How Many Eggs??

A van packed with Easter eggs (10,000 to be exact) arrived at Wheeling Park in the early morning hours of Saturday, April 15th for a huge community egghunt. By 8:00am there were over 50 Vineyard volunteers, whose cars proceeded to fill up the White Palace parking lot. The workers drank some coffee and orange juice for a a quick energy rush and began their mission to hide the endless amount eggs throughout the fields of the park.

Around the time of registration, an overcast weather system approached, but there was no sign of retreat from the dedicated volunteers. "The show must go on," seemed to be the overall attitude of the day. Parents and young children of the community continued to come in the masses. The excitement was building up as the kids anticipated the Easter spirit.

Egghunters Jordan and Tyler Phillips explained, "We love Easter because we love picking up hidden eggs." It seems as if they weren't the only ones who felt this way. By the end of the day, a total of 500 kids had signed in to participate in the big event. Four different rounds were established for the different age groups. At 10:00, a loud horn announced the kick off and kids began their search. Besides the extreme amount of eggs, there was yet another twist. Small bells were placed inside 110 eggs. If one of these special eggs were found, the hunter would receive a special prize along with the bag of candy given to everyone as they turned in their eggs. The last crew finished up at 11:00, and the big clean up began soon after.

The leaders and members of the Wheeling Vineyard agreed that this first annual egghunt was extremely successful. "Thanks to all our volunteers and sponsers, the word spread quickly about this event, and 500 kids participated. Because their families also got involved, we were able to invite them to Easter Sunday service. We also got the chance to ask them to come and start a new series with us called Desparate Households," says egg hunt coordinator Jen Doughty.

This simple invitation was the reason for seeing some new faces on Sunday morning, and the church cannot wait to see what else God has planned to do within the next couple of weeks.