To celebrate the beginning of the spring season, the Ravenna Parks & Recreation Department will host the annual Easter Eggstravaganza at the John Tontimonia Ravenna City Park on April 4 beginning at 10 a.m.
“I think in every community these events are what people look forward to, whether it is Easter, Halloween or Christmas,” Ravenna Parks & Recreation Director Chris Bundy told The Weekly Villager. “I think people are always looking forward to those. With Ravenna having this long ongoing Easter Egg Hunt, they look forward to it every year especially as something that we as a City put on. We put it on for the residents and it is a beloved event for the community members.”
On the first Saturday of April, the Ravenna Parks & Recreation Department will invite Ravenna citizens and others from neighboring communities to bring their children to participate in an Easter Egg Hunt.
According to Bundy, the Event will be divided into four segments, with the first one at 11 a.m. for children between the ages of 1-4, followed by a hunt at 11:15 a.m. for children from 5-7, then a hunt for children from 8-10 will at 11: 30 a.m. and the final egg hunt will begin at 11:45 a.m.. designated for children 1-18 with special needs.
Bundy said that the Parks & Recreation Department will hide over 7,000 eggs across the Ravenna City Park, with the field will being divided into three different areas for the first three hunts, while the final one at 11:45 a.m. will take place on the tennis courts.
The eggs are all plastic and the majority of them will be filled with by candy, but some will have slips of paper inside that will afford children the opportunity to win additional prizes.
“Some of the eggs won’t contain candy but actually contain a little piece of paper that will indicate additional prizes that they could win. Sometimes the more eggs you get, the more opportunities you get to have not just candies but also to earn additional prizes,” Bundy noted.
The plastic eggs all belong to the Ravenna Parks & Recreation Department, but Bundy credited Giant Eagle and Family Dollar for donating candy. Local organizations, including the Ravenna Veterans of Foreign War Post 1055, are also donating prizes to the event.
Bundy said that the Parks & Recreation Department has also received contributions from Hometown Bank, which is donating 400 bags for the first 400 children who arrive at the Ravenna City Park for the hunt. The Women of the Moose Ravenna Chapter #540 will be on hand to pack the eggs with candy and paper slips.
“We get a lot of donations and a lot of sponsors in the community,” Bundy added. “We have a great community that helps us out.”
In addition to the four separate Easter Egg Hunts, Bundy said that there will be other activities available for families and older children, including an Easter Bunny at the Park who will take pictures with families.
Bundy said that the Ravenna Fire, Police and Street Departments will also be providing additional forms of entertainment by loaning fire trucks, S.W.A.T. and other police cars. Other vehicles from the Street Department will be on site also.
“We do a Touch-a-Truck with the vehicles from our fire department and police department as well as some vehicles from our street department. There will be a lot of different trucks and vehicles for kids and families to get a close-up look at and touch, ” Bundy said.
Bundy said that families will also have a chance to compete in some games at the Tower Lodge, a venue rented by the Parks & Recreation Department, to give the older kids a chance to mingle.
Ultimately, Bundy said that the annual Easter Eggstravaganza provides various opportunities for social interaction.
“Any time we can provide an opportunity that brings 100s and 100s and 100s — close to thousands of our residents together, I always feel that it brings a sense of community; it is always a cool moment,” he said.
