Great Bend residents and visitors who converged on Main Street and the Court House Square Saturday night to watch the Home for the Holidays parade couldn’t have picked a more pleasant evening. It was a marked difference from Shop Local Saturday 2015, when the parade was cancelled due to icy conditions. This year a patriotic parade theme, “Star Spangled Holiday,” honored veterans both retired and serving.  Great Bend’s Boy Scouts showed their holiday spirit, paddling their way along Main Street. Other activities Saturday night included a drawing for the winner of the Explore Great Bend $1,000 giveaway, free hot dogs and hot cocoa, Mayor Mike Allison and Santa and Mrs. Clause lighting of the Christmas Tree, and more.