In the 2024 holiday season, two local families rode horses through Lights from the Heart at Purcell Lake. When the Purcell Register ran a photo of the ride last November, it called it a yearly tradition. Nobody books this season from out of town. City crews build it. Local businesses and churches line the trail for it. Volunteers staff the gate, and families on horseback and on floats fill it in. Most of the ways to take part close before the first bulb turns on.
This post comes out on Thursday, October 29. The first event is two days later.
The season, in the order it arrives
Here is the 2026 calendar from the Heart of Oklahoma Chamber of Commerce, with the sign-up deadlines next to the events:
- Saturday, October 31, 3 to 6 p.m. Halloween of the Heart: Treats on the Trail, along the Purcell Lake Walking Trail.
- Friday, November 6. Deadline for business banners along the Lights from the Heart route. Payment and artwork are both due by that date.
- Wednesday, November 25, Thanksgiving Eve. Lights from the Heart opens at Purcell Lake, 1400 Chandler Road.
- Thursday, December 10, 6 p.m. Purcell's annual Christmas Parade on Historic Main Street.
- Thursday, December 31. Last night of the lights.
The order matters. The banner deadline comes eight days after this post is published and almost three weeks before opening night. A business that decides in mid-November that it wants a sign along the route will have missed it.
Saturday's trail is stocked by neighbors
Treats on the Trail is the first event on the calendar and the clearest example of how the season works. The Chamber describes local businesses, churches, nonprofits and community groups lining the Purcell Lake Walking Trail to hand out candy, host games and celebrate Halloween together. OEC and OEC Fiber present the 2026 event.
The event runs from 3 to 6 p.m., which leaves the evening free. The Chamber's event page suggests that families head out for door-to-door trick-or-treating in Purcell neighborhoods afterward. An afternoon at the lake followed by a walk around the block at dusk makes a full Halloween without a drive to Norman.
If your business, church or group wants a table next year, the same Chamber page takes participation and sponsorship inquiries. Think of this year's trail as a look at who already shows up.
The lights are a city crew's work
The Purcell Register reported last year that the Purcell Electric Department put up the displays with help from other city departments, and that the work started several weeks before opening night. So the strings of lights you may spot at the lake in early November are a city crew getting a head start.
For 2026, the Chamber lists:
- Dates: November 25 through December 31
- Hours: 5:30 to 10 p.m. nightly
- Location: Purcell Lake, 1400 Chandler Road
- Admission: free, with donations appreciated
- Format: drive-through only
The display covers more than two miles. Last year, MetroFamily Magazine described the route as running along the lakeshore from Chandler Road to Highway 39 on the northeast side of Purcell. That was the 2025 layout. Check the Chamber or the city before you plan your entry point for 2026.
The display has run since at least 2016. A Purcell Register issue dated November 24, 2016, listed Lights from the Heart with a Thanksgiving opening that year. Each year it starts the same way, with a Chamber ribbon cutting at the lake on Thanksgiving Eve.
The 2025 Register story describes the small details. Visitors got free peppermint candy, drove slowly through about two miles of color, and could tune their radios to holiday music. The Chamber's 2026 page also suggests turning on your favorite Christmas music.
Thirty-seven nights need someone at the gate
The math explains why the Chamber asks for help. From November 25 through December 31 is 37 nights. At four and a half hours a night, that comes to more than 160 hours of gate time over the season.
The Chamber says Lights from the Heart depends on community volunteers who welcome visitors and collect donations each evening from 5:30 to 10 p.m. It asks businesses, organizations, churches and individuals to sign up, and participating groups are recognized on social media. Volunteers coordinate through the City of Purcell Parks Department at 405-527-3093.
A shift at the gate is a low-key way for a youth group, a Sunday school class or an office crew to spend an evening together. It also helps keep a free event free.
The banner deadline comes before Thanksgiving
The second way businesses take part is with a 3-by-6-foot banner along the drive-through route. The Chamber lists 2026 pricing as follows:
| Banner option | 2026 price |
|---|---|
| Renewal, no changes | $200 |
| New banner | $300 |
| Reprint with updated design | $300 |
The pricing favors businesses that come back each year. Renewing an unchanged banner costs $100 less than starting fresh or updating the design. Every option has the same deadline, though. Payment and artwork must be received by November 6, 2026. That is the earliest hard date in the season after Halloween, and it falls before most people have started thinking about Christmas.
Horseback, headlights, and the 2026 rules
Back to the riders. The Register caption presents horseback rides through the lights as a family tradition. The Chamber's 2026 listing, however, says "Drive-Through Only." If you were hoping to ride the route this year, call the Parks Department first and get a clear answer before you load the trailer.
December 10 belongs to Main Street
The season moves from the lake to downtown for one evening. Purcell's annual Christmas Parade steps off at 6 p.m. on Thursday, December 10, on Historic Main Street. The Chamber promises floats, marching bands, local groups and vendors.
The Chamber invites businesses, organizations and families to enter a float, a vehicle, a riding club or a performance group. Riding clubs are listed by name as eligible entries. For anyone whose horse missed out on the lights, Main Street is the official place to ride this December.
To enter:
- Read the parade rules and information in the 2026 Parade Entry Form.
- Fill out the entry form.
- Return it to the Heart of Oklahoma Chamber of Commerce at 305 W. Main Street, Purcell, OK 73080, or email it to [email protected].
The Chamber's office is on Main Street, so dropping off a form by hand means a walk down the same street the parade will use.
Planning around the whole season
Here is how the calendar lays out for a Purcell household. Treats on the Trail comes first, this Saturday afternoon. The banner deadline follows the next Friday. The lights open the night before Thanksgiving, which makes a drive around the lake an easy way to wind down after a day of cooking or travel. The parade comes about two weeks later, and the lights keep running through New Year's Eve for anyone who wants another drive after Christmas.
Event plans can shift. The Heart of Oklahoma Chamber's pages and the Parks Department are the places to confirm hours, routes and entry details before you go.
Purcell Lake does a lot for this town, from the walking trail to the light route that brings people out every December. At Cross C Realty, we live and work in this community too, and we keep track of how McClain County is changing season by season. If you'd like to know how the area's home and land values are moving as the year wraps up, request your free market report and we'll put one together for your part of Purcell.
