Please support our skilled and experienced Pacifica National Board and Local Station Board slate candidates. KPFT needs a strong turnout in the election – it’s critical to make quorum.
KPFT Listener Member Voting
(KPFT PAID STAFF AND VOLUNTEER TEAM MEMBERS, Click HERE)
Move KPFT Forward asks that you vote for ALL of the candidates below.
Click on their names to see their photos and candidate statements:
KPFT Listener Members,
Please Vote for Ehese Candidates for the Pacifica National Board (PNB).
PNB Chair: Susan Young
PNB Vice Chair: Minerva Sanders
PNB Secretary: Akio Tanaka
PNB Treasurer: Fred Dodsworth
PNB Representative from KPFT: Teresa Allen
ALSO Vote for these KPFT Local Station Board (LSB) Candidates:
Please vote for all of these candidates, too. All have also been endorsed by Move KPFT Forward and Pacifica Forward:
KPFT LSB Chair: Ron Stubbers
KPFT LSB Vice Chair: Lynden Foley
KPFT LSB Secretary: Richard Corl
KPFT LSB Outreach Coordinator: Debbie Smith
KPFT Paid Staff and Volunteer Team Member Voting
(KPFT LISTENER MEMBERS, Click HERE
Move KPFT Forward asks that you vote for ALL of the candidates below.
Click on their names to see their photos and candidate statements:
KPFT Paid Staff and Volunteer Team Members,
Please Vote for:
Pacifica National Board Chair: Susan Young
Pacifica National Board Vice Chair: Minerva Sanders
Pacifica National Board Secretary: Akio Tanaka
Pacifica National Board Treasurer: Fred Dodsworth
Pacifica National Board Paid Staff or Volunteer Team Members (Vote for BOTH): Egberto Willies AND Myla Reson
KPFT Local Station Board Paid Staff and Volunteer Team Members (Vote for BOTH): Ricardo (Rico) Henriquez AND Girasol “Bleu” Villatoro
More about These Well-Qualified Candidates
Pacifica National Board (PNB) Officer Candidates, for whom all members may vote:
Susan Young for Pacifica National Board (PNB) Chair
I am Susan Young — Current PPNB Chair running for reelection as a Pacifica Forward candidate.
Since its founding in 1946, Pacifica has met the challenges of fires, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, power outages, bombings, financial threats, lawsuits, physical violence against staff, volunteers and board members, dysfunctional bylaws, FCC and IRS compliance issues and the loss of CPB funding.
THE PACIFICA FOUNDATION IS STILL HERE!!!
Listeners, staff, volunteers and donors who have devoted time, heart and treasure to the network and all five stations have made this possible.
Pacifica is uniquely positioned in a dynamic media universe to be a voice against war, domestic violence, discrimination and environmental destruction. The Pacifica Forward coalition works as a team to advance progress in governance, management and financial sustainability needed to uphold our mission and expand national coverage of breaking news produced by five stations and 200+ affiliates around the country and abroad.
Serving as PNB chair since 2024, I have helped:
- End years of costly litigation through mediation and court approved bylaws that permit all members to vote directly for the national and their own local station boards;
- Preserve Pacifica’s priceless archives;
- Reduce Pacifica debt and increase financial accountability and regulatory compliance;
- Establish policies and procedures for hiring capable, productive managers;
- Establish guidelines for safe, respectful and productive meetings.
Now retired, I have served on the boards of Pacifica, KPFT, the ACLU of Texas and organizations for the arts, parks, housing, international relations, voter engagement and neighborhood planning and advocacy. I served on the first KPFT LSB in 2002, three years as Chair, and then on the CAB.
I ran for the LSB after organizing the Cities for Peace effort to oppose waging war on Iraq enlisting the support of 8 courageous Houston City Council members and progressive icons Sissy Farenthold, Archbishop Joseph Fiorenza and Reverend Bill Lawson who spearheaded desegregation in Houston.
I have served on all PNB committees, currently chair the Personnel Committee, and have raised thousands of dollars for Pacifica to help meet financial emergencies and support the programming I cherish on KPFT.
My experience with pubic finance, government, non-profit management and Pacifica governance at the national and local levels have prepared me to serve as PNB Chair protecting the future of Pacifica at this critical moment in national and global history.
