CAROL BRUNO, FOUNDER OF THE ANNUAL “REGGAE ON THE RIVER” DIES AT 72!

Reggae music lost a stalwart on February 8 with the death of Carol Bruno, co-founder of Reggae On The River, one of the leading music festivals in northern California.

John Bruno, her husband of over 40 years, confirmed that his wife succumbed to breast cancer at age 72.

Carol Bruno and co-founder Nancy Shelby were on the board of directors for the Mateel Community Center in 1984 when it was decided to stage a reggae concert to raise funds to rebuild its community building which had been destroyed by arsonists.

The initial show at French’s Camp in Piercy, California was so successful it has been held most years since. Held in a nature lover’s setting in Humboldt County, Reggae On The River has showcased the music’s top artists.

Bruno and her husband split with the Mateel board in 2006 over a revenue dispute from that year’s show, but her name was always linked to Reggae on the River.

“The first year it lost money, and I was going to get sued by the community. The second year I think we made $400 or $600. Then the third year I think it made $1,800, and then it just went up from there. But every year it worked we’d be, ‘Yeah, it made money!’,” Bruno said in a 2007 interview with the North Coast Journal newspaper.

In a statement, the Mateel Community Center saluted Carol Bruno’s contribution to their organization and one of reggae’s enduring events.

“The Mateel Community Center extends condolences to the many friends and family of Carol Bruno who sadly passed away after an extended illness. Her contributions to Reggae on the River and the many shows she brought to the Mateel Community Center and her work for the community as one of the original founders of the Mateel four decades ago are an important, and lasting legacy.

Carol’s work and dedication to further our Reggae on the River festival and our community center is legendary. 

We are grateful to Carol, we honor her spirit and we send our love and our thoughts to her partner, John Bruno and to her family.”

Carol Bruno is survived by her husband and four children.