universe 1989 Miss Universe 1989, the 38th Miss Universe pageant, was held on 23 May 1989 at the Fiesta Americana Condesa Hotel in Cancún, Mexico. Angela Visser of The Netherlands, Holland was crowned by Porntip Nakhirunkanok of Thailand. Seventy-six contestan ...

in Cancun, Mexico.

References

External links

Simon's Angels Wings Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simon, Bui 1969 births Bui Simon Living people Bui Simon Miss Universe 1988 contestants Miss Universe winners Bui Simon Female models from Los Angeles Toronto Metropolitan University alumni Bui Simon Bui Simon Simon family (real estate) Bui Simon Bui Simon Franklin High School (Los Angeles) alumni