Bear Valley, CA — At the end of five remarkably successful seasons as President of the Board of Directors, Jerry Shefren, MD, handed the administrative baton to Julia Mee in November. Julia Mee comes from a professional background in marketing having worked for companies including Hewlett-Packard, Yahoo and Cisco over her career. Most recently she was Chief Marketing Officer of a large advertising agency in San Francisco. A dedicated violinist and member of the Camellia Symphony in Sacramento, Julia Mee attributes her lifelong love of music to her late father, who was a professional musician and played bass in the Oregon Symphony for over 30 years. Julia and her husband Mike Mee attended their first Bear Valley Music Festival in 1985 and remain faithful season ticket holders to this day. They both joined the Board of Directors in 2016.

“I am delighted to work with Music Director Michael Morgan and Executive Director Eman Isadiar to continue the Festival’s long tradition of musical excellence,” said Julia Mee. “We are the only venue where residents of the Highway 4 corridor and visitors can hike a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail in the morning and attend a world-class symphony performance under the stars that same evening” she added. “The Festival has provided this unique experience for over 50 years. It is a great pleasure and honor to steward the Festival so future generations can enjoy it for the next 50 years.”

Under Jerry Shefren’s presidency from 2015 to 2019, Bear Valley Music Festival’s fundraising efforts were streamlined and gained momentum culminating in the organization’s record-breaking 50th anniversary season in 2018. Among Shefren’s many accomplishments during this period are the Festival’s total transition to clean energy, a major upgrade in audience seating, the adoption of weights (rather than stakes) in tent construction to add to the longevity of the Festival grounds, and the establishment of a challenge grant to encourage public support during each Festival. In addition, Shefren spearheaded the recruitment of key personnel including Executive Director Eman Isadiar in 2015 and Director of Production Frederic Boulay in 2018.

Scheduled from July 24 through August 9, 2020, Bear Valley Music Festival’s summer lineup currently includes Crawdad Republic, Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony, selections from Les Miserables with full chorus and tributes to Santana and Paul McCartney. The Festival is in negotiations with a major original act for opening weekend, with an announcement forthcoming in the next few weeks. Tickets will go on sale in mid-April. For more information visit www.bearvalleymusic.org.

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