The One Thing To Do in Missouri Before the End of the Year

Now, I will be honest with you. You’re going to be surprised when you see what I’ve picked for the one thing to do in Missouri before the end of 2025. Even I was surprised! See? I’ve never been a very religious person. I grew up at a weird time (the '90s) in an unusual household where Sunday mornings involved cereal, cartoons, and the noble art of ignoring chores. Whether we lived in Jefferson City, Missouri, or any of the many other cities we ricocheted through, church simply wasn’t part of my upbringing. Art was, though, and I’ve always admired the craftsmanship in chapels. The way some places feel handmade down to the furniture itself has always tugged at my curious side.

Precious Moments, oddly enough, were part of that curiosity. When I was young, I would study the figurines on my Nana’s shelf as if they were tiny diplomats in porcelain form. Those soft-eyed children looked like they were about to tell me something important, if only I leaned in close enough. So when I learned that Missouri, specifically Carthage, holds a full Precious Moments Chapel and Gardens, I felt the same spark I used to feel digging through Nana’s curio cabinet. Pure childlike wonder, wrapped in nostalgia and a sprinkle of “please let this be as magical as I think it might be.”

The city of Carthage, Missouri adds its own charm to this story. The town has the kind of welcoming personality that makes you slow down without realizing it. You see the courthouse rising over the historic square, brick buildings with stories tucked into every corner, and families heading to Taste of Italy like it’s their living room. The area is sometimes called the Maple Leaf Capital thanks to its annual Maple Leaf Festival, and it’s also a hop from other adventure stops like the Civil War Museum and the quirky art scattered around Route 66. Carthage feels like the sort of place where memories settle in and stay for a while.

Then there’s the Precious Moments Chapel, a place that somehow manages to feel both sacred and deeply imaginative, even if you’re simply coming for art, quiet, or curiosity. The Chapel sits on a stone terrace overlooking Center Creek, surrounded by Missouri’s rolling hills. You approach through a door carved from narra wood: three angels, vines, a message from Habakkuk, and craftsmanship that makes you pause before you even step inside. The massive bronze plates on the façade (each 9 feet tall, each heavier than a fully loaded minivan) were originally sketched by artist Sam Butcher on paper napkins. Missouri has a way of reminding you that big dreams often begin in small places.

Inside, you find 6,400 square feet of murals. Fifty-two paintings depicting biblical stories, reimagined with the signature Precious Moments figures: childlike, tender, expressive. Even if you’ve never cracked open a pew Bible in your life, something in the artwork speaks in a language you recognize. The Chapel glows with color and story, almost like a picture book turned into architecture.

The gardens expand the experience into something even more dreamlike. Bronze angels line the Avenue of Angels, creating a path that feels gently ceremonial. Center Creek adds its own soundtrack. Flowers and butterflies fill the edges of the trail. And tucked beyond the Chapel sits one of my favorite details of all: Grandpa’s Island. It's a small, open-air castle built by Butcher for his grandchildren. Visitors can’t explore it up close, but seeing it from the overlook feels like spotting a secret chapter in someone else’s family fairytale.

The Samuel J. Butcher Museum adds more depth for anyone hungry for history, creativity, or the origin story behind a beloved '90s phenomenon. The original hand-painted door from the early Jonathan & David days stands on display, along with memorabilia, never-sold figurines, and stories of presidents, sculptors, and cultural icons who crossed Butcher’s path.

One of the most remarkable things about the Precious Moments Chapel and Gardens is that it’s free. Free to explore. Free to wander. Free to enjoy the art, the gardens, the museum, and the atmosphere that feels both peaceful and playfully imaginative. If you’re timing your visit for the end of the year, don't miss its Music of Christmas event, where the sounds of the season ring through the chapel... all performed by local musicians.

So here’s my invitation: Visit Missouri. Visit Carthage. Make Precious Moments Chapel and Gardens one of your stops. Let yourself be surprised by a place that blends art, faith, imagination, and pure wonder. And if you grew up in the '90s like I did (dazzled by Nana’s figurines), you may discover that the one thing to do in Missouri before the end of the year just might awaken the curious kid still living inside you.

Awaken your curiosity by using Only In Your State's Travel Planner to organize your next grand Missouri adventure.