Hippity hoppity, Easter eggs aplenty
By Kirsten Ballard
Published in News on April 3, 2015 1:46 PM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Dallas Tyson, 1, gets help from his grandmother Rhonda Tyson as he hunts for eggs during the annual Goldsboro Parks and Recreation egg hunt at Berkeley Park Thursday night.
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Brandon Stokes Jr., 2, clings to his mother Brittany Ashford's arm tightly and closes his eyes because he was afraid to see the Easter Bunny at Berkeley Park Thursday night. Brandon cautiously warmed up to the idea that the bunny might not be so scary.
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Namashree Venkateshkumar, 4, happily skips around with a basket containing only a few eggs after the first group of children participated.
Brandon Stokes was terrified.
The 2-year-old wrapped his arms around his mother, Brittany Ashford, and closed his eyes tightly.
"Mom, I'm scared," he said.
Brandon did not want to see the Easter Bunny at the Parks and Recreation Egg Hunt at Berkeley Park on Thursday night.
But by the time the under 3 age division egg hunt arrived, Brandon was over his fear enough to grab his plastic bag and his mom's hand to run frantically after the brightly colored eggs on the field.
This year's egg hunt had the most eggs ever, with 5,000 candy-filled eggs divided between three age-divided egg hunts. It was the first time the egg hunt was held at Berkeley Park.
Each hunt had one mysterious golden egg on the field. If found, the lucky child received a prized, pre-packed Easter basket.
Texas Roadhouse filled 60 eggs with coupons for free children's meals. These were mixed in with the candy-filled eggs.
The 4-7-year-olds went first at 6 p.m.
Parks and Recreation Supervisor Mark Wilson and his staff put 2,500 eggs out for the children.
"I was worried it was too much," he laughed. "It was gone in four minutes."
Namashree Venkateshkumar, 4, skipped back to mom and dad after her mad dash around the field. She displayed her basket to her parents.
She had done an egg hunt in school, but wanted to participate in the festivities again.
The 0-3 age range went at 6:45 p.m.
There were a lot of false starts, as an eager child would toddle past the starting line to stick a plastic egg promptly into his mouth.
Wilson had the eggs clustered near the starting line for the walking-challenged toddlers.
A few children got distracted with Easter Bunny hugs.
One-year-old Dallas Tyson was all grins as his grandma, Rhonda Tyson, helped him collect a few eggs into his tub.
Wilson passed out eggs at the end to children who did not manage to find any on the field.
The 8-12 age range went at 7:30 p.m. and participants were encouraged to bring flashlights to aid them in their hunt.
The eggs were scattered across the entire field, for an added challenge, but still, the hunt was over almost as soon as it began.