HeartFire Media

04/02/2024

We are excited to announce our first VP of Sales for us here at HeartFire Media and our sister company Bean & Chisme, Ms. Charisma Machado! Charisma Machado 🎉🎉🎉

As both our companies head into an expansion and rebrand to become the top content marketing and video production agencies, Charisma brings a wealth of experience to the team. Charisma is a high-tech industry veteran from the unified communications & collaboration space with 20 years of business experience in direct and channel sales, and account management. Her knowledge extends into digital marketing and digital media, including brand strategy, brand building, lead generation, content strategy, and competitive research. She holds a Digital Marketing certification from UT Austin McCombs School of Business, and majors in Digital Media and Professional Communication at Texas Tech University. If your business or organization are looking for creative marketing strategies utilizing the power of social media and video, we are your team! Give Char a call at (925) 577-4721 or email [email protected]. Congratulations Char and welcome to the team!!! ❤️🥂🎉

03/14/2022

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Miss Neka Cleaver was born and raised in San Antonio and has been working for the community with her father since she was 15. Since Neka has a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and is nationally ranked on the Junior Tennis circuit, her dad made her help him with a youth program called YWHP that was located on the East side of San Antonio. Together they helped youth learn tennis, karate, nature and day-to-day living skills.

Neka attended Texas A& M University and founded a community service sorority to help people in the area. When her parents passed she put all her teachings together and created Tha1Radio. Over the years Miss Neka was the number one host and morning show personality at KTFM, helped launch KROV, appeared on several daytime talk shows and hosted everything from the main stages at Fiesta to the Taste of new Orleans, and so much more.

Miss Neka co-founded Black Business San Antonio to bring site and support to the thousands of black business owners in the city. She hosts events to spotlight special talents, small business, woman, youth. Tha1 was founded so people can be heard and seen by the city and beyond. She interviews city leaders to keep the community informed and helps dreams come true.

Miss Neka also hosts an annual Christmas giveback, a backpack drive that helps schools in the area and "Tha1Awards" which recognizes 21 individuals who giveback to the community.

In recent years she has received recognition from the Antioch Church for Women of Christ in the Community, YMCA Cornerstone award, WOAI/FOX NEWS as A Difference Maker in SA and by the SA Art Foundation. If you ask Neka if she is proud of what she has done she will laugh and say, "It feels like I haven't done anything yet."

This is one reason why she is now running for City Council District 2. Neka felt like she needed to raise the bar on how she helped the community. She wanted to do more and she wanted to reach more people. In January 2020 Neka decided to enter the next council race. She began to study the position.
Through her research and studies she realized that she was not only qualified for this job but made for this job! Unfortunately, the pandemic hit and unrest hit in the streets of many cities due to the killing of another unarmed black man.

Neka held community meetings with public officials, held zoom meetings with leaders to help small businesses, partnered with other community members to give out over 6,000 plates of free food, hundreds of mask and personally delivered PPE packs to small businesses. As the year continued Neka saw other needs from the community, and worked to fill those needs as well.

Next, she created a D2 Resource guide that holds all important numbers for the District 2 area and includes a website were businesses can list their business for free. Now, Nneka is on the campaign trail and her work has not stopped nor changed. She continues to help with food drives and spotlights small businesses through her platform.

"My continues goal is to help more people, create millionaires in our communities, bring back the neighborhoods where people care, communicate with each other and help one another succeed! Anything that brings glory to the Kingdom of God and the communities that we live in."

02/21/2022

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

A native of South Texas, Clifton Simmons has graced many stages and toured across various comedy clubs and colleges. The highlight of his performances has led him to New York, where he performed on Broadway. Simmons paid his dues and fine-tuned his skills, by becoming a finalist in the “Funniest Person in South Texas” competition and nominated "Best Stand Up Comic in San Antonio." He has shared the stage with DL Hughley and more has also been highlighted at various Improv Comedy Clubs across the United States.

Clifton's genetic make-up is unique, which can literally be traced back through the genealogy of the Hebrew Israelites. Although, judging from the multiple hats he wears, many would simply label him as “Jamaican.” When he is not making folks laugh out loud, he can be found throughout the community working.

