ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Ted Showalter, president and owner of Whiteside auto dealership, is gearing up to be lightly roasted at Ohio Cancer Research’s 29th annual Grand Illusions Saute.

In preparation for the May 8 event, Ohio Cancer Research held a luncheon at Undo’s West on Thursday with previous honorees and longtime donors as guests.

“The reason we do this lunch is to bring in a lot of the principals that have been supporting the event over many, many, many years, including a lot of previous honorees that are with us today, and to talk about the event itself, the history of the event, and to get people pumped up and hopefully encouraging them go out and sell sponsorships and tables for the gala itself,” Ohio Cancer Research Executive Director Bill Boggess said.

He added that OCR has awarded over $8.5 million in new seed money grants and said those foundational investments kickstarted the research careers of more than 170 investigators and helped ensure their future success as they bring new and innovative ideas to the cure, prevention and treatment of cancer.

Boggess added that this year’s event is special to him because the 2003 event honored Showalter’s father-in-law Bob Whiteside, who was the owner of the Whiteside auto business before Showalter purchased the company from him.

He added that this year’s luncheon was different from past ones due to the inclusion of Susan Cole, a professor and vice chair director of undergraduate studies in the Department of Molecular Genetics at Ohio State University. Cole gave a short presentation through a Zoom call. She is a member of the Ohio Cancer Research Board of Trustees.

She was awarded a seed money grant of $50,000 by the organization in 2005 for her Modulation of Lunatic fringe gene activity and notch signaling in the segmentation clock project, which generated nearly $1 million dollars in additional funds.

Since its inception, OCR has funded 178 projects and 174 researchers in the state of Ohio and has granted $8,564,600, according to Boggess, with $1,064,266,012 generated from the projects and researchers it funded through seed grants.

Cole said that OCR is one of her favorite organizations to work with because OCR provides funding for younger scientists who are trying to be innovators in their fields who may not be able to receive funding due to not having a proven, successful track record.

Boggess added that some organizations only want to push forward moving the ball down the field a yard at a time, but OCR is looking to throw the ball 30 yards down the field or more.

“That’s where the innovation comes from, it’s the younger generation,” Boggess said. “Every scientist I’ve spoken to and almost every business person will say that the creative stuff comes from the people that are 30 to 35. People like us 60-year-olds, we kind of did our thing.”

Showalter said he’s attended several of the saute events in the past and is honored to be nominated as the guest of honor this year.

Showalter was recommended by last year’s honoree, President and CEO of Main Street Bank Richard Lucas.

“It’s a very nice fundraising event that’s a lot of fun, getting a chance to poke fun at people and saute or roast somebody. It’s a lot of fun and very enjoyable,” he said.

Showalter added that he isn’t nervous to be sauted by his friends and family and said that he believes he has thick skin.

“I have a pretty good sense of humor, and I can take it. I can take about anything they can dish out, so I’m looking forward to hearing what my friends have to say,” he said.

Boggess added that when the OCR Board of Trustees decides who to nominate to be honored, it has to be someone who is active in the community philanthropically and engaged on a civic level as well as beloved by people in the community.

He said he believes Showalter meets all of those requirements due to being an active community member for a substantial number of years.