For some people, Christmas isn’t the only time to show goodwill toward men.

Luis Flores, an associate management professor, has spent his life devoting much of his free time to ending domestic abuse, promoting ecological conservation and trying to put an end to AIDS in Africa.

Flores’ volunteer horizon broadened thanks to two life-altering visits to Africa.

They came about through his daughter. On two separate fellowships, she was able to intern in both South Africa for a legal government organization and Tanzania to work with the United Nations Tribunal in its prosecution of several Rwandan leaders.

In both cases Flores made it a point to visit his daughter and, in doing so, opened his eyes to a whole new area of activism.

“During that time, I learned to appreciate nature even more,” Flores said. “I lived in the Amazon for a couple of years a long time ago, but Africa gave a much better perspective.”

His time spent in the Amazon was related to his first job out of college. While there, he managed an agro-industrial farm which grew and processed coffee and fruits to be distributed nationally.

While the experience there touched him, his experiences in Africa were what truly called to his sense of activism.

Flores is in discussion with a couple of African charities to become a committee member, though he is not doing anything with them yet.

“Now I am seeking to connect with an organization that helps Africa with either conservation or with other relevant issues,” Flores said. “I am in conversations with the Global Alliance for Africa, an organization that helps kids with AIDS in Africa.”

When he’s not playing Superman, Flores’ “alter-ego” is a professor in the College of Business, a position he’s held for more than two decades.

“My research is in the area of strategic planning processes and organizational learning,” Flores said. “I am also involved in a variety of consulting and executive development activities with companies in the USA, Europe and Latin America.”

Flores also is an adviser to the honor society Sigma Iota Epsilon, for which he helps organize professional, social and community service activities.

Until recently, Flores also was on the Board of Directors for the DuPage County Family Shelter Services. Flores was approached to join the board because of his wife’s connection with the organization, as she had worked there for a number of years.

The organization strives to provide assistance to victims of domestic violence and hopes to ultimately end this kind of abuse. As a member of the FSS Board of Directors, Flores’ job was to recruit a well-rounded group of professionals to better run the organization.

“I was involved in all the normal duties of any board member like supervising and advising the CEO, overseeing the organization’s assets and helping in fundraising and public relations,” he said. “I was also the head of the strategic planning committee and member of the board development and the marketing committees.”

Flores resigned from the board in 2003 after moving out of the area. While there he was able to establish internships at the shelter for motivated NIU business students. Though his volunteer work at the FSS was not directly related to the university, Flores was able to use his position to develop these opportunities.

“The students developed projects that helped FSS, and at the same time our students had the opportunity to gain some practical experience,” Flores said.

Flores sees no end to his work anytime soon, professionally or socially. If he were to retire from the university today, Flores said he thinks he would probably be doing the same thing, just in different proportions.

“If I would retire today, I would be doing exactly the same that I am doing now,” he said. “The proportions of time that I spend in teaching, research, consulting and community service would [probably] change in favor of consulting, and I would be more involved in international activities.”