Kids enjoy egg-cellent event in Orwell

Apr. 4—ORWELL — Dozens of children greeted the Easter bunny and dashed over Community Park baseball fields faster than former Cleveland Indian Kenny Lofton covered the outfield in the 1990s on Saturday morning.

The annual Easter egg hunt brought a small sense of normalcy to the community in a year of COVID-19 protocols.

Gary Morris, commander of the Orwell American Legion Post 719, said it was the 70th edition of the event that was "greatly scaled back" last year.

Parents gathered with their children at a field pavilion where they were instructed on which field to hunt for eggs with children of like ages.

Children were directed to four different fields where a total of 2,400 eggs were placed for thm to find.

"No parents allowed in the hunt [area]," Morris said while announcing the rules.

Children were allowed in the area for the 4-and-under category.

"There is a prize for the person who gets a gold egg and the most eggs [in each age category]," Morris said.

Age categories were 4-and-under; 5-6, 7-8 and 9-10.

Jessica Ebelender of Roaming Shores said she had two children in the event.

"They are very excited. They look forward to coming every year," she said.

Parents lined the fenced in fields taking video of the event. The Easter Bunny greeted children before and after the event and posed for pictures.

When the children arrived at their designated field, a person in charge gave instructions and the children were off and running while carrying their Easter baskets to manage the haul.

"We do it for the kids. American Legion is a service organization," Morris said.