Clifton made his debut acting appearance at the age of six in the screenplay, “Ms. Johnson got her Praise Back.” It would be the first of many acting roles for him, produced mostly by Hornsby Entertainment. In addition, he has taken on the role as an inspirational speaker, motivating employees to love their jobs at various Fortune 500 companies.

Clifton serves as a wedding officiant and celebrity handler. He moonlights as an MC and host for many social and community service events. But more than a comedian, he is a natural born entertainer.

Clifton's mission is to help people live happier lives. He says, “I want to give people the best version of me. I seek to find that funny bone to improve the overall laughter of the people that I inspire and their communities.”

Clifton understands what it means to come from very little, which is why he volunteers with God’s Dogs and with the YMCA. He is a single parent who believes becoming a father is the best part of his life. Clifton is not living his dream, he is the dream-fulfilled. Follow him on all social media platforms at Comedian Clifton Simmons

01/26/2022

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Charity McCurdy is a lifelong San Antonian who grew up on Randolph Air Force Base in Universal City as a military brat. She started her radio career in 2001, producing various shows on both News Radio 1200 WOAI and Ticket 760 before pursuing her passion for news.

In 2008, she became the morning news anchor on "San Antonio's First News with Charlie Parker" where today she continues to bring listeners the latest headlines.

Charity can also be heard in on iHeart radio stations across the state in markets such as Dallas, Houston and Corpus Christi. In 2009, Charity was named one of the San Antonio Business Journal’s ‘40 Under 40’ Honorees.

When she's off the air, Charity enjoys spending time with her husband and their two children at their favorite San Antonio treasures; the Quadrangle at Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio Zoo, Japanese Tea Garden and San Antonio Botanical Garden.

11/30/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Debra L. Rivas is a single mother of two boys who was married for five years and then became a widow after her husband battled Leukemia for two years. A few years later Debra met her fiancé but sadly he passed away just six months before their wedding. He was a dialysis patient and passed away from kidney cancer. In May of 2010, Debra was diagnosed with uterine cancer however today she is an 11-year cancer survivor who is always looking for ways to help her community.

Because of her past experiences with cancer and with the grace of God, Debra gave back to the community by hosting a Thanksgiving Dinner in November 2010, just months after her diagnosis. She and her family fed over a hundred people on that day with the help of other family members and friends.

Hosting the Thanksgiving event gave Debra the idea to start a cancer support group on the Southside of San Antonio. On October 16, 2011, Cancer Is One Cancer (CIOC) Support Group was born. Five years after creating this support group, Debra was then diagnosed with her second cancer, thyroid cancer. With her strong faith, she beat thyroid cancer also.

After meeting many cancer patients and their families, hosting Thanksgiving Dinners, annual Toy Drives, an annual Christmas Party, and delivering toys to kids battling cancer in the hospital became a tradition here in San Antonio. Recently, CIOC also celebrated its 10th year anniversary!

With Debra and her group, no one fights cancer alone!

11/15/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Mitch Stephen has purchased a property in and around San Antonio Texas, every four to five days, for the last two 1/2 decades. His passion is changing renters into homeowners. The “higher reason” that drives him is based on the fact that 95% of Americans find the bulk of their networth in the equity of their home.

In addition, Mitch has coached hundreds of people across the nation. He finds a tremendous emotional reward in helping others find their financial independence.

He is the author of six books and headed towards number seven. The book series MY LIFE & 1,000 HOUSES has changed many lives for the better. In those books he describes how he went from being a simple high school graduate to buying over 2500 properties since 1996.

A true serial entrepreneur, Stephen invented LiveComm.com and created one of the world’s most creative, innovative and affordable ways to market almost any company. His technology has subscribers all across the country from coast-to-coast.

He is a huge believer in cash flow and practices the methods he teaches. He owns hundreds of self-storage doors, hundreds of boat storage spaces and hundreds of semi-truck parking spaces.

At 1000Houses.com you’ll find his YouTube channel, his 500+ episodes podcast, his blog, and his books.

