April 20, 2007

Fun for all at Boggini Park Easter egg hunt

By Diego Abeloos
Editor

More than 300 children, along with their families, scoured the grounds of Boggini Park in Evergreen for eggs and prizes on April 7 in celebration of Easter.

A pair of Easter egg hunters collect the goods during an Easter celebration sponsored by Evergreen Valley Church at Boggini Park in Evergreen on April 7.

The free event, sponsored by Evergreen Valley Church, drew a grand total of more than 500 visitors to the park, according to Dennis Hadley, Pastor of Learning and Growth at the church, who said the event felt like “a big community picnic.”

The event was a part of the countywide Our Beautiful Day event (www.ourbeautifulday.org), which saw 31 churches from the South Bay sponsor Easter events. All told, Pastor Hadley said the event was wildly successful, adding that the event was a great day for families to enjoy a sense of community.

“We thought it was a real exciting time, and it was fun to see the community come together,” he said. “…I just sensed that no matter who they were, they had a great time.”

A young easter egg hunter finds a ticket in her egg during an Evergreen Valley Church-sponsored Easter celebration held at Boggini Park in Evergreen on April 7. The tickets were redeemable for prizes such as yo-yos, squirt guns, dolls, Target gift cards, and other items.

The event, which was organized by church volunteer Galley Molina and his wife, saw more than 100 church volunteers donate their time stuffing 6,000 Easter eggs with candy and prize tickets. The church volunteers stuffed 60 eggs with golden tickets, which were redeemed for prizes such as yo-yos, squirt guns, and other toys for the children to enjoy. In addition, 60 eggs also featured blessing tickets, which were redeemed for prizes such as Target gift cards, dolls, and remote controlled cars, among other prizes. Evergreen Valley Church members donated all prizes for the event.

To that end, Pastor Hadley said he’s thankful for the generosity shown by his church members.

“I continue to be amazed at the loving hearts our church has,” he said. “…All we do is lay the opportunity out there, and they respond.”

Aside from a giant Easter egg hunt, the children at the event took pictures with the Easter bunny, while also enjoying some arts and crafts in making picture frames to help commemorate the day.