Main Street Texarkana is hoping businesses will get into the Christmas spirit.

Main Street Texarkana is inviting the community to get into the holiday spirit through more than just the 30th Annual Christmas Parade—this year the festivities are extending to decorated storefronts.
Nonprofit organizations may enter a contest to decorate a window along the parade’s main route, Broad Street, and a $100 prize is on the line.

“Decorating storefronts creates another element of community participation,” said Ina McDowell, Main Street Texarkana executive director. “Tying the window displays to the Christmas parade provides a fuller holiday experience to our downtown visitors.”
This year’s Christmas parade has a steampunk theme and is titled, It’s a Mad, Mad Victorian Christmas. Emphasis is being placed on repurposing and recycling items for the parade and correlating window displays.
Brandy Chewning, recycling coordinator for Texarkana, Ark., has been a consultant for the project’s organizers.

“The steampunk visual that Main Street is going for is a science fiction fantasy. Futuristic travel and intricately designed machinery with lots of gears, pipes, overlapping layers; those are great canvases for repurposing items into art. I can’t wait to see the results,” Chewning said.

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