When he’s not creating cash flow Stephen is an award-winning songwriter. In 2005, Stephen took Texas Tejano Music Association’s Crossover Song of the Year with the song “WHO’s THAT GRINGO” co-written by Billy O’Rourke and released by multiple Grammy Award winning band David Lee Garza y Los Musicales.

His favorite charity is the Montague County Child welfare Board where he and his business partner, Mike Powell, have raised almost $30,000 in support by donating and hosting events at Mitch’s ranch.

HeartFire Media congratulates Mitch on all his success!

09/14/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Jeff Valdez is a serial entrepreneur who has been producing, writing and directing TV and film for over 25 years with the likes of Nickelodeon, Disney, Showtime, NBC and HBO Max. He has been credited with pioneering a new category in American television, the English Language Latino Market.

Jeff is an expert in addressing the multitude of opportunities in this “New Mainstream” and has consulted many major organizations looking to maximize their reach into the Latinx cohort. Mr. Valdez made TV history as Founder and CEO of SiTV (currently Fuse). He launched and oversaw all operations for the critical maiden voyage of the first-ever national cable network owned and run by Latinos in the United States, in English.

After launching SiTV, Jeff Chaired the largest Latino social network at the time, QuePasa Corp (NASDAQ), helping grow the stock from $1 to $15 a share, and simultaneously Co-Chaired a Latinx film distribution company in the U.S. called Maya Entertainment. Along with former Accenture global COO, Raul Alvarado, Jeff helped create Themographic Solutions, a cognitive analytics platform that identifies consumer wishes and brand needs, then aligns them through topic & value-driven content.

In 2019, Jeff Valdez and tech maven, Sol Trujillo, co-founded New Cadence Productions, a television and film content studio, which promotes Latino-based content in English. NCP is partnered with Warner/HBO Max on a multi-year first-look deal. NCP has a myriad of projects in development and production including the “HA Comedy Festival,” which is currently streaming on HBO Max, “Comedy Chingonas,” an upcoming special, as well as “The Garcias,” a 10-episode reboot of the hit Nickelodeon family show and Jeff’s brainchild, “The Brothers Garcia.”

One of Jeff’s proudest accomplishments was being named to the board of the Kennedy Center by President Bill Clinton, where Jeff championed and funded the first-ever Latino Playwright scholarship. The KCACTF Latinx Playwright Scholarship continues to this day.

Born in Pueblo, Colorado, Jeff currently lives in Beverly Hills with his wife, Ana, who heads the Latino Donor Collaborative, and their two sons, Alex, who attends the University of Notre Dame, and Max, who attends Amherst College.

09/01/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Blue Cares, the community outreach arm of the San Antonio Police Officers’ Association (SAPOA) recently selected Amanda L. Gonzalez to lead the organization and its programs.

A San Antonio native, Gonzalez holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Baylor University and a Master of Arts degree from St. Mary’s University. Currently, she is also a second-year doctoral student pursuing her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership Policy at Texas Tech University online.

Her professional background is extensive in nonprofit management, fundraising, public policy, and research. The daughter of a 29-year veteran of the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, Gonzalez believes in the organization’s mission and looks forward to working alongside SAPOA leadership to help the least served in the community.

“We’re very happy to have chosen Amanda to lead Blue Cares because she understands the importance of community service, and that is what Blue Cares is all about,” said Danny Diaz, SAPOA President. “Amanda’s proven track record of success, non-profit experience, and professional background will help drive the vision and values of the organization.”

As Executive Director, Gonzalez plans to refocus the Blue Cares mission and priorities to bring forth solutions to addressing the resource disparities many San Antonians face daily, which include: Poverty/Homelessness; Health/Safety; Education/Mentorship, Equity & Inclusion.

“I am honored to have been selected as the next leader of Blue Cares,” said Gonzalez. “I look forward to using my knowledge and experience in non-profit management to elevate the mission of Blue Cares and build on the incredible work the organization has accomplished over the last 45 years.”

Blue Cares is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides year-round services and assistance to underprivileged, low-income, at-risk children and their families. Blue Cares works with local governmental and educational institutions, small and large local businesses, and other nonprofit organizations to achieve its mission objectives.

