[ December 10, 2013; ] NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State University Chamber Choir will present a candlelight service of “Lessons and Carols” Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 7:30 p.m. at Basilica of the Immaculate Conception at 145 Church St. in Natchitoches. Admission is free and open to the public. Dr. Burt Allen will direct the Northwestern choir.

Jordan DeRouen of DeRidder is [...]

[ December 10, 2013; ] NATCHITOCHES – Author Ernest Gaines will present a reading at Northwestern State University Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 5 p.m. in the Friedman Student Union Ballroom. Admission is free and open to the public. Gaines will be introduced by former Louisiana Poet Laureate Darrell Bourque.

Gaines is among the most widely read and respected contemporary authors of [...]

[ December 8, 2013; 2:30 pm to 3:30 pm. ] (Alexandria, LA)  It’s the most wonderful time of the year and the Rapides Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Joshua Zona will once again celebrate this joyous season with the popular annual holiday concert on Sunday, December, 8, 2:30 p.m. at the Coughlin – Saunders Performing Arts Center in downtown Alexandria.

With this year’s theme being “Home [...]

NATCHITOCHES – The Natchitoches Christmas Festival Committee and City of Natchitoches would like festival goers to be aware of the following street closures and safety precautions for the 87th Annual Natchitoches Christmas Festival taking place on Saturday, December 7, 2013.
On festival day, the following streets will be open to one-way traffic only:
Third Street from Texas [...]

[ December 6, 2013 to February 22, 2014. ] Opening December 6 at AMoA: 5 next exhibitions featuring over 50 artworks by African-American artists from the collection of renowned costume designer Myrna Colley-Lee of Mississippi, 40 watercolors by artists throughout the world, rare behind-the-scene photographs of Mother Teresa by Baton Rouge-photographer Marie Constantin, and photographs of film production in Central Louisiana by Pineville-photographer Eric [...]

Meet Austin Shirley.  On October 9th, he started walking his dog across America.  Shirley, who’s from Dallas, left Jacksonville, Florida with a goal of reaching San Diego.
He says this started as a mission of self-discovery, and it’s turned into a way to draw attention and funds to disabled veterans.

Shirley says he’s amazed at the hospitality [...]

Say hello to the creative students and faculty at Cherokee Elementary.
They enlisted about 700 students and adults in constructing what they’re calling a human snowman.  Each grade level is participating in a common core activity centered on the human snowman project.
The school will also be using the picture for their Christmas card.
KLAX ABC 31 News [...]

The state board of education is making changes to the controversial common core program.
The new policy includes changes to letter grades for schools, promotions and teacher evaluations.

Rapides Parish has adopted the common core, but the superintendent says it will be tailored to fit local needs.
KLAX ABC 31 News 12/4/13

A check is presented this morning to a scholarship fund named for two Alexandria police officers that died in the line of duty.  Jeremy Carruth and David Ezernack are the officers memorialized by the fund.  The money, raised from a fitness competition, came from the police department, CrossFit South Bank and LSU Alexandria.
The scholarship is [...]

Newly elected 5th district representative Vance McAllister, didn’t get his first committee choice, but says he’s excited about his appointment to the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committees.  McAllister had hoped speaker John Boehner and other GOP house leaders would let him take predecessor Rodney Alexander’s seat on the House Appropriations Committee.
McAllister plans to use [...]

The numbers are in and, overall, sales were up for Thanksgiving weekend.  ShopperTrak, a retail research firm, says store sales were up for Thursday and Friday by 2.3 percent.  But for Black Friday alone, sales were down 13.2 percent, meaning more people shopped on Thanksgiving.
As for Central Louisiana, we checked in with one local merchant [...]

Reindeer Games started today and are being played all season at the mall.  The mall manager explains how it works.

KLAX ABC 31 News 12/2/13