A very special guest spends his evening on SAU’s campus each year for Celebration of Lights.

Southern Arkansas University’s 42nd annual Celebration of Lights on December 4, 2025, will offer an abundance of holiday cheer with festive lighting displays, photos with Santa, ferris wheel rides, festive food, and more.

SAU’s Celebration of Lights began in 1984 as a lighting display to enhance SAU’s seventy-fifth-year celebration. It included a tree in front of Overstreet and lights strung all over campus. Over the years, the lighting displays grew larger, and in 1988, SAU strung lights along the sides of the Bell Tower, turning it into a cherished monument of the yearly celebration – SAU’s holiday candle.

The complete schedule of events is as follows:

• Family Christmas Movie: The Grinch (2018)
  Foundation Hall  |  3, 5, and 7 p.m.
• Personalized Snow Globes
  Reynolds Center | 3-7 p.m.
• The Grinch’s Den
  Bruce Center, Mulerider Lounge | 4-8 p.m.
• Ferris Wheel Rides
  Mall Area  |  4-8 p.m.
• Magnolia Christmas Parade
  “Country Christmas”  |  5:30-6:30 p.m.
• Storytime with Mrs. Claus
  Magale Library  |  5, 6, and 7 p.m.
• RHA Overstreet Lighting
  Overstreet Hall | Immediately following the parade
• Lighting of the Bell Tower
  Mall Area | Immediately following the RHA Lighting
• Meet the Mulerider & Molly Ann
  Mall Area | 6-8 p.m.
• Photos with Santa
  Reynolds Center  |  6-8 p.m.
• Buffet Dinner
  Reynolds Center, Grand Hall  | 6-8 p.m.

Activities in Reynolds Center begin at 3:00 p.m. with the first showing of The Grinch (2018) in Foundation Hall. Two other showings will take place at 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. The creation of personalized snow globes will begin at 3:00 p.m. and conclude at 7:00 p.m., while supplies last in Reynolds 208. Photos with Santa will be taken free of charge for all families in the Reynolds Rotunda from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Little listeners enjoy story time with Mrs. Claus during SAU’s annual Celebration of Lights.

Ferris wheel rides begin in the campus Mall Area at 4:00 p.m. and continue until 8:00 p.m. Story Time with Mrs. Claus is held in Magale Library at 5:00, 6:00, and 7:00 p.m. Free Olaf’s Frozen Adventure storybooks will be available while supplies last. The festivities continue at Overstreet Hall following the arrival of the Magnolia Christmas Parade, “Country Christmas,” which runs from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. The parade concludes in the Reynolds Center parking lot.

Following the parade, the Residence Hall Association will begin the Overstreet Lighting, with SAU President Dr. Bruno Hicks offering greetings before the lighting of the SAU Holiday Tree. After the parade winners are announced, all are invited to the Mall Area for the lighting of the Bell Tower.

The annual holiday buffet dinner and holiday music will take place in Reynolds Grand Hall from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the door. Adult tickets are $11.59, and children’s tickets (ages 5-12) are $4.49. Children under the age of five eat free of charge.

For more information, call (870) 235-4045.

SAU hopes to see the community gather to enjoy the festivities and spread holiday cheer!