Page 5 - 2018HOLIDAYS

Saturday, December 15, 2018 El Dorado News-Times 5C
A holiday tradition
Memories of the KTVE Christmas tree abound
By the News-Times staff
Christmas in Union County.
There’s so much to do and see - the lights and carriage rides in downtown El Dorado, the holiday extravaganza at the Arkansas Museum of Natural Resources in Smackover, the holiday-themed plays and parties, and the list goes on.
But one favorite holiday feature isn’t seen anymore.
The old Christmas tree made from the former KTVE television tower on West Main made its last appearance in 2015. And though it’s been three years since the 200-foot tower was decked in lights, to many area residents it still shines quite bright in
their memories.
The “tree” can be traced back to the mid-1960s —
according to our archives, it could be either 1965 or 1967 — when Shirley Johnson-McAvoy, then a receptionist for KTVE, asked a simple question of then-engineer John Long: would it be possible to string lights on the tower?
It was.
That’s how it started. In a January 2017 News- Times article, McAvoy described a particular memory from that first year when they strung the lights on the tower.
See KTVE, Page 6C
Photo courtesy of Aleta Reed
See your
memories
throughout!
The News-Times reached out to readers via social media to share their favorite holiday memories and many of you shared photos from the KTVE Christmas tree.
Be sure to look throughout Home for the Holidays and you may see your memories and photos!