Please vote for me and the Pacifica Forward team of candidates who can work together to build on progress in strengthening Pacifica.
Endorsed by Egberto Willies, Brian Edwards Tiekert, Philip Maldari.
Minerva Sanders for PNB Vice Chair
I am Minerva Sanders running for reelection as the PNB Vice Chair with Pacifica Forward candidates.
As Vice Chair since 2024 and a former WPFW Board Chair I champion community outreach and participation. I actively support WBAI’s in-depth independent news reporting and powerful, inspiring music. I look forward to working with all of our Pacifica Stations— collaborating and expanding our social media communications, hosting progressive author, music and film events, fund raising, grant writing and membership building. With the new bylaws we can now roll up our sleeves and get to work letting our diverse communities know about the amazing peace and social justice programming at KPFA, KPFK, KPFT, WPFW and WBAI and the 200+ Pacifica affiliates, and Pacifica’s historic archives.
I have also Chaired the Pacific Audit Committee which is urgently engaged in bringing Pacifica into non profit compliance with the 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 Audits. Our Pacifica Forward coalition is dedicated to strengthening Pacifica operational capacity through fiscal accountability, with new well- functioning accounting software and responsible budgeting to protect our mission and assets. Through responsible fiscal management and improvements we can help Pacifica to realize its potential as a powerful peace and social justice radio network.
I live in the Washington DC area and have recently retired from a career in government service with FEMA. I understand the urgent need for independent media to help keep our communities and families safe and informed in these challenging times.
Please vote for me and Pacifica Forward Candidates. We are endorsed by: Evelia Jones, Brian Edwards-Tiekert, Egberto Willies
Fred Dodsworth for PNB Treasurer
With decades of experience in journalism, everything from the business of publishing to the hard work of daily journalism, I know the media business first hand.
Additionally, as a long time Pacifica fan and listener, I know what it once was and can still be. America needs the voices and ideas Pacifica offers more now than ever before and I’m here to do everything I can to see the network survives and thrives.
For the past five years, as a member of the KPFA Local Station Board and as an elected delegate to the Pacifica National Board I’ve worked hard to insure that the network endures, and as important, grows and responds to the needs of these times. I’ve been bringing order and fiscal management to the Pacific Network in my role on the PNB member, including as chair of the Governance Committee, current chair of the Finance Committee, and as a voting member of the Personnel Committee. I have worked with delegates from the other stations and the affiliates to see that they are getting the support they need.
As the chair of the National Finance Committee, I’ve worked with the Pacifica National Board, the local station managers and the Executive Director to make sure we have up-to-date financials allowing us to work together to make sure each station has the tools it needs to remain on the air.
We have been building a network-wide news team that unites and coordinates our terrestrial stations with our 300 affiliates. Pacifica is a truth and integrity oasis in a sea of dishonest, divisive broadcast media. Pacifica’s critical network is situated, both on the radio waves and on the internet to connect us all, giving us the tools to see our nation lives up to its professed ideals.
If I’m elected Treasurer I will see our tools are up to date and accurate so that we can ensure our survival as a voice of peace and freedom in this nation.
Akio Tanaka for PNB Secretary
I am Akio Tanaka—current PNB Recording Secretary and a PNB Secretary candidate with the Pacifica Forward Coalition. I help to ensure that meeting decisions are recorded and available to listeners and staff and have helped to update past records.
I work with our national Pacifica Forward Coalition and others across the network to foster collaboration among board members, staff, volunteers, management and the listeners from all of the Pacifica stations and 200+ affiliates to meet the challenges ahead.
Many conflicts and legal challenges have been resolved through board training and mediation initiated by the Pacifica Forward Coalition. I appreciate that board meetings are more productive and respectful This past year the PNB and our local boards began implementing the 2025 Pacifica Bylaws which support democratic direct member voting for board members and decision making by majority vote.
With the implementation of new policies Pacifica operations are expanding and becoming more productive. After the 2025 LA fires and violent immigration raids Pacifica Forward board members began advocating for a strong Pacifica National News Team capable of responding to the daily emergency events that are unfolding across the country. And now, Pacifica News Team members from all of the stations meet weekly and produce headlines and coverage of major events in collaboration with the Pacifica Affiliates.
