Matt Stringer, executive director of Four Rivers Cultural Center, will retire and leave his post in the coming months. Marketing director Tanya Navarrete will also leave the facility. (Photo courtesy of Tanya Navarrete).
ONTARIO – Two top leaders at Four Rivers Cultural Center will leave their posts within the next few months.
Longtime executive director Matt Stringer will retire while Tanya Navarrete, the marketing and development director, will leave June 15.
Four Rivers Cultural Center is a nonprofit that runs Ontario’s prime meeting location, a theater and a museum. It opened in 1997.
Navarrete began work at the center in 2018 while Stringer stepped into the director position in 2011. Stringer notified the Four Rivers Cultural Center Board last fall that he planned to leave, said Board Chair Raeshelle Meyer.
Stringer did not return calls for comment before press time.
“He wants to retire and go live life. He is willing to stay on until we can find the perfect fit,” said Meyer.
Meyer said the search for Stringer’s replacement began earlier this spring.
“We’ve sent out requests for applicants twice now. The first time we got about 15 returned. We sent it back out for a little more scope,” said Meyer.
Meyer said it will “be tough to fill” Stringer’s position.
“He’s from here and understands the landscape. He is part of multiple councils and boards and he is in the know about what is going on in cultural and the arts. He’s been amazing,” said Meyer.
Meyer said the board began Zoom interviews for Stringer’s replacement this week. Meyer said Stringer has agreed to stay on to help with the transition to a new director.
“He is willing to stay as long as it takes,” said Meyer.
Navarrete said she is leaving the cultural center to start her own business.
“I will be launching a digital marketing business. I am really aiming to work with those organizations who are looking for a way to tell their story and be that person for them,” said Navarrete.
“I am just looking to spend my days more with my family and my passions and everything that entails,” said Navarrete.
Meyer said the board hopes to be able to bring a new director on board by the end of July or early August.
News tip? Contact reporter Pat Caldwell at [email protected].
Previous coverage:
Stringer picked for state commission
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