08/16/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Juan Ramos is Executive Director and founder of R3 Student Outreach. R3 exists to bring renewal, revival and restoration to the minds and hearts of young people through a transformation of the mind.

He opened the doors of R3 in 2019 and alongside an incredible team has helped served over 3,000 youth and young adults with tutoring, mentorship, food, clothing and resources.

In middle school he was severely bullied by classmates and even teachers. Carrying the burdens, lessons and hardships of these past experiences he never forgot the need for youth supports and guidance. In 2019 coming across articles of youth who had committed su***de all connected to bullying he felt a strong calling to do something.

By faith and without any backing or even reason to believe it could be done he began searching for a building, a place youth from all over the city could call home. Within a few days and with the help of a great friend and partner, Angela Brown Williams, Juan had the keys to what would become R3 Student Outreach.

Although the first year was a huge challenge with no finances, minimal support and little awareness to R3 services, today R3 is a foundational piece in serving San Antonio youth.

In 2020, at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic R3 Student Outreach and The Williams Family Initiative- a R3 program, fed over 10,000 hot meals to families in need. This led to being nationally recognized on "The Today Show" and gaining a sponsorship from Walmart. This was just the beginning of the many great things to come including the opening of Revived Community Church in August of 2020, where Juan and Angela both Pastor today.

That same year Kym’s Angels Foundation alongside spokesperson Yolanda Valenzuela, awarded R3 and total of $20,000, the organization’s first grant. In 2021 they awarded an additional $120,000.

Today R3 Student Outreach is a faith-based agency that provides opportunities, resources and space for youth and young adults to excel in their personal development & academic pursuits. Juan continues to develop programming and build relationships to further impact youth and young adults in San Antonio.

07/26/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

After going through a heart-breaking divorce and foreclosure of his home in 2010, Mike Flores knew something needed to change. He had worked for many years as a sales person in retail, but never felt he made an impact on anyone. He turned his trouble into a triumph and started learning the ins and outs of avoiding foreclosure and the numerous options people have to save their homes.

He made a decision to pay it forward and created "Mike Sells Homes TX" where he utilizes knowledge of loan modifications and bank negotiations to save them from foreclosure. In some cases, help homeowners buy time in order to sell their homes for the best possible scenario.

Eleven years later, he is not only helping people avoid foreclosures, he has begun to invest in his own properties as investments. He's learned to pick up a hammer and really put in hard work into remodeling and the costs of repairing a home. This has allowed him to experience real estate from all aspects. His goal is to continue purchasing and selling investments, while mentoring others to do the same.

When he's not doing Real Estate, Mike is always helping others. From mentoring youth in the community, helping people with home repairs, to teaching others how to defend themselves- he is always giving. Self-defense is another passion of his and he has helped numerous people develop those skills and passion for it.

HeartFire Media thanks you Mike for sharing your life lessons and passing that knowledge onto others! We look forward to seeing what you will do next!

To contact Mike Flores, call (210) 363-9226.

06/28/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Gloria Ramos-Cortes serves as a Senior Academic Advisor for the HEB School of Business and Administration at the University of the Incarnate Word. She guides her students while on their academic journeys by connecting one-on-one to ensure proper and complete progress towards a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree. Their success is her passion.

Gloria, a first-generation college graduate from San Antonio understands directly, the dynamics of life, academia and culture. She attended Texas A&M University—San Antonio where she fulfilled her dream of attaining a Master of Business Administration degree. It was while working at TAMU-SA that she realized the impact higher education made in the lives of students, especially those like her.

“I want to see my hometown thrive and rise, and if my knowledge and experiences as a first -generation college graduate can help contribute to the next generation, then I am happy to continue in this role as an educator. My children are a part of San Antonio’s future, so I am fully invested.”

Gloria is also affiliated with the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA) and the Latina Leadership Institute (LLI). If Gloria is not working with her students or on her plans for a nonprofit Latina Youth project, she is happily engaging with her family, listening to music and raising her two children with her husband of 20 years.

