After more than two decades of using performances of authentic blues music to fund scholarships for Navasota High School graduates, the Navasota Blues Fest has announced it is taking, what its press release calls “a break.” But one member of the fest’s board of directors says they hope it will only be temporary.
Dean Wilson tells Navasota News it all comes down to money. Even being a non-profit organization, he explains, it’s becoming more and more difficult to raise enough money to do everything they need to.
He says they are now at the point where they can’t raise money to meet expenses and still have money left over for scholarships. The problem, he continues, is our production costs keep going up and we can only get so many people into the Expo Center.
Wilson thinks this break will probably mean there will be no Navasota Blues Festival this year at least, although he does admit there is still the possibility of putting on a much smaller event this August. But whatever happens, the board has made it clear that the Blues Fest’s primary and continuing scholarships will continue to be awarded.