Dana School of Music “Crescendo” Campaign

Flor “Shorty” Navarro has established an endowment at the YSU Foundation for the Dana School of Music fundraising campaign in memory of his wife, Elba Lillian Navarro.

The gift will create a new endowment fund to support the Elba Navarro Youngstown Community Music Project, which will allow students from the Dana School of Music to provide Youngstown City School students with private tutoring music lessons.

“The generosity of the Navarro family is inspiring and will benefit many levels of music in Youngstown,” said Dr. Joseph Carucci, Director of the Dana School of Music. “This partnership will bring free music education to grade school students, provide the Dana students with paid internships that focus on hands-on teaching experience, and ultimately increase the overall artistry in the community. It is a win for everyone.”

Additionally, YCSD students will be invited to Bliss Hall for classroom and chamber music experiences on Saturdays, all free of charge. The Elba Navarro Youngstown Community Music Project is an initiative aimed at creating and enhancing opportunities for music education in the greater Youngstown area. This project will build on existing programming, as well as expand to new initiatives that are focused on a partnership with the YCSD.

“The arts are a vital piece of the Youngstown community,” said Bruce J. Zoldan, Chair of the Dana School of Music Crescendo campaign committee. “This gift will allow for the impact of the Dana School of Music to go beyond the boundaries of Youngstown State University. The Navarros have been generous towards the community through a variety of avenues, and we thank them for their generosity, especially to honor Elba’s legacy.”

Elba was born April 8, 1945, in Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico, and relocated to the Youngstown area in the late 1940s as a child. She was a 1963 graduate of South High School and right after high school, she went to beauty school. Elba married the love of her life, Shorty Navarro, on August 28, 1965, at Santa Rosa de Lima Church in Youngstown. They were married for 59 years.

Her dream was always to become a teacher. She fulfilled this dream by graduating from Youngstown State University with both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Spanish and Education. She taught for a total of 30 years in the Youngstown City School District at Roosevelt Elementary and Chaney High School. After her retirement, she volunteered at her church and Organización Cívica y Cultural Hispana Americana, Inc. (OCCHA), among other organizations. In 2020, she was elected to the Board of the YSU Foundation and remained a board member until her passing.

Pictured above: YSU Foundation Vice President Heather Chunn, Flor “Shorty” Navarro, and YSU President Bill Johnson.