HeartFire Media congratulates Gloria Ramos-Cortes on all her success!

06/24/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Krystal Diaz Mendez is a vivacious entrepreneur, artistic director, recording artist and philanthropist. She proudly opened the doors to Danzavida De San Antonio Dance Company at age 16, making her one of the youngest female Latina business owners within San Antonio.

Since 2008, she has provided an elite dance education to the youth in our community. Danzavida provides an annual dance scholarship to phenomenal dance students. Diaz has proudly awarded thousands of dollars to further the dance education of outstanding dancers. Her passion is what gives her the force to excel in her craft. She has over 27 years of dance experience and shares it vibrantly with her dancers. Danzavida de San Antonio opens its doors to all dancers, no matter the skill set or limitations.

Krystal proudly provides genuine qualities as an educator, mentor and philanthropist in preserving the arts. As a teenager, she upheld prestigious titles such as Miss San Antonio's Outstanding Teen and Miss San Antonio Parks and Recreation. In 2010, she became official Fiesta Royalty as Miss San Antonio and went on to compete for Miss Texas and capture multiple talent awards and scholarships within the Miss America Franchise.

In her first year of college she traveled throughout Texas as Miss South Texas Latina representing her culture and the Latin Community. This experience gave her the motivation to create her own Latin pageant. In 2013, she proudly founded the Miss Reina Latina San Antonio Scholarship Pageant and has proudly awarded over 10 educational scholarships to remarkable Latinas from the San Antonio community.

In 2018, she became a recording artist and released a hit song entitled "La Reina Del Baile" very fitting for the Dance Queen herself. The song landed her a spot on a National Variety Show on Estrella TV in Hollywood, California.

Throughout the past year, she reinvented her dance company and kept it thriving during the pandemic. Krystal has never forgotten her first dance class on the West Side of San Antonio.

HeartFire Media congratulates Krystal Diaz on all her success!

05/26/2021

We enjoyed working with local ad agency Public Alliance on this animation video for Operation Brave. Animation video is a unique way to visually tell your story or share a message. We love the ability to produce creative and shareable for our clients. This one in particular was to tell those living with HIV, that life is not over and they can live a life unlimited.

05/17/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Born to parents who were in the U.S. military overseas, Amy Lynn moved to San Antonio as a girl from England and has lived here for over 25 years. She grew up on the NW Side where she attended Taft High School and went on to graduate from UTSA with her BA in English.

She began her career as a former program director for University Without Walls at Gemini Ink, and entered the world of blogging with her site, Maker Mama, back in 2009.

Today she is a divorced mother of four and a proud Southeast Side resident. She works full-time as a digital media consultant, and serves as the content editor and a contributing writer for the local website, Alamo City Moms.

Amy began her second business, Dog Friendly San Antonio, in 2018 after she became a dog mom and began rediscovering her beloved hometown in an entirely new way.

Her latest endeavor with Dog Friendly SA is a pet food drive, dubbed 30K for Canines, with the goal of raising 30,000 lbs of pet food for Daisy Cares and the San Antonio Food Bank, celebrating DFSA’s third anniversary. With just days left to go, they’ve already doubled their goal and are thrilled to continue growing and giving back to the community. They're also excited to announce a rebranded name and a new concept called the Paw Pass, a membership-based card with perks at retailers online and all around town. Stay tuned to thedogguidesa.com for all the fun announcements in the coming weeks!

Amy has a heart for supporting small local businesses, exploring the Botanical Garden with her kids, and loves a good walk by the river with her adopted dog Terry."

HeartFire Media congratulates Amy Lynn on all her success!

05/04/2021

Heartfire Media was selected to film new Spanish language videos for University of North Texas! We had a great time capturing the campus culture and all videos will be featured on their website. Huge thanks to Cultural Strategies out of Austin for choosing us to partner on this project 🎥🎬 Machina Cinema

04/22/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Jesse Casares, founder of Socialize San Antonio, is a committed professional with a combination of 10+ years work experience in the communications, social media, marketing field. Jesse has many experiences showcasing the community starting off with promotions at the San Antonio Current, to being showcased locally on-air at WOAI, San Antonio Living, producing his own social media media segment. Jesse has many experiences showcasing the community starting off with promotions at the San Antonio Current, to being showcased locally on-air at WOAI, San Antonio Living, producing his own social media segment Salam Anatients, “TGIJ ”.

