Change Through Grace and the Lions Club recently hosted a Christmas Parade last weekend that featured special appearances by the Grinch and Santa and ended at Freedom Park where the Lions Club lit a tall metal tree (constructed by local Gary Moody) and gave away free food and school supplies for kids.
“It was great, we served hundreds of hot dogs, El Capitan set up a table and served soup and hot apple cider, and everything was free to the community,” says Change Through Grace Member and Organizer Starr Williams. She added that mostly kids and young families were there to see Santa, Celebrate Recovery had a table giving away anti-drug use branded items, the VFW Women’s Auxiliary made soup, and the Mt. Grant General Hospital made chili, all free to the public.
Kayla Anderson – The Christmas parade and tree lighting event took place in Hawthorne on Friday and kicked off the holiday season.
The Change Through Grace ministry recently took over the organization of the Christmas parade that has been a longstanding Hawthorne tradition since 2014, and local businesses such as El Capitan and Ace Hardware had floats in the parade as well as the kids’ ministry, Mineral County Sheriff’s Office and the fire department transporting Santa. McGruff the Crime Dog also made an appearance, but Santa and the Grinch are still the longstanding favorites of the parade.
“[My favorite part of the event is] the Christmas tree lighting, and watching the community come together,” Williams says.
Change Through Grace also has two more Christmas events coming up on December 9 and December 16.
Kayla Anderson – The Christmas parade and tree lighting event took place in Hawthorne on Friday and kicked off the holiday season.
On December 9 at 1 p.m., Change Through Grace as well as other local churches will be hosting a free CHRISTmas Event at the Convention Center that will include a nativity play called “Give It All To Him” (a Christian skit about giving all your troubles to God), other skits, and Christmas songs. The children’s choir will also be present. The CHRISTmas Event will be a couple of hours long, is free, and desserts and hot cocoa are included.
Then on December 16, the Change Through Grace kids will be caroling throughout the community of Hawthorne starting at 6 p.m.
“It’s good to get our local youth involved in something that’s positive,” Williams says. For more information about Change Through Grace Christmas events, visit them on Facebook.
