What a difference a week makes.

 

Saturday, more than 100 kids of different ages gathered at Sportsman’s Park in Clearwater for the annual Easter Egg Hunt.

 

The event had been scheduled for a week earlier, but a spring snowstorm that began Wednesday and didn’t end until Friday put a stop to that.

 

There were still snow drifts of 18 inches or more at the park on the scheduled morning (April 13). The Clearwater Fire Dept. runs the hunt, and that  Saturday, Fire Chief Ryan Pridgeon and Firefighter Nick Eldred  sat in a pickup at the driveway of Sportsman’s Park, letting anyone who showed up the event was postponed until the next Saturday (April 20).

 

“No way we’re doing this today,” he said. “We’ll try next Saturday.”

 

As it turned out, a week of warmer temperatures and over an inch of rain washed away all the snow, and Saturday’s weather, except for a little wind, was just right for the kids to scramble for eggs.

 

Volunteers met at the fire hall at 9 a.m. to set up a plan. Then, they all went to the park to start hiding about 2,000 eggs in different sections of the park. Each section was roped off separately for specific age groups. 

 

As it got closer to 10 a.m., vehicles started filling the parking lot. Just before the start of the hunt, Pridgeon announced  there were nine special eggs with notes inside indicating whoever found them could claim an Easter Basket at the end.

 

Once the hunt started, it didn’t take long for the kids to fill their baskets. One mother had to stop her child from over-filling her basket.

“Leave some for the other kids,” she said.

 

But there were plenty of eggs, and the sunny weather made it a perfect day at the park for kids and parents alike.