Survivors finish their first lap around the pond at City Park and ring bells to symbolize the time when they rang the bell at the hospital after completing treatment during the Relay for Life of Wood County in June 2025 at Parkersburg City Park. (File photo)

PARKERSBURG – This year’s Relay for Life of Wood County starts at high noon.

“The Great Cancer Standoff: High Noon in June” is slated for Saturday, with organizers welcoming folks into City Park a few hours earlier than in recent years – and not just to match the Western theme.

The goal is to increase community participation by offering a variety of activities to attract and interest more people, said Jessica Ross, event lead.

“It’s going to be really jam-packed, and we’re going to be able to do more with it because we’ve extended the hours,” she said.

Twenty-six Relay teams will be setting up in the park with a variety of activities to raise money for cancer research and support services through the American Cancer Society and celebrate survivors and their caregivers. But folks don’t have to be a member of one of those groups to mosey on down for a good time.

The Parkersburg High School Junior ROTC unit carries flags at the start of June 2025's Relay for Life of Wood County, followed by cancer survivors riding in antique cars or walking around the pond at City Park. (File photo)

“You don’t have to be a part of a team to be there,” Ross said. “It’s open to the public.”

Activities will include pony rides and a petting zoo from 1-4 p.m., with one charge for a wristband allowing kids to enjoy a variety of activities. There will be inflatables, games and the Cowboy Corral Market featuring vendors and food trucks.

Live entertainment will be provided throughout the day by Stallion, Smith & Wilson, the Valley Belles and the 3M Acoustic Trio. Some of the entertainment will be interactive with line dancing set for 5 p.m. and an auction at 6:30.

The usual car show held in conjunction with the Relay will be tripled.

“We added a motorcycle and a Jeep show,” Ross said.

The Road to Recovery race, scheduled for 8 p.m., has become a favorite over the years. In it, representatives from the different teams craft a vehicle they can hold or wear out of cardboard and other materials and compete to be the first to safely deliver an egg over the finish line.

“The whole point is it’s supposed to represent our Road to Recovery program,” Ross said of the American Cancer Society initiative that recruits volunteers to drive patients to and from treatment.

Following the opening ceremonies, the Relay kicks off with three ceremonial laps around the park’s pond – first the survivors, then their caregivers and families, followed by a community lap.

As usual, the event will close with a luminaria ceremony honoring survivors and remembering those who have passed away.

Ross has been volunteering with Relay events since 2003 and said she appreciates the “fellowship with my fellow survivors.”

Ross said she was diagnosed at 18 with a form of breast cancer about which not much was known. She was reluctant to get a radical mastectomy and opted for a lump-ectomy instead. Six months later, doctors told her the latest research indicated that was the right call for the circumstances she faced.

“I know that one of the reasons why I’m still here is because of the research and the grants given by the American Cancer Society,” she said.

Helping with Relay is “a way for me to give back,” Ross said. “I am still here, and I know that it’s because of people who were here before me that were volunteers.”

This year’s fundraising goal is $120,000, and so far $92,586 has been collected, Ross said.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com