By Lori BODNAR, intern 

Hundreds of children and their families gathered at Two Strike Park on Saturday for the eighth annual epic Easter egg hunt, sponsored by CVCHURCH.  Despite chilly temperatures and overcast skies, the day was warmed by the smiles, excitement and feeling of community in the park. The event was free to attend.

Church members greeted the children and their families as they entered the park and, for those who didn’t bring a bag to collect eggs, gave them one. Members also distributed water, oversaw craft activities and prepared candy bags for those who missed the hunt or who perhaps didn’t collect much candy during the hunts.

There were two egg hunts, one at 10 a.m. and another at 10:30 a.m. Each hunt encompassed different sections of the park, the areas cordoned off to divide the eager egg hunters into three age groups: those in preschool, kindergarten through third grade, and those in fourth through sixth grade. The kids waited behind the ropes separating the areas, gazing at the myriad brightly colored and candy-filled eggs ready to be collected. Then the countdown started, ending with a blast from an air-horn announcing that the hunt was on! Parents stayed behind the roped off areas, taking pictures of the fun. There were plenty of eggs for everyone.

“This is our eighth year of doing the Easter egg hunt,” said Scott Wood, CVCHURCH pastor and one of the organizers of the event. “The first year we had about 300 people come. Last year we had around 2,100 people. This year we have approximately 3,000 in attendance, and we have almost 30,000 eggs to hunt.”

“I am the CVCHURCH assistant [helping] with preschool and social media. I believe that this is the year most attended for the preschool age group at the Easter egg hunt,” said Mandy Jacobs. “People look forward to the egg hunts. We love what we do for the community.” 

Children’s pastor Beth Krausse was also a lead organizer of the event.

In addition to the candy-filled egg hunts, a costumed Easter bunny was at the park, ready to have pictures taken with the kids or sharing bunny hugs or high fives. There were also games, such as a bean bag toss into a giant wooden bunny, and an arts and craft table. 

The young kids especially enjoyed making crafts at the craft table. Janey Kapell is a CVCHURCH volunteer helping in that area.

“I have been going to CVCHURCH for 10 years and have been helping out with the Easter egg hunt for all eight years,” said Kapell. “We stuff the Easter eggs with candy during our Bible study. This is our way of helping the community. I have been working at the craft table because I love to work with kids and I wasn’t blessed with children of my own. I enjoy seeing their happy smiles and their eyes light up when they do a craft project. During Christmastime, we also have the Exploring Bethlehem event at CVCHURCH.”

Children of all ages had fun at the park, collecting eggs. Mariana Rojas brought her 6-month old to her first egg hunt. The baby girl clutched a bright pink Easter egg in her tiny hands with a broad smile on her face.

Noah Hyun, who is almost 2 years old, said, “I had fun and found lots of eggs!”  He came with his mom, Katherine Lee. 

Another first-timer was Danny Hacoupian who came with his mom Maggie. They said they were glad there are two back-to-back egg hunts since they missed the first one; they were hunting for a parking spot instead.    

Others who attended were egg hunting pros – Kelley Palmer, Andrea Cookson and Shepperd Cookson have gone to all eight annual egg hunts and said they “won’t ever miss it!”

Kelley said Saturday’s was the coldest hunt ever but they brought their own sunshine, dressed up in bright outfits, complete with bunny ears, for the festive occasion. Many children wore bunny ears or were dressed in their Easter best, and carried beautiful baskets of all sizes to gather the brightly colored plastic eggs. The eggs had more than just candy; many egg-hunters were delighted to find stickers, small toys, and Play Doh inside.

  Lori BODNAR