M
Bob Benevento
organ Hill’s popular Mushroom Mardi Gras
festival, which takes place the Saturday and Sun-
day of Memorial Day weekend, has seen lots of
changes in its 40 years, according to Bob Benevento who is in
his third year as president.
“A big part of the change has been driven by geography or
location,” Benevento said.
In its early days the festival was held on the grounds of the
Flying Lady (now Fry’s Golf Course), then at the Community
Park, where limited parking required an admission cost,
and most recently, on the grounds outside the Morgan Hill
Community & Cultural Center and along Depot Street.
The festival is facing change again, after 2020, due to the
sale of Hale Lumber, making way for mixed-use real estate
development projects and the re-routing of Depot Street.
“We are trying to mitigate problems with residents,” he said.
Benevento speculates about possible changes, which the
City of Morgan Hill is helping to negotiate. “We’re thinking of
whether we could expand onto Monterey Road, but it presents
a different set of challenges, including to set up a festival on
Friday night takes a lot of time.”
Other possibilities might include non-downtown facilities
like the Outdoor Sports Center, but this would mean a loss
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
of use of the Downtown Amphitheater at the Community
& Cultural Center, which has been a perfect setting for the
festival’s musical performances.
“I wrote a letter to city council members and the mayor
saying that I think the Mushroom Mardi Gras has been a very
positive influence and a marketing tool that has made the
city renowned through South County into San Benito and
Monterey counties,” he said.
These changes will not affect the next two years of the
festival, so Benevento says they’re steaming right ahead with
plans for 2019 to be as big and entertaining as ever.
The festival attracts anywhere from 60,000 to 80,000
visitors every year, Benevento said, because of several main
attractions.
“High among them is the entertainment factor. We have
two stages operating all day [from 10 am to 7 or 8 pm], and
we bring in top local entertainment from the greater Bay
Area.”
Music will include headliners Caravanserai, a Santana
cover band, and Uptown Funk, a Bruno Mars cover band.
They’ll also be bringing back the community stage with magic
shows, a super hero stage show, a Woody and Jessie “Toy
Story” show, and local groups performing dance, gymnastics
and singing.
Next to the music, Benevento said the festival’s big draw is
arts and crafts, which includes around 200 vendors of jewelry,
arts and crafts, foodstuffs and more.
There will also be some exciting new additions this year:
a sanctioned amateur blended burger cooking contest will
take place on Saturday, May 25, at 11:30 am on the Chef
Stage at the Community & Cultural Center. The top four
winners will receive cash awards and gifts and the first place
winner receives a “golden ticket” to attend the World Food
Championship in Dallas, Texas, in October.
Additionally, Saint Louise Regional Hospital will sponsor
a “Baby Steps Rest Stop” for parents to change and feed their
babies. This will be near Munchkinland on the corner of 3 rd
a
nd Depot Streets.
And of course, there’s no denying the lure of a good
drink. Not only do the beverages attract many visitors, but
they’re also a huge part of generating funds for the charity
component of the festival.
What Benevento loves most about the festival is the sense
of service to the community that it offers. The festival began as
a fundraiser for the Morgan Hill Fire Department, but eventu-
ally it transitioned to fundraise more generally for education.
“This year we’ll be giving out almost 80,000 [dollars] in
scholarships, up from 52,000 last year,” Benevento said. “I
don’t think a lot of people know that we donate so much.
There’s a payoff for a lot of students.”
Service is a big part of what keeps Benevento involved, he
said. He has volunteered in the community for almost thirty
years.
“I grew up in an environment where there was a sense of
service. It goes back to watching my mom volunteering in
school. My dad was active in service associations and church
organizations after he retired,” Benevento said.
june/july 2019
gmhtoday.com
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