The Magnolia Community Foundation announced May 7 the cancellation of the 2013 Love Bug Fest scheduled for the second weekend in June. The event was canceled because the outside event coordinator the city hired—IH Events—was unable to get enough of the event organized in time, said MCF president Deborah Rose Miller.

"The goal was to take this event to a larger venue and include an upscale carnival and multiple bands with a different theme for each day of the festival. Although such plans were begun last fall, the outside event coordinator that the board hired was not able to deliver to the satisfaction of the board," MCF officials said in a press release.

Miller said she regrets having to cancel the event, but wants to avoid putting out a low-quality product.

"Rather than bring an event that was less than what the Magnolia community deserved, we opted to skip 2013 and allow for a better venue for 2014," she said.

Specifically, the events coordinator was behind in securing the carnival and live music according to the timetable that MCF was anticipating. With only a month left before the event, the delays in securing entertainment would make advertising difficult, Miller said.

Miller said MCF is working to come up with other events to fill in the gap, including a Mud Run obstacle course in September and the return of the Miss Magnolia Pageant on the second weekend in December. Details on the Mud Run are still being determined, she said.

"The Mud Run is something the community has expressed interest in," she said. "People will drive for an hour to get to one in Houston and there is interest in putting one on here."

The next Love Bug Fest will take place the second weekend in June, 2014 at Unity Park. MCF will organize the event on its own, as opposed to working with an outside event coordinator, Miller said.

"The events we have in Magnolia are successful because it's our passion," she said "We don't want to put something on if we're not passionate about it."

The MCF is an umbrella non-profit organization dedicated to assisting area nonprofits through fund raising activities and organizing community events. Visit the MCF website for more details on upcoming events.