Maybe it was the largest Easter egg hunt in our community this year, maybe not. I’m sorry to admit I don’t have census statistics for Easter egg hunts in the Centre Region.
But I will say this: the two-session egg hunt that was jointly sponsored by a pair of State College churches was certainly the most noticeable Easter egg event in our area.
Held alongside Blue Course Drive, this hunt for brightly colored eggs also offered a pair of bounce houses and a wide variety of other outdoor activities. As for the plastic eggs—each filled with a yummy bit of candy—there was no scrimping. More than 10,000 were available for the 11 a.m. hunt and nearly that many were put out at 1 p.m., so yes, that adds to the whopping total of 20,000.
Said Jared Butler, father of four happy participants, “They had a lot of eggs. A lot of eggs. And it was really great how they had the kids staggered by age. Everybody left happy and full of candy.” Added Butler’s wife, Amy, “I was so impressed that our three-year-old walked around and nobody trampled him. He got a whole basket full, wow!”
That kind of happiness has resulted ever since the State College Alliance Church began the Easter egg hunt in 2014. According to Bill Jester, director of children’s ministry at the Alliance, “It’s an open door to the neighborhood.”
Although Jester noted that families from throughout the Centre Region are always welcome, he said that the event’s organizers are especially focused on the neighborhoods near Blue Course Drive. “We love seeing people with strollers coming in,” he said, “and people riding their bikes. We really see this as a neighborhood connecting point more than some of the other ministries that we do.”
This emphasis on the neighborhood developed further in 2017 when the Alliance invited Blue Course Community Church (then known as State College Evangelical Free Church) to co-sponsor the event. That proved to be an excellent step, allowing the hunt to be held on BCCC’s expansive field and providing more volunteers to help fill thousands of eggs and to supervise the egg hunt, bounce houses, face painting and other outdoor activities.
And it’s helpful that the two churches share a common purpose for the event. According to Cindy Rutschky, the children’s ministry director at BCCC, “We want to share the love of the gospel with the community.”
HUMAN VACUUM CLEANER
Before each of the two egg hunts, organizers reminded children that the event was a “friendly hunt,” and they were pleased to see the kids avoid wrestling or fighting over eggs. But while remaining friendly, State College’s next generation showed plenty of energy in gathering the eggs.
In the past, Jester has described the egg hunt as reminding him of locusts devouring a crop, and I saw that reenacted in 2023. Said Brian Soule, a Penn State professor and father of two, “They literally had thousands of eggs out there. But then it looked like a big vacuum cleaner. Within five minutes, all those eggs were gone.”
Even in the protected space for kids below age 3, a similar “eggs-itement” was seen. “I feel like the eggs just disappeared,” said Andrew Jue, a Penn State grad student who watched over the little ones. “They needed a little coaxing from their parents, but then the eggs just vanished.”
CULTURAL INTERFACE
Of course, many cultures are found in our community, and it would be hard to name an event where they interact more joyfully than they did last Saturday at Blue Course Community Church.
“We are from India,” said Srikant as he stood beside his wife, Rashmi, and held their 20-month old daughter. “We do not know many people, so when we came here we got a chance to meet new people, to make some new friends and understand this culture. This is my first time at an egg hunt. Knowing something new is definitely nice.”
Bronko and Jovana, a couple from Serbia, offered similar words of appreciation as they watched their little girl, Sofia, playing with her newly-acquired eggs. “I’m really thankful to the people who organized this,” said Bronko. “It’s a wonderful start to the spring.”
While smiling at Sofia, the Penn State Ph.D. student suggested that his home nation might want to copy the egg hunting custom from America. “I really like how they make it for kids,” he said. “It’s more of only a religious holiday in Serbia. But a mass Easter Egg Hunt…I think that’s something we ought to introduce there because kids love it.”
SUITED TO THE SEASON
But there’s more to Easter than chocolate bunnies and colorful eggs, so the churches also offer a short explanation of the holiday’s spiritual basis. Staff members and volunteers of Child Evangelism Fellowship are invited to give several short presentations about the death and resurrection of Jesus, and many of the older kids chose to attend.
“I was impressed that the kids were attentive,” said Vanessa Morehead, a CEF staff member. “I wasn’t sure with all the exciting things going on that they would be, but they were listening.”
For Brian Soule, his wife and their two small kids, everything worked together to create a positive experience. “It’s just so cool to see the whole community come out and have a blast,” Soule told me. “The kids are laughing and playing and meeting new friends. This is why we love State College.“How great is it that we’ve had an early spring and a beautiful sunny day today? And from our point of view as Christians, there’s a reason to be celebratory on Easter—seeing the sunshine and the flowers blooming and all of that coinciding with remembering Jesus rising from the grave. You know, it’s just beautiful.”
