Strawberry Fest’s New Director Satisfied With Status Quo

As a resident of Ventura County for the past 10 years, Shelley Merrick has seen Oxnard’s California Strawberry Festival mature. And what has struck her the most is how smoothly it is run and the pride Oxnard residents have in the annual event.

As the newly appointed executive director of the festival, which this year marks its 14th anniversary, Merrick said her immediate goal is to preserve those traits.

“The main thing I’m interested in doing is maintaining the excellent quality,” said Merrick. Last week she left a marketing and client-relations position with the Wilson Foster & Co. investment advisory group to take the full-time, year-round Strawberry Festival position.

“Things are going pretty well as they are,” she said, “and the best thing is to stay with it.”

Members of the festival board already are well into organizing this year’s tribute to Oxnard’s strawberry production, scheduled for May 17 and 18 at College Park. Merrick, whose staff includes one other full-time employee, said that she and the board will evaluate the operation after the festival to determine if any changes are needed.

Last year’s festival drew 78,000 visitors over the two days, raising about $100,000 for the 30-plus nonprofit organizations that ran food booths featuring strawberry cheesecake, strawberry crepes and other themed items.

“When you have a festival, whether it be music or something like this, which is centered around agriculture, which has always been the economy of Oxnard, it is a strong statement about the community,” Merrick said. “It represents a partnership between the corporate community and the festival itself. . . . It’s an investment in the community.”

Merrick comes to the festival with an extensive background as an event coordinator.

Before moving to Ventura, she organized a number of community events in Sandpoint, Idaho, including a variety of cultural and skiing events and an arts outreach program in the local schools.

“You name it, I was into all of that,” Merrick said. “Athletics, community events, that’s where my expertise is and where my heart really lies.”

And that was a key factor in her hiring, said Don DeArmond, chairman of the Strawberry Festival.

“She has a strong background in accounting and office skills, she has done negotiations, she has sat on a few boards,” DeArmond said. “She’s just got a real well-rounded past. We think she’s going to bring a professional manner about herself, and that will be a great asset.”

Merrick was selected for the executive director position from an original list of 47 applicants, DeArmond said.

DeArmond, who has served two years in his current position, has been involved with the Strawberry Festival since its inception. He agreed with Merrick that major changes are not imminent but said there are some areas that could be improved.

“We want to just refine it and do a better job within the festival itself--cleanup and just be more effective in the job we’re doing,” DeArmond said. “I think the area you will see in the future where the executive committee and the full board will focus will be the children’s area and [increasing] the nonprofit groups that we generate money for.”

Overall, DeArmond said, the festival is not likely to grow in size any time soon.

“We’re probably as big as we want to get,” he said. “We want to stay away from being a country fair or carnival type of event.”