Socialize San Antonio recently celebrated the 6th year anniversary on April 2nd, 2021, accomplishing many feats by showcasing San Antonio’s culture, food, music, art and more! Through the inspiration of Socialize San Antonio, several followers have even relocated to San Antonio due to the coverage, excitement and influence!

HeartFire Media congratulates Jesse on all his success! Follow Socialize San Antonio here: Facebook/Instagram: , Twitter:

04/06/2021

Congratulations to our clients for such a huge opportunity from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services! They will now over see care for foster children in 27 counties! This is a huge advancement in how we take care of foster children in our State. Congrats 🎉🎉🎉

WE ARE PROUD TO ANNOUNCE! That SJRC Texas has been officially selected to oversee care for foster children in 27 counties. Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has awarded the Region 8B contract to SJRC to expand Community-Based Care. Belong, will be the new division of SJRC Texas, where we will be serving even more children, youth, and families in within these 27 counties. Thank you to our our philanthropic partners, donors, volunteers, staff, governing board, foster families, and community for believing in us! We are honored! Please click the link below for the official DFPS Announcement.

https://www.dfps.state.tx.us/Child_Protection/Foster_Care/Community-Based_Care/default.asp

03/30/2021

Congrats to our Badass of the Week 🎉🎊

Barry Besse was born on December 24,1968 in Peace River Alberta, Canada. He grew up on a farm near Father's Alberta, Canada and was the fourth child out of four children. He started his radio career in 1986 at 17 years old. Barry moved to San Antonio, Texas in June of 1994, when he starting working for several local radio stations throughout the years including KTSA (1995-2001) WOAI / Ticket 760 radio in San Antonio (2001-2004 and 2009-2011) KFYI / Xtra Sports 910 in Phoenix Arizona (2004-2006) KkNT / KPXQ radio in Phoenix Arizona (2006-2009) and now KSLR / KLUP San Antonio (2011-present).

In September of 2014, Barry lost his leg and became an amputee due to complications from diabetes which also led to losing sight in his right eye. He has inspired many people by documenting his health journey and was recently diagnosed with kidney disease. Throughout this stressful and painful process, he has continued to keep a positive attitude and often quotes his life motto..."gotta' kick at the darkness till it bleeds daylight."

Barry is an active member of the San Antonio Amputee Foundation and a member of the Wetaskiwin City and County Sports Hall of Fame class of 2013. He enjoys being a Dad to both his children Kailyse and Carson and is a mentor of one of the brightest and most successful alumni of John Marshall High School, Samantha Najera. He hopes to inspire others with disabilities and those fighting chronic illnesses to always keep moving forward and never look back.

We thank Barry for being a positive force no matter what life circumstances bring him and HeartFire Media applauds him for his bravery! Congrats to our badass of the week - Barry Besse!

03/17/2021

HeartFire Media congratulates Atalaya Lara! Hair By a Blonde

Local business owner Atalaya Lara was born and raised a Texas girl who grew up in the country out in Floresville, Texas. Atalaya has always had a passion for the hair industry and started by teaching herself hair in high school. She graduated from the Aveda Institute San Antonio in 2006.

Atalaya credits much of her success in the hair industry to the women that took her under their wing all those years ago and saw in her what she did not see in herself. They pushed her to be the best that she could be. Even though Atalaya didn't go to college, the beauty industry abled her to do hair anywhere and provide for her daughter when she was a single mother.

Atalaya loves to make people feel beautiful. When she sees their faces light up just from transforming their hair, it’s gives her the fire to keep going. Atalaya's main goal when opening Hair by a Blonde was not only to have her own business, but to give back to her community.

Two years ago Atalaya created the Cut- A- Thon to raise the money to send someone to beauty school. 2021 was her second year making it happen. Atalaya will forever be passionate about this industry and she will do this until her hands literally fall off.