this week’s EVENTS

MONDAY Harding Lighting Ceremony

SEARCY — Harding University will kick off its holiday-season activities with the annual campus lighting ceremony at 6 p.m. on the front lawn near the David B. Burks American Heritage Building. The countdown to the lighting will begin promptly at 6 p.m., so guests are encouraged to arrive a few minutes early. President David Burks will lead the crowd in the countdown to illuminate thousands of lights that will grace the front lawn through New Year’s. For more information, visit harding.edu/holidays.

TUESDAY Adobe Acrobat Pro

BATESVILLE — The University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville will offer Adobe Acrobat Pro from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Participants will learn to fill, sign, create and edit PDF files. The course fee is $99. Register at uaccb.coursestorm.com.

WEDNESDAY – DEC. 23 Holiday Festival of Trees

NEWPORT — The Newport Area Chamber of Commerce will host the first Holiday Festival of Trees on Wednesday through Dec. 23. This friendly Christmas-tree-decorating competition is open to any youth group, business, church or nonprofit organization. Trees will be judged in three categories, with awards given for the Most Comical, Most Traditional and Most Unique trees, plus an overall Best Tree award. Trees will be voted on by the public to determine the winners. Each $1 donation equals one vote. All donations will support the chamber’s scholarship and Arkansas Scholars programs. Voting will begin during business hours Wednesday at the chamber office, and final judging will be at noon Dec. 23. The form for organizations to enter a tree in the contest can be found at files.constantcontact.com/5795d8ce001/54f486381246-423a-a9ad-bc3d6486d54a.pdf and entries are due Tuesday.

THURSDAY Christmas Open House

SEARCY — All are invited to Harding University’s 15th annual Christmas Open House from 5-7 p.m. at the David B. Burks American Heritage Building, 915 E. Market Ave. The event will celebrate Christmas with food, music and carriage rides through 1 million cascading lights on the front lawn. Bison Catering will showcase its holiday menu. RSVP by Monday with the number in your party. For more information, email alumni@harding.edu.

ASU-Beebe Community Tree Lighting Ceremony

BEEBE — Arkansas State UniversityBeebe invites the public to its annual Community Tree Lighting Ceremony at 5 p.m. in the Grove behind State Hall on the Beebe campus. Jubilation Jazz will perform Christmas favorites, along with special guest performers. Other highlights of the event will include holiday greetings from ASUBeebe Chancellor Jennifer Methvin, crafts, storytelling, hayrides and visits with Santa Claus. Handcrafted dishes and pottery will be available for purchase, with proceeds benefiting the Student Emergency Hope Fund. For more information, call (501) 882-3600 or visit www.asub.edu.

FRIDAY Blessing Bag Donation Drive

NEWPORT — The Jackson County Office of Emergency Management and White River Women’s Shelter will host a Blessing Bag Donation Drive from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at

617 Second St. All are invited to drop off donations for a Blessing Bag and to grab lunch. Hot dogs, chips, and a drink will be provided for everyone who makes a donation. Needed items include socks, hats and gloves, rain ponchos, blankets, lip balm, deodorant, granola bars and zipclose bags.

FRIDAY AND SATURDAY Kitchen Table Silversmithing: The Basics

MOUNTAIN VIEW — The Arkansas

Craft School, 101 N. Peabody Ave., will present Kitchen Table Silversmithing: The Basics, with Brandy Boyd, on Friday and Saturday. For more information, call (870) 269-8397, or visit info@arkansascraftschool.org.

SATURDAY

Brockwell Christmas Live BROCKWELL — The Brockwell Gospel Music School, 4243 Arkansas 9 N., will present its annual Christmas concert, Brockwell Christmas Live, at 6 p.m. The evening will feature favorite Christmas hymns, a variety of special music and choir selections. An offering will be taken to support the music school, and refreshments will be served following the performance. All are welcome.

Christmas Crafts at Powhatan

POWHATAN — Powhatan Historic State Park, 4414 Arkansas 25, will be decked out in its Victorian Christmas finery on Saturday for a free family-oriented day of Christmas crafts. Participants will make paper ornaments and other decorations to take home. For more information on this event, contact the park at (870) 878-6765 or powhatan@arkansas.com.

To request an accommodation to be able to attend or more fully experience this event, call (870) 878-0032.

Carve a Small Santa Ornament

MOUNTAIN VIEW — The Arkansas Craft School, 101 N. Peabody Ave., will present Carve a Small Santa Ornament, with Mike Pounders, on Saturday. For more information, call (870) 269-8397, or visit info@arkansascraftschool.org.

Batesville Christmas Parade

BATESVILLE — The 2021 Batesville Christmas parade, titled A Bicentennial Christmas, will begin at 6 p.m. along historic Main Street.

