SEBASTIAN – An estimated 350 children flocked to Riverview Park Saturday toting their Easter baskets and waiting anxiously to be let loose on the 1,000 or so plastic eggs strewn about the ground.
“That one,” 7-year-old Jacob Ammons said, pointing at a flashy gold egg a few feet away. He had spotted the egg he knew he had to get.
His friend, Bracyi Yates, 6, disagreed and pointed to a glimmering bronze egg a few feet even farther away.
Eleven-year-old Cheyenne Losorio said she wasn’t worried about picking out the eggs.
“It’s about the candy,” she said.
They and a few hundred other children ringed various areas roped off by age group, lending a sense of organization to what would end up being chaos as the organizers finally let loose the children on the eggs.
“It’s just a nice thing for the community,” said Antoine Vanmeir, of Sebastian Parks and Recreation.
The city has hosted the Easter egg hunt for the last 10 years, giving kids an opportunity to hunt eggs someplace other than in their own home or yard.
Each year, the department asks participants to donate plastic eggs that can be used at the next year’s hunt.
Vanmeir explained that the more donations the department receives for the event – like the eggs or candy or prizes – the less money the department has to spend on those items. It then frees up funds for extras, like the two bounce houses that provided entertainment for the children leading up to the great egg hunt.
