Steven Tyler Just Feel Better

Dear Milwaukee:

Editor’s note: Bo Black recently returned to Summerfest, the Milwaukee festival and civic jewel she built. It was her first time back since she departed as executive director in 2003.

Truth be told, Black’s departure and the way it unfolded was a dark moment in Milwaukee history, and the wounds still haven’t healed.

Near the end of her recent visit in Milwaukee, as she prepared to return to her home in Scottsdale, Ariz., Black shared with me some reflections about her time in the Brew City.

I asked her to share some of those thoughts with our readers. She more than took me up on that request. She wrote the following letter from her heart to the city she still dearly loves.

To her friends and supporters, Black will always be remembered as the charming, vivacious woman who convinced Milwaukee’s corporate titans to sponsor her beloved Summerfest. To be sure, she also left behind some detractors who were happy to see her – and the drama – go away.

But make no mistake. Summerfest – and Milwaukee – would not be what they are today without Bo Black.

Black does not know when – or if – she will ever return to Milwaukee again. Her health is frail, as she is suffering from a variety of medical complications after suffering a stroke, aneurisms and heart disease.

The following is Bo Black’s letter to Milwaukee. In many ways, it’s her story in her own words, as she looks both backward and forward. We offer it exclusively to our readers.

— Steve Jagler, executive editor of BizTimes Milwaukee