ONGOING

Smoked meat fundraiser

NEWPORT —The Joe & Helen Harris Foundation and IMAD are

offering Smokin’ for the Holidays, a fundraiser with opportunities to purchase prepared menu items for Christmas and New Year’s Eve/ Day. For Christmas, order whole smoked turkeys ($45), smoked Boston butts ($35), smoked hams ($35), smoked turkey breasts ($25) and 9-by-13-inch pans of cornbread dressing ($25). Pickup will be Dec. 23. For New Year’s Eve/Day, order smoked hams ($35) and smoked turkey legs ($15). Pickup will be Dec. 30. Pre-orders are required for each holiday. Funds raised will be matched by the Arkansas Community Foundation.

To order or for more information, contact Michelle Johnson at (870) 503-3319.

Searcy Holiday of Lights

SEARCY — The Searcy Holiday of Lights is in force in downtown Searcy and in Berryhill, Spring and Yancey parks. Activities will include Searcy’s Jolly Jubilee in downtown Searcy on Saturday, and the Berry Merry Christmas at Berryhill Park on Dec. 11. The Holiday of Lights includes ice-skating, prizes for Christmas light contests and new events, including the 2021 World Championship Chocolate Gravy Cook-off, to take place from 9-11 a.m. Saturday in downtown Searcy. Tickets for the cook-off are $5 in advance at Eventbrite or $7 at the event. For a full schedule of activities for the Holiday of Lights, visit searcy.com.

Book Sale

JACKSONVILLE — The Jacksonville Museum of Military History, 100 Veterans Circle, is having its annual book sale, which will continue indefinitely. Books, puzzles, tapes and more are available for purchase. All are invited to stop by the museum and shop for gifts or for a new addition to one’s bookshelf. Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

For more information, call the museum at (501) 241-1943, or visit jaxmilitarymuseum.org.

Reading at the Ridge

NEWARK — The Cedar Ridge School District is conducting a “child find” to locate children who have turned 5 but are not yet in school so the district can give free books to children in the district from their 5th birthday until their first day of kindergarten. The

aim of the program is to help build each child’s at-home library and love for books. For more information, call Cedar Ridge Elementary School at

(870) 201-2577.

Stuffed-Toy Drive

BATESVILLE — Block Insurance is accepting new and gently used stuffed toys through Dec. 15 for its Fill the Chimney for Santa stuffed-toy drive. All are invited to drop off stuffed toys at the insurance office, 2121 Harrison St., and Santa will deliver them to local nursing homes and hospitals during the Christmas season.

White River Wonderland

BATESVILLE — White River Wonderland will be open from 5 p.m. to midnight daily through Jan. 2 at Riverside Park. The event includes a light display that features millions of lights, a Ferris wheel, selfies with Santa, ice skating, White River Express train rides and carriage rides. Admission is free. The light show can be viewed from a car or by walking on illuminated trails throughout the park. For more information and a complete schedule of activities, visit whiteriverwonderland.com.

Arkansas Master Naturalists Applications

The Foothills chapter of the Arkansas Master Naturalists is accepting applications. FAMN is an independent, all-volunteer organization that promotes the preservation, restoration and appreciation of the natural environment. The Foothills chapter draws volunteers from White and Cleburne counties. Classes will begin in January. To learn more, visit arkansasmasternaturalists.org.

Colors & Coffee

BATESVILLE — The Independence County Library, 267 E. Main St., will offer Colors & Coffee, an adult meet-up, from 10-11 a.m. Tuesdays. All adults are invited for a relaxing hour of coloring and coffee. For more information, call the library at (870) 793-8814.

Mindfulness Mondays

BATESVILLE — The Independence County Library, 267 E. Main St., will offer Mindfulness Mondays for teens ages 13 to 19 from 4-5 p.m. each Monday. The event will include a guided meditation and mindful snacks. Beginners are encouraged to attend. Yoga mats are available on a first-come, first-served basis, or participants can bring their own. For more information, call the library at (870) 793-8814.

Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines

Sherwood Urgent Care centers in Batesville, Lonoke and Searcy offer Moderna COVID-19 vaccines each Wednesday. The free vaccine is for people ages 18 and older. For more information or to sign up for the vaccine, visit sherwoodurgentcare.com.

Walk With a Doc

BATESVILLE — Everyone is invited to take a step toward better health by participating in a free 60-minute Walk With a Doc at 10 a.m. the third Saturday of every month. Meet in the Batesville Rec Center parking lot, across from the lake. For more information, visit www.walkwithadoc.org/why-walk.

UPCOMING

Newport Christmas Parade

NEWPORT — The Newport Christmas parade, set for 6 p.m. Dec. 9, which needs entries of floats, walking groups, antique vehicles, beauty queens, horseback riders, school clubs and organizations, will travel down Malcolm Avenue from Arkansas 69 to the Village Mall parking lot. The parade’s grand marshal will be Dr. Jabez Jackson Jr., who retired in September after being in private practice for 47 years. Awards will be given for first-, second- and third-place commercial and noncommercial winners. Entry is free, and participants may choose their own holiday theme. Get entry forms at the Newport Area Chamber of Commerce office, 201 Hazel St., or at www.newportarchamber.org. Fax completed forms to (870) 523-1055, drop them off at the chamber, or email to director@newportarchamber.org.