FLORENCE HERNÁNDEZ-RAMOS PAPERS

Florence Dolores Hernández was born in Lamar, Prowers County, Colorado May 3, 1950. She attended Lamar High School and was valedictorian of her 1968 graduating class. She enrolled at the University of Colorado in Boulder, participating in the Educational Opportunity Program as a study skills coordinator and instructor. She worked as a teaching assistant, administrative secretary, and a counselor and resident advisor before graduating with a bachelor's degree in 1973.

Hernández worked as national conference coordinator and trainer for the National Concilio for Chicano Studies followed by a summer internship with Colorado Rural Legal Services in their farm worker program. She attended the University of Colorado School of Law from 1974-1977.

Hernández worked for two years for ARS Auto Parts before becoming the director of the Virginia Blue Center for Colorado Women in Lamar, Colorado. In 1980, Hernández moved to Denver, Colorado and became a Community Food and Nutrition Advocate for Denver Opportunity, Denver's anti-poverty program. In 1981, she was named legal assistant to the Colorado Attorney General, a post she held for two years.

In 1983, Hernández focused her attention on starting the first bilingual public radio station in Denver. Her efforts, and those of many others, were rewarded after nearly two years of fund-raising, planning, and learning, when KUVO, 89.3 FM, went on the air August 29, 1985. It became known as the "Oasis in the City" and gained a significant following among jazz aficionados. It also celebrates a varied Latino, Brazilian, and Mexican music mix.

Hernández received widespread recognition for her achievement. Selected by Denver Magazine as one of "50 Dynamite Denverites" in 1988, she also received the Outstanding Minority Businessperson Award from the Minority and Professional Directory.