Local News

Luis Estrada Named General Manager of KVMR Community Radio

New leader brings decades of public media and community engagement experience to the Nevada City station.

February 19, 2026

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Luis Estrada in a radio studio. Credit: KVMR Community Radio.

Luis Estrada in a radio studio. Credit: KVMR Community Radio.

NEVADA CITY — Today, KVMR Community Radio announced that Luis Estrada will begin work as general manager of the station on Monday, March 2. He will take over from Ali Lightfoot, who stepped down after five years to care for family in Colorado.

Estrada comes to the station from KPBS Public Media in San Diego and Imperial Valley. He spent more than 11 years there in leadership roles, including on-air fundraising manager, senior producer, member acquisition manager, and senior producer. In those positions, Estrada oversaw strategy, creative direction, and production of membership campaigns across television, radio, and digital platforms for PBS, NPR, and related services while coordinating volunteers and special programming.

Estrada brings more than two decades of experience in mission-driven media, community engagement, and nonprofit development. He founded and continues to lead ES Creative Gang, a bilingual full-service creative production company established more than 20 years ago. Projects at the company have spanned Emmy-nominated broadcast campaigns, feature films, international media initiatives, and nonprofit communications.

Frank Williford, president of the KVMR Board of Directors, described the selection in the announcement. “Luis brings a deep commitment to public media, a collaborative leadership style, and a genuine respect for the role community radio plays in connecting people,” Williford said. “We’re excited to work together to strengthen KVMR and our relationship with the Nevada County community and beyond.”

Estrada shared his thoughts in the same release. “KVMR represents the very best of what community radio can be — local, independent, creative, and deeply rooted in service,” Estrada said. “I’m humbled and excited to join the KVMR team and look forward to partnering with the community in service of the mission. My wife Angela, our son Samual, and our dog Maxine look forward to days filled with music, quilting, and gardening, and being part of the incredible Nevada County community.”

In the general manager position, Estrada will emphasize long-term financial sustainability, support for staff and volunteers, expanded community engagement, and advancement of the station’s mission to connect, inform, and empower the region through diverse, locally produced content. The station’s official mission statement on kvmr.org notes the goal of celebrating diversity in music and culture while fostering civic engagement and goodwill.

KVMR serves as a listener-supported community radio station based in Nevada City. The nonprofit has delivered eclectic music, news, and public affairs programming to Nevada County, parts of Placer County, and the Sierra foothills region since its founding in 1978. The station operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, through a main 89.5 FM signal from Banner Mountain plus translator frequencies that reach Woodland, Truckee, and Tahoe, Placerville, and Angels Camp. More than 200 volunteer broadcasters and a small paid staff sustain daily operations, with primary funding from listener memberships and compliant underwriting messages.

Community members can find additional details about KVMR programming and operations at kvmr.org.

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