Photo Provided Shown in this photo are some of the sweats served at the 19th annual Taste of the Valley event in 2019. This year’s event will be held from 5-8 p.m. June 10 at the Capstone Soccer Complex in St. Clairsville.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — The annual Taste of the Valley event will return this year with a variety of local restaurants’ cuisine available for attendees to savor.

The 20th annual event is set for 5-8 p.m. June 10 at the Capstone Soccer Complex in St. Clairsville.

The event was canceled last year due to COVID-19 pandemic and was briefly postponed this year from its usual date in April.

Adam Myser, event chairman and member of the St. Clairsville Rotary Club, said members wanted to allow time for restrictions to be relaxed and to ensure the event could move forward before announcing a date. He said they are all set and moving “full steam ahead” with the event.

“As a Rotary, we definitely had hesitation. … We’ve been blessed in the last three months that a lot of positive things have happened that have given us confidence to have this program in June,” he said. “We are incredibly excited to have the event this year.”

Myser said he and fellow Rotarians are working hard to ensure the festival-style event is a success.

“We have a dedicated group of Rotarians that are actively out there working for sponsorships, working for items for a silent auction, working on restaurants to really pull this off. I’m the chair this year but it’s by no means a one-man-show; it is the St. Clairsville Rotary that is putting it on, and each Rotarian helps make it a success,” he said.

The event is one of the Rotary club’s major fundraisers of the year.

“The purpose of this is to raise funds to then distribute back to our community, whether that’s our local community, our state community, our national community or our international community. All of our Rotary funds are donated and used for a variety of different causes. So we are so excited to be able to have one of our main events to be able to raise funds that will help out a lot of other entities that are in need right now,” he said.

Over the past 20 years the event has continued to grow in size. Myser said the new location will allow for a festival-type atmosphere, while also providing plenty of space for food trucks, live entertainment and attendees. He said members have received a great deal of positive feedback from restaurants, business owners and members of the community.

“Everyone is excited that we are hosting something where it feels like we are getting back to normal,” he said.

The indoor/outdoor festival will include live music, craft vendors, a silent auction and food from approximately 20 local restaurants, including both new and staple eateries. Myser said his goal is to book 25 restaurants for the event.

Myser said the club is in contact with the Belmont County Health Department, which has provided proper COVID-19 guidelines to ensure it is a safe event.

“We have put those guidelines in place. … We are excited to be working with the health department — they have been absolutely wonderful in getting us information,” he added.

Tickets can be purchased now through any Rotary member. Myser said they will be selling around 600 tickets. Anyone interested in purchasing a ticket can do so by contacting a Rotarian directly or messaging the Rotary via Facebook.

The event will be held rain or shine, he added.