St. Jerome Parish Priest, Father Darrell Venters, made the announcement via Facebook Wednesday night.
"I know this is a disappointment to some and comes as a relief to others," Venters said. "However, taking into consideration all the factors, I believe it is the best route to take at this time."
Last week, picnic organizers announced that the political speaking would take place inside the Fancy Farm Elementary School gymnasium, instead of the traditional picnic pavilion. But due to COVID-19 concerns, those plans have changed.
Venters said the decision to cancel the political speaking was made "after a lot of prayer, discerning the wisdom and understanding from the Holy Spirit, gathering the "sense of the faithful", considering the diocesan guidelines from Bishop Medley and the State of Kentucky, looking at the "signs of the times", considering the welfare of the parishioners and members of the community."
Venters' post also confirmed there will be no campaign sites rented for this year's picnic, none of the booths or stands will be open and no Friday night events will be held.
Venters said pork and mutton will still be sold by the pound, there will be an online and person to person raffle and T-shirts will be sold. Details about the online and person-to-person raffle will be coming out within the next couple of days.
The annual picnic held on the first Saturday in August is a fundraiser for St. Jerome Church. The stump speeches at Fancy Farm have always been dubbed the kickoff to the political campaign season in Kentucky.