Please help Pacifica Forward to continue to build unity and expanding the network in these challenging times. Please nominate, vote and ask others to support me and Pacifica Forward candidates, endorsed by KPFA Protectors, Brian Edwards Tiekert, Philip Maldari, Sasha Lilley, Evelia Jones, Egberto Willies
Teresa Allen for KPFT’s Listener Representative on the PNB
I am Teresa Allen, running as a Pacifica Forward candidate because I believe Pacifica’s future depends on strong governance, community engagement, financial responsibility, and a continued commitment to the unique programming that listeners cannot find anywhere else.
My years of service on the KPFT Local Station Board and the Pacifica National Board have made me aware of this nonprofit’s challenges in budgeting, personnel matters, fundraising, outreach, and strategic planning. Having served on major committees and having chaired the Personnel Committee and Affiliate Task force, I understand both the challenges and opportunities facing Pacifica today.
As your representative on the Pacifica National Board, I will continue working to strengthen financial stability, support effective management, increase listener engagement, and build stronger relationships with Pacifica’s affiliate stations. I constantly work to reconnect former supporters, welcome new audiences, and expanding partnerships throughout our communities.
The Pacifica Mission promotes educating, training, encouraging dialogue and certainly empowering people in community. I believe that an informed citizenry is essential to democracy and that the Pacifica Mission Statement promotes news and public affairs beyond sound-bytes and untainted by corporate influence. We must help people dialogue, perform critical analysis, educate themselves and interact in community– outside of strained civic structures and political pressure. I am very proud of our programs such as the Prison Show, Queer Voices, Execution Watch, Politics Done Right, Democracy Now!, and superb locally-generated shows as well as syndicated programs.
KPFT’s rich music tradition is one of its greatest strengths. As someone who co-produces a nonprofit music venue and raises money for charity, I understand the important role that independent music plays in building culture and community. I will advocate for policies that support local artists, preserve our diverse music programming, and ensure that Pacifica remains a home for creative voices that commercial media too often overlook.
KPFT has always been more than a radio station. It is a community institution built by volunteers, listeners, activists, musicians, and supporters. I bring decades of experience, a proven record of service, and a commitment to working collaboratively to help Pacifica thrive for future generations.
I respectfully ask for your vote for Teresa Allen and all Pacifica Forward candidates.
KPFT Local Station Board (LSB) Candidates:
Ron Stubbers for KPFT LSB Chair
I’m Ron Stubbers, serving as current KPFT LSB Chair and running for re-election. Most important to me are:
- Working with station management to move the station forward and ensure efforts are responsive to the station’s diverse listener and community needs.
- Operating the LSB and its meetings so everyone can be heard, and we make effective use of people’s time.
- Focusing the board and its members’ energies toward our bylaw-dictated mission of + increasing membership, + raising funds, and + aligning actions with Pacifica’s mission.
- Organizing the board including new positions to help ensure KPFT and Pacifica are on a solid financial footing to effectively use our people and funds and carry out our mission.
My experience with the KPFT LSB and station management, as well as corporate boards and business management in a range of businesses are what I believe is needed in the KPFT LSB Chair position.
The upcoming term will offer tremendous opportunity for communication and engagement. We need to adapt to the new board structure and ensure everyone is working towards a common goal.
Please vote for me and other Pacifica Forward candidates.
Lynden Foley for KPFT LSB Vice Chair
Ever since I became familiar with the perilous condition at the Pacifica Foundation I have said that it may not survive but that KPFT has a great chance of not only survival but of a prosperous future. My belief in KPFT is due to the local management and governance structure in that we are heavily dependent on volunteers working alongside a small number of highly dedicated and experienced paid staff. We also are proving daily that we know our members and what they value and that the mix of music and socially supportive programming is what achieves both the social mission statement and the mission of financial self sufficiency.
With all of this in mind I am running for the position of Vice Chair of the KPFT LSB to support the Chair and step in if needed. I have two particular goals that I will attempt to advance. They are both aimed at increasing awareness of the existence of KPFT through advertising. The easiest of these goals would be signage at the back of the Caroline building. Three years of this opportunity have been wasted and we may not have a future opportunity because of the re-configuring and construction of 59. The other opportunity is advertising by social media in a targeted fashion. This may be our best shot at engaging a younger cohort.
