‘We are very excited to be back live’: Big Slick celebs launch their weekend of events

Big Slick Celebrity Weekend kicked off Friday morning at the Children’s Mercy Research Institute with a lighthearted press conference and a virtual Family Feud-style game.

But mixed in with the fun was a more serious message.

“We’re in the hope business,” said Eric Stonestreet, a “Modern Family” star and one of the four hometown hosts of the fundraiser. “When you’re sitting in a room and you get the diagnosis of cancer, what I hope Big Slick and Children’s Mercy is, … is that little moment of hope.”

Because of the pandemic, this is the first time since 2019 that Big Slick is in person. The weekend of events benefiting Children’s Mercy’s Cancer Center is also hosted this year by Paul Rudd, Rob Riggle and David Koechner, who, like Stonestreet, grew up in the Kansas City area. They’ll be joined by about 30 celebrity guests.

“We are very excited to be back live,” Riggle said.

Regular co-host Jason Sudeikis couldn’t appear because of a schedule change in the filming of his Emmy-winning TV series “Ted Lasso” in London, organizers announced Tuesday.

As usual, the weekend features a Friday afternoon softball game at Kauffman Stadium and Saturday night party and show at T-Mobile Center. The hosts shared their insights on what to expect.

“It’s going to be a hotly contested game,” Riggle said.

“A quarter of our guests really are intensely looking forward to the game,” Koechner said. “And about three-quarters (are) like, ‘I haven’t swung a bat in 35 years.’”

Once again, Saturday’s party and show will have some special auction items.

“One of the great things is going to be a special, exclusive package to the entire NFL draft as well as announcing the Chiefs’ pick,” Rudd said. “These are once in a lifetime things. … You have to be there to bid.”

The 8 p.m. show will have live music, comedy, magic and more. Organizers said Friday that tickets are running thin.

After their press conference, the hosts and some of their celebrity guests, including “Saturday Night Live” star Heidi Gardner of Kansas City and comedian Sarah Tiana, broke up into teams for a rousing game of “Friendly Feud.” The players represented patients on different floors of the hospital, watching the game from their rooms.

Since its founding in 2010, Big Slick has raised more than $13 million for the Cancer Center.

In addition to the Saturday night auction, Big Slick is also offering an online auction, including a meet-and-greet with musician David Cook of Blue Springs, tickets to several talk shows and more.

See bigslickkc.org for more info and tickets.

This story was originally published June 24, 2022 at 1:33 PM.