It's bring your own basket," said Kim Skethway, part-time groundskeeper and event coordinator for Paradise Township, referring to the egg hunt that will be held this year in Paradise Park. "There will be 5,000 eggs stuffed with candy."

The 2024 Paradise Township Egg Hunt will be held in the park, 6 London Vale Road, Paradise, on Saturday, March 30, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The egg hunt, which is open to children age 10 and under, will begin at 11:15 a.m. Preregistration for the event is not necessary.

Skethway explained that all the eggs will have candy in them, but there will also be a few special golden eggs hidden amongst the brightly colored plastic ones. B&D Food Truck will be located at the park to provide food for purchase. Local Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops and Parks and Recreation employees will help out with the event.

Girl Scouts will be selling cookies on-site, and face painting will be offered along with a craft and candy table. "There will be a treat bag for each kid who participates," said Paradise Township manager David Thompson.

According to Thompson, local Girl Scouts were the original organizers of the egg hunt. Keystone Church took over organizing the event around 2012. "(Keystone Church) ran with it until COVID-19 fizzled out their volunteers," said Thompson. "I'm glad we could bring it back."

The generosity of several local businesses and organizations helped make the 2024 egg hunt possible. They are Keystone Church, the Paradise Lions Club, Cherry Crest Adventure Farm, J.R. Burkholder Auto Body, McClarigan CPAs & Advisors, and Paradise Custom Kitchens.

Brandon Fisher, lead pastor of Keystone Church, said that when the church first took over the egg hunt, volunteers were stuffing the eggs with candy. Later, they began utilizing the services of Sunny Bunny Easter Eggs, a program of SWI Industrial Solutions, located in Springfield, Mo. The organization has been providing employment to people with disabilities since 1966. Sunny Bunny employees stuffed eggs for the hunt again this year.

The event will be held rain or shine. Individuals who would like to volunteer to help may email kimianne60@yahoo.com. Readers with specific questions about the event may call 717-768-8222.