My qualifications in addition to the time and effort I have already put into KPFT are:
- MBA in Finance
- Sixteen years working for interstate natural gas pipelines regulated by FERC. The formative years of this time spent in Rate and Regulatory mainly in determining the Cost of Service. I also vetted pipeline projects for Internal Rate of Return, evaluated insurance feasibility for offshore assets and participated in pipeline budgets.
- Eight years as owner and sole operator of a beer importing and distribution company. With no experience in the industry I obtained a license from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and one from the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. I then flew to Peru and made my presentation to representatives the corporation that brewed Cerveza Cusquena in Cusco, Peru.
The point in elaborating on the beer importing is to say, ““”Just because we haven’t done this before doesn’t mean that we can’t do it”””. Sometimes it is just put one foot in front of the other and see how far you can get. Sure you need to be smart and prudent but if you don’t take any chances you will not get anywhere.
Richard Corl for KPFT LSB Secretary
I am Richard Corl – Currently serve on the KPFT Local Station Board as secretary, running for election as a Pacifica Forward candidate. Besides my role as secretary I have helped with fund raising events, tabling for KPFT and am a long time listener and sustaining member.
I am an Information Technology and Cybersecurity professional from which I recently retired.
Useful skills:
- Research and analysis
- Project Management
- Computer skills; hardware, software and office products.
- Obtained a 1st Class FCC license, lapsed.
- Management skills
- Working with diverse teams.
- Estimating costs
I believe in the work of Pacifica Radio and feel that independent radio is valuable and want to see it expand.
Please vote for me in the upcoming election for KPFT LSB Secretary. Thank you.
Debbie Smith for KPFT LSB Outreach Coordinator
I am Debbie Smith running as the Pacifica Forward Candidate for KPFT Local Station Board Outreach Coordinator.
I have been a active volunteer for KPFT for 16 years. I spent many years on the Building Committee at 419 Lovett also our current Station helping to maintain the up keep.
I have served on the LSB for two years, Chair the Governance Committee also Secretary for the Outreach/Development Committee.
I volunteer for Station and Community Events. I am a Proud Rodeo Trail Rider with Kennedy Arena also Prairie View Trail Riders.
I have organized many Socials and Fundraiser events.
Please Vote for me and Pacifica Forward Endorsed Candidates.
Thank You for your Support for KPFT.
Pacifica National Board Paid Staff or Volunteer Team Members – please vote for ALL the PNB Officers above,plus these candidates:
Egberto Willies AND Myla Reson for PNB Representatives (Vote for BOTH)
Ricardo (Rico) Henriquez AND Girasol “Bleu” Villatoro for KPFT LSB Representatives (Vote for BOTH)
Egberto Willies for one of two PNB Representatives for Paid Staff & Volunteer Team Members
As the host of the daily morning program Politics Done Right, I have built and integrated an on-air and online presence that extends the reach of the airwaves, creating a continually intersecting community I consider access to the airwaves a privilege and as such treat my access to it with the respect it deserves my ensuring anyone listening feels that they have the have heard will enhance there understanding of any of the many political issues that we are surrounded by.
The goal as a staff rep on the PNB will be to listen to those throughout the network and offer advice and suggestions, based on my experiences with the public at large, to ensure the network remains a valued asset to the entire community, in line with our foundation’s values.
The media landscape is not changing; it has changed. I have used my daily program at KPFT, along with my online presence, to integrate various streams into a single platform. As such, our little KPFT station has brought in listeners/viewers from across the country and around the world on a daily basis.
Reaching a new audience does not require abandoning the previous audience; it means integrating them. I hope that, as a member of the PNB who listens to all inputs, we find ways not just to integrate one program or station with its audience, but to integrate the entire network into an integral, common cause aligned with our values in a forward-looking manner.
I have written several books and have been a member of several organizations, Move to Amend, Coffee Party USA, Houston Peace and Justice Center, KPFT LSB, Pacifica National Board Member, and many other movement organizations where communication is imperative. I want to bring the skills I have developed over the years to invite EVERYONE to the table and ensure ALL feel respected.
