CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — The West Virginia Wild and Wonderful Celtic Festival and Highland Games is set to kick off June 17 for the first time at 4H Camp Pioneer in Beverly.

Clan Ferguson is carrying on the tradition to educate and share the Scottish and Celtic heritage along with its traditions, values, and qualities from the past relating to the history of Celtic heritage found in the state. The festival will feature Highland Games that will be sanctioned by the Mid-Atlantic Scottish Athletics.

“Young or old, Celtic or not the festival is quite enjoyable for anybody especially people of Celtic heritage. If they have some kind of lineage they can go to the clan tents, they can probably do some research on their ancestry and heritage,” Timothy Ferguson, President of the WV Wild and Wonderful Celtic Festival said. “The highland games is a great thing to witness, it is a very serious competition.”

The Highland Games that will be held at the WV Wild and Wonderful Celtic Festival are Broken Caber, Warrior 360, Plus Amateur Athletes, Youth Games, and Tug of War to name a few. Also, at the games, there will be an adaptive class of athletes that are handicapped, with some having prosthetic limbs competing alongside the other athletes.

“This is something we’ve been working on for a long time. I have been convening at festivals since 2014 at least and we’ve watched West Virginia lose its major festival over the last several years. And my father and I really talked a lot about how we can bring that back to Central West Virginia. So, we started working again with my family members, my brothers, my sisters to create something for Central West Virginia. We decided to do it as a non-profit and our hope is that we can make it as affordable as possible for folks who want to come and visit,” David Ferguson, the Vice President of the WV Wild and Wonderful Celtic Festival said.

Officials with the WV Wild and Wonderful Celtic Festival and Highland Games said without their sponsors the festival and games would not be possible. On Saturday, May 20, at Doddridge County Park, there will be the Mountain State Scottish and Celtic Gathering from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.