Rhody Festival will bloom later this year: Big event pushed back into summer

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The Rhododendron Festival will be postponed this year into the mid- to late summer due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, organizers of the annual Port Townsend gala announced Thursday.

The festival is historically held during the third weekend of May.

"We hope to be able to bring a celebration to the community sometime mid-late summer providing the state's restrictions on festivals and large gatherings has been lifted," Lori Morris, president of the Port Townsend Rhody Festival, said in an announcement.

"We look forward in the hopes of celebrating safely with our community and will reassess the situation some time in May," Morris added.

The 2020 festival — which would have been the 85th year for the event — was called off and featured only an impromptu parade of 30 or so vehicles through town.

The popular shindig has been put on hold before, notably during World War II.

The yearly gathering includes the coronation of a Rhododendron Queen and royal court, parades and, in years past, a bed race and rally.