Dr. Jose A. Flores is a lifelong resident and community activist of Grand Rapids, MI., retired educator/teacher/administrator and former B.O.E. member of the Grand Rapids Public Schools.  He is credited with having co-founded the Hispanic Center of Western Michigan, started the Hispanic Festival, served with the late founder of C.E.P. on the Board of Directors and having operated a successful grocery/convenience store called La Familia on Grand Rapids’ S.W. side for over 30 years.  Dr. Flores has a long record of service to the community, public advocacy for civil rights issues and has run for several public offices in Grand Rapids.  His political awareness and involvement is an asset to reaching the goals of the Heat 97.3 FM and will guide the efforts of this organization to reach it’s goals in the near future.  He said, “Music is universal and our urban genres of music will help bring greater harmony among our Metro Grand Rapids Residents!”

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- Marte Smith grew up in Grand Rapids, attended Burton Middle School and graduated from Ottawa Hills High School. He went on to University of Connecticut(Uconn) where he studied and played college level basketball where he honed many of his values and team contribution skills which he currently uses in his IT, Informational Technology career at Haworth Corporation.  Marte Smith eraned his bahelors degree in Social Science at University of Detroit Mercy where he also played NCAA D1 basketball.  His high level of discipline and focus on education have helped him develop unique talents in the workplace. For Marte, work has always been about learning new skills and exploring new fields of endeavor.  He has worked in marketing for over 15 years, directed advertising sales for major companies for over 10 years and dedicated the bulk of his work in the area of information technology where he has made his greatest contributions.  With a bachelor’s degree and work experience in marketing media, the Heat 97.3 FM is fortunate to have Marte Smith directing Sales, Marketing & Public Relations. We are positioned to make a real impact in promoting an urban experience music model of radio play that will challenge the marketplace to support diversity through dedicated advertising.