Enjoy the holiday season with concerts, open houses, art, kids programs, and more!
The holiday spirit of the former Newman's Department Store is kept alive with the lighting of the annual holiday windows. For the public's enjoyment, starting November 21, 2023, the third edition of the stained glass depictions will be added to expand the City Hall storefront festivities. The holiday images will be lit nightly until January 2nd.
"Rockin Around The Christmas Tree"
Brought to you by Freeman Health System.
Tuesday, December 5, 2023
6:00 pm
Parade runs up Main Street from 15th Street to 2nd Street.
The Grandstand and Judges Table are located at 8th and Main Street.
Freeman Health System is proud to continue our ongoing support and sponsorship of the Annual Joplin Christmas Parade. We consider this a gift to the community we are so blessed to have served for the past 98 years, and we are honored to play a key role in bringing the parade to Joplin again this year.
The beloved American holiday classic comes to captivating life as a live 1940s radio broadcast. With the help of an ensemble that brings a few dozen characters to the stage, the story of idealistic George Bailey unfolds as he considers ending his life one fateful Christmas Eve.
The play runs Wednesday, December 6 - 9, 2023 from 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm and Sunday, December 10, 2023 from 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm.
Join MDC as they celebrate the holidays with light refreshments and holiday activities for young and old alike. Learn how to recycle last year’s Natural Event Calendar into this year’s holiday gifts. Enjoy an evening of crafting a variety of nature ornaments to take home. The Wildcat Glades Nature Group Nature store will be open for shopping, so you can find that perfect gift for the nature-lover on your shopping list. Stop by anytime!
Join the Wildcat Glades Nature Group at the Wildcat Glades Nature Store for a night of incredible and exclusive sales! Find something unique for that special nature-lover in your life or just grab a snack with the staff at Missouri Dept. of Conservation and get into the holiday spirit with ornament crafting.
The 2023 VFW Post 534 Annual Craft Fair is the place to be to get your holiday shopping done. The Craft Fair is FREE to enter and has free parking.
Stop by anytime to make some simple holiday ornaments from recycled and natural materials. MDC will supply the materials, kids bring the creativity, and parents provide guidance. Bring a bag to carry your ornaments home.
Celebrate the most wonderful time of the year with soulful, Southern vocalist John Glosson! With his heartfelt interpretations of the season’s most beloved songs, A Night of Christmas with John Glosson is sure to make this Christmas season merry and bright. This performance is part of Connect2Culture’s Curtains Up Series 2023–2024. Doors open at 6:30pm. Tickets may be purchased at connect2culture.org, (417) 501-5550, or at the C2C box office inside the Cornell Complex (Tue–Sat, 1–5pm). Tickets: $25–$30.
Join the Joplin Historical Society and Joplin History & Mineral Museum for the annual Holiday Open House!
This event will be held on Saturday, December 9th from 11:00am – 2:00pm at the Joplin History & Mineral Museum.
Attendees will receive free admission to the museum and event, be treated to cider and cookies (while supplies last) and have access to a children’s craft. The gingerbread house contest will also be happening, and attendees may vote for their favorite! The gift shop will be open to purchase any gifts for upcoming holidays.
This event is hosted by the Joplin Historical Society.
Join Post Art Library in the Post Reading Room inside Joplin Public Library for their 9th Annual Holiday Tea! This year's event features a holiday piano performance by Susan Spracklen Cordell, a kids' coloring table, and holiday tea and treats. FREE & open to the public. All ages are welcome.
Susan Spracklen Cordell is a Joplin native who studied classical piano with the late Marie Guengerich for many years. Susan started playing ragtime piano at age 14 and has appeared in ragtime festivals and concerts in the US and Europe, including the Joplin Sesquicentennial Percy Wenrich Ragtime Tribute. She's recorded ragtime CDs both solo and with her brother, Steve Spracklen. Susan enjoys piano music of all kinds, especially Christmas songs.
The annual Post Art Library Holiday Tea event is meant to thank the community of Joplin for their support throughout the year while sharing Dr. and Mrs. Post’s enthusiasm for Joplin arts and culture and the holiday season.
Ages: 9 and up
Cost: $35
The holidays are here and what better way to celebrate than by making your own art to gift to someone special? Choose from an ornament, a night light, or a tea light to make from fused glass.
Ryan & Ryan, a dynamic father-son piano duo, combine their talents in a dazzling blend of old and new schools. Join Donald and Barron Ryan as they delight audiences with two-piano renditions of traditional carols and modern songs! This performance is part of Connect2Culture’s Cornell Series 2023–2024. Doors open at 6:30pm. Tickets may be purchased at connect2culture.org, (417) 501-5550, or at the C2C box office inside the Cornell Complex (Tue–Sat, 1–5pm). Tickets: $25–$30.
For ages 13 and older
Is there a better way to send off the Summer sunshine than an evening out on the trails? December 21st marks the official beginning of winter, the shortest day of the year, and a 4-mile hike through Wildcat Park! Join Wildcat Glades Nature Group volunteers on a whimsical walk through the wonderful world of Wildcat Park’s natural, Winter wonderland. This hike will be for those that can handle long hikes and periods of steep/rough terrain. Bring your hiking poles (if you want to!), warm clothes, hiking shoes, water and maybe even a small snack.
Program limited to a certain number of participants
Must pre-register. Please do so by visiting our Facebook page, emailing robin@wildcatglades.org, or by going to https://bit.ly/WinterSolsticeH....
Stretching across more that 2.2 million acres, only a small fraction of visitors experience Yellowstone National Park during the winter months, a time when nature's inhospitality is matched only by its serenity.
