A Life of Service: Martha A. Flores
Flores was born and raised in Porterville. She has one son, who is a teacher at Monache High School. Flores also takes pride in being a grandmother to two grandsons.
Flores attended school in Porterville. She was in the first graduating class of Monache in 1971. She attended Porterville Community College after high school.
After completing her higher education, she dedicated her time and efforts to the community. She was an executive-level administrative assistant with Porterville Unified School District, retiring after an astonishing 28-year-long career.
Flores has an extensive history of involvement in the Porterville community and Tulare County. She is involved in various local organizations and various board and tack force committees. These organizations include but are not limited to: Women’s Day Conference, Central California Crisis Center, Tulare County Task Force on Domestic Violence, Comision Honorifica Mexicana Americana, Sierra View Foundation, El Futuro Credit Union, Tulare Kings Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Family HealthCare Network.
She was not just a member but she served in leadership roles as Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary for many of these organizations. She also founded and coordinated “Frugal Fashion,” where people of the community went to thrift stores, and put outfits together.
After retiring from the Porterville Unified School District, she began her run for bigger ambitions. She ran for Porterville City Council, and she won. As a member of the City Council, she was selected by her peers to represent Porterville as the mayor.
Being the mayor of a growing city takes dedication and time management. Flores is in various organizations and committees that meet to discuss action to make life better for the city of Porterville and Tulare County as a whole. She represents Porterville in larger committees.
“Sometimes if you’re not at the table when they’re discussing funding, you might not have [funding]” said Flores. “You need to be at the table for the task, and if they see that you’re there all the time, it helps.”
Her dedication to the city is one of the reasons she became mayor.