Jim completed his purchase of WBTA in July 2023 and formed a new company, Majic Tones LLC. Jim was born in Batavia, graduated from Batavia High School and attended Genesee Community College for Business Administration. Jim loves playing sports, especially hockey, hiking with his dog. and spending time with family, especially his kids and grandchildren.Jim has been in Retail sales and held various Management positions since 1991. After spending 6 years in Syracuse as General Manager for Schwan’s, Jim decided to move back to Batavia in 2010 so his kids could also Graduate from BHS. He Joined WBTA in 2014 as an Account Executive and is proud to operate his hometown radio station.

Lorne was born and raised in Genesee County. He went to Elba Central School where he enjoyed playing sports. He attended Genesee Community College, SUNY Buffalo and received his bachelor's degree in business administration from SUNY Brockport. Lorne has been with WBTA since 1989. Lorne started out as a Sales Account Representative and has worked his way up to Sales Manager as well as General Manager. Lorne has a home in Elba and is proud to call Genesee County his home.

Nici began her career with WBTA in 2005 and proudly celebrates over 20 years on the air. Before joining WBTA, she worked alongside Chuck Platt as well as 97 Rock. A graduate of Genesee Community College with a degree in Communication and Media Arts, Nici also brings over 15 years of experience in modeling — including appearances at New York Fashion Week — and continues to be active in both runway and print work. A Batavia native, Nici is deeply rooted in her community and passionate about local connection. As WBTA’s lead morning host, she oversees many of the station’s “Main and Center” interviews and frequently travels for live remotes. Nici’s dedication, energy, and community spirit make her the glue that keeps WBTA thriving.

Marc Tillery still needs to write his bio. Check back Later!

Alexandria “Allie” Ortiz is a proud Batavia native. She graduated from nursing school in 2022 with a minor in Early Childhood Development. Allie has a wonderfully supportive husband and three beautiful children—and when she’s not working, you can usually find her carting them around town for dance, school, and community events. In 2024, after multiple offers from the owner, Allie began a new chapter as the Director of Marketing for WBTA. Along with managing client relations, she also serves as the station’s Events Coordinator, handling behind-the-scenes details and coordinating WBTA’s participation in local events. She’s also the creative mind behind much of WBTA’s seasonal decorating—and she proudly takes responsibility for trying to keep the plants in the windows alive! You can hear Allie’s voice on many of WBTA’s radio ads, and with her love of creative writing, she’s also the writer behind many of the commercials you hear on air. When she’s not at WBTA, Allie is busy with her favorite full-time job—being a mom. She loves playing outside with the kids and their dog, going for walks, and curling up with her Kindle whenever she can. Her husband, Luis, fully supports her reading obsession (and is often the one hunting down her misplaced Kindle). He’s even become part of the WBTA family himself—helping out at every auction and lending a hand during football broadcasts. Allie is passionate about community connection and is excited to help WBTA continue growing as a trusted, local voice in Batavia and Genesee County.

Mitch is a Batavia native that joined WBTA in 2025 to help out on the technical side of the business, after 7 years at O-AT-KA Milk as a Laboratory Tech. You can hear him occasionally fill in as a news anchor and voice a few commercials here and there, but he works mostly behind the scenes, taking on Producer, maintenance, IT, Social Media and Website developer roles when needed. Mitch describes himself as a "lifelong learner" and prides himself on his ability to "figure things out", as his wife Kaycee would say. He enjoys just about every sport and hobby on the planet, with Hockey being the focal passion. Mitch is a Bills and Sabres fan but will watch anything with a competition.

Pete “The Z Man” Zehler got his start in radio right here in Genesee County on WGCC, where his sports talk show First and Fifteen, co-hosted with Mike Rose, gained national recognition and earned several collegiate broadcasting award nominations. Their success caught the attention of current WBTA owner Jim Ernst and former owner Dan Fischer, who brought Pete and Mike to WBTA in 2019 to launch Genesee MVP, a reinvented version of their hit show. In addition to hosting, Pete began calling high school football and basketball games for WBTA, quickly climbing from the color commentator on the C-Team to play-by-play on the B-Team and color on the A-Team. That same year, he became the Batavia Muckdogs’ play-by-play commentator during the teams final year of being MLB-affiliated and was nominated for NY-Penn League Play-by-Play Broadcaster of the Year. Before joining WBTA full time, Pete spent five seasons (2014–2019) as the public address announcer at Wyoming County International Speedway, where his energetic style and racing knowledge made him a fan favorite on Saturday nights. Today, Pete’s role at WBTA has grown to include morning news anchor and producer, sports director, radio auction co-host, and all-around utility man — wherever he’s needed most. Outside the studio, Pete enjoys building and tuning racing karts, four wheelers, and snowmobiles, as well as spending time on the golf course and spending time with his longtime girlfriend Leyla. Pete is proud to call WBTA home and to bring the sounds and stories of Genesee County to your ears every day.

John Vazquez has been with WBTA since 2004. He plays all the songs you know and love while you complete your workday from 2-6 p.m. John is originally from Dunkirk, NY which is where he first started broadcasting in 1996. He’s an avid lover of technology, and usually has the latest phone or gadget. He’s also spends his spare time with his dogs, watching hockey, or playing board games on game nights.

Hmmm, let's see: The last time I was on the air at WBTA was in the fall of 1980 when the studio was in a building at the corner of Harvester and East Main Street, with Pontillo's conveniently located next door!  I was a student intern in the Communications program studying under Chuck Platt, at Genesee Community College. I grew up on the west side of Batavia and graduated from BHS in 1978. My ‘real’ last name is Schnackel. It’s a tough name for radio but I turned it into a positive: I referred to myself as “The Late Night Schnack” while on the air at the former WBTF in Attica. The name ‘Thompson’ was assigned to me in ’84 during another radio adventure and I’ve used it ever since. In addition to WBTA, WBTF, WBBF, WMJQ and WBEE, Rochester, I’ve worked at radio stations in Florida, New Hampshire and Maine. I lived in Maine for nearly 34 years. During the last 20 of my years in Maine, I was a school psychologist, and worked with great kids of all ages. Upon retirement from education, I returned to Batavia in August 2021 to be closer to family and friends. The best decision I’ve ever made, by far, was to move back to Western NY. So, let’s grab a pizza and some wings, a beef on weck and then play some euchre!

Laura attended SUNY Fredonia with a degree in audio and radio production and was the assistant music director for Fredonia's college station, helping to add music to their catalog. With her experience at the college station, Laura started at WBTA in 2018 as a board operator, and has since had various roles within the station, moving her way up to being the host of the BTA Buzz Monday through Fridays from 10am-1pm! She loves to promote local events and the happenings around Genesee County - if you have an event to promote, reach out to Laura! You can also hear her co-host the monthly auctions and recommending new music to add to our catalog. When not at WBTA, Laura loves to read, play games, and play her guitar.