GRAVETTE -- Area residents will celebrate Christmas in Gravette today with the annual parade set to begin at 4:30 p.m. on Main Street.
"An Old-Fashioned Christmas" is the theme for the event co-sponsored by the city and the Greater Gravette Chamber of Commerce. Trophies will be awarded for the most festive parade entry, best use of Christmas lights and best use of theme.
The Gravette Public Library will host an open house beginning at 3 p.m. and library staff invites everyone to stop in before the parade and enjoy spiced cider and baked goods provided by members of the Jolly Good Times Home Extension Club. Children visiting the library may select an elf ornament from the tree to take home.
The Gravette Historical Museum will host an open house following the parade. The historic Kindley home and the museum annex have been decorated using "An Old-Fashioned Christmas" as a theme, and both will be open for tours. Hot chocolate and cookies will be served, and Santa will be on hand to be photographed with children and to hand out stockings. The stockings contain treats similar to what youngsters would have received in the 1940s.
Members of the Gravette Fire Department and the Gravette Police Department have scheduled a chili cook-off and will be competing to see who can get the most votes for the best chili.