Myla Reson for one of two PNB Representatives for Paid Staff & Volunteer Team Members
I’m Myla Reson, running for reelection to represent staff and team volunteers on the PNB with Pacifica Forward candidates.
Along with Harvey Wasserman I co-produce California Solartopia/the Solartopia Show on KPFK & the Pacifica Affiliate Network.
With Earth at the brink of Apocalypse, energy issues dominate California, the nation & the world. California Solartopia breaks down our fiercest ecological battles — nuclear threats, defending wetlands, stopping plastics, fracking, and the political cronyism gutting nuclear safety while attacking solar/wind/geothermal/battery solutions.
Working together with national board directors from Pacifica’s five sister stations and the Pacifica Affiliate Network we’ve ended three years of litigation with court approved bylaws that empower members to vote directly for the national and local station boards.
Our combined efforts have resulted in reducing Pacifica’s overall debt with greater financial accountability.
We’re rebuilding Pacifica’s national news with our 5 sister stations and 200 plus affiliates.
I see our news coverage as the crown jewel in our media project.
I’ve often said I was educated at the University of Pacifica Radio. That education began over 60 years ago when I was still in high school listening to the music of Paul Robeson and Pete Seegar on KPFK.
I owe a great debt of gratitude to the many thoughtful and provocative programmers who over the years helped me understand the importance of working together to make our world a better place. I support the editorial freedom of Pacifica Staff.
I ask that you vote for me, as well as all candidates endorsed by Pacifica Forward for their records of service and teamwork.
Rico Henriquez for one of two Staff & Volunteer Team Member Representatives on KPFT’s LSB
I am Ricardo (Rico) Henriquez running as a candidate for KPFT LSB staff representative.
I am from Houston and lived here all my life. I got involved with KPFT by way of a program host who was a professor at my University and was a guest on his program multiple times. As Covid was at its end, I asked for recommendations on where to get my foot in the door and was told KPFT had just moved into a new building and was looking for help. I began and continue my path at KPFT utilizing every avenue I can to learn and grow professionally in radio. I am especially enthusiastic about serving as a producer for “Amplified Houston!”, a 4-day a week public affairs program home grown in Houston. Subjects and guests that we have featured are varied and numerous as I have been booking multiple guests per episode for almost a year today. Our goals are to highlight the work being done in the city, the services offered, and the ways change can happen. I host 2 other programs, a music show called “Houstonian” from my experience as a gigging club DJ in Downtown Houston, as well as “The Houston Collective” a live program where I interview and get to know local bands in the city.
I also help many other programs pivot or get started, getting them up to speed and consistency in quality, operation, and especially FCC Compliance working closely with Jon Almellah. My first shows were “Politics Done Right” with Egberto Willies and “U-Talk”, this has evolved into having a hand in most programs, morning and night, over the last 3-4 years.
I maintain the property, keeping inventory stocked up, taking out trash, watering the plants, installing fixtures be it lighting or mail etc, and other “chores” that need doing on the day to day. This also usually transpires in being the front facing aspect of the station, greeting guests, volunteers, interns, the curious, members, and service personnel.
I also do a lot of training for different aspects of the station, including but not limited to on-air operation. Board operating, automation software familiarity, hardware and software manipulation and repair, script writing, guest booking, promos and PSA downloads from the CDC, audio editing and more.
When I am not busy with one of those things I usually have time to create designs for the station to be used in thank you gift premiums, flyers, social media posts and work with programmers to get an idea of their vision.
Vote for me for KPFT LSB staff representative.
Girasol “Bleu” Villatoro for one of two Staff & Volunteer Team Member Representatives on KPFT’s LSB
My name is Girasol “Bleu,” Villatoro, and I would love to join KPFT’s Local Station Board as a Staff Member Representative. I’ve been volunteering with KPFT for a little over 2 years and am proud to be the evenings operations coordinator for our public affairs programming. I was born and raised in Houston’s Second Ward, attended the University of Rochester pursuing Digital Media Studies, have taken artist residencies in NYC, and recently graduated from the University of Houston Class of 2025. I got involved with KPFT as soon as I moved back to Houston from my time in NY and have come to find the community cultivated at KPFT as inviting, diverse, and important. As I learn more and more about the history of Pacifica and KPFT, I remain appreciative in my work upholding free speech media in my hometown.