Editor’s Note: May 10, 2026

After several busy weekends packed with festivals, markets, and community events, this weekend around the River Valley feels a little quieter — and honestly, that might not be a bad thing.

With Mother’s Day here, it feels like a good time to slow down a bit, enjoy the spring weather, and spend time with the people who matter most.

Not every weekend has to be packed from sunrise to midnight. Sometimes the best local moments are the simple ones: grabbing coffee together, walking through a farmers market, eating brunch somewhere local, or just spending time outside before the summer heat fully arrives.

🌸 Grab brunch at a local restaurant
🌸 Visit a farmers market or makers market
🌸 Take a walk downtown in Van Buren or Fort Smith
🌸 Pick up flowers or gifts from a local shop
🌸 Spend the afternoon at a park or by the river
🌸 Explore somewhere nearby you’ve never stopped before

The River Valley has a lot to offer when you slow down enough to notice it.

Over the next several days, we’ll be making some upgrades and changes behind the scenes to improve River Valley Local moving forward.

During the transition, some event and business links may temporarily change or stop working while everything updates and settles into place.

We appreciate the patience — and we’re excited about where things are headed next.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms, grandmothers, stepmoms, and mother figures helping hold families and communities together every day.

We hope you have a wonderful weekend here in the River Valley.

You can still check upcoming events at:

rivervalleylocal.com/events

We’ll also be posting updates on the River Valley Local Facebook page as we continue improving and updating the platform over the next several days.

If you notice a link temporarily not working, don’t worry — we’re actively working behind the scenes to make everything better moving forward.

Follow coverage from across the River Valley:

Add your Business to the River Valley Local Directory

Submit an Event to our Events calendar

Meet more Adoptable Dogs at Almost Home Shelter or Fort Smith Animal Haven

Thanks for reading River Valley Local. We’re continuing to build River Valley Local into a single place for events, local answers, and practical information.

Have something we should know about? An event, update, or story tip? Just reply to this email — we read every message.

Community note
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We’re also working toward our next community milestone — 1,000 subscribers — and when we get there, we plan to celebrate with a local giveaway. More details soon.

River Valley Local is typically sent Sunday mornings. Occasionally, we’ll send a special mid-week update if something important affects a specific area.