The Easter Bunny came a day early for many Apple Creek residents this year, hopping into the village park for a photo opportunity at the community Easter egg hunt on Saturday, April 7. The free event was sponsored and staffed by the Apple Creek Midway Office of First National Bank.
In preparation for the egg hunt, bank employees stuffed 8,000 plastic eggs with candy and hid them throughout the park. The beautiful weather brought hundreds of local residents out for the Saturday afternoon event, and the throngs of excited children were divided into three age groups to search for eggs in separate areas. In short order, all 8,000 eggs had been found.
One golden egg was hidden in each age groups area, which entitled the finder to a large gift basket filled with toys and candy. Winners of the three gift baskets were Ethan Smalley, Jaden Patterson, and Ian Connock.
Six-year-old Aubrey Mowery, of Apple Creek, said she had fun hunting for eggs. I went and tried to find the golden egg, she said. Although she wasnt successful in her quest, she was quite pleased with the basketful of candy she collected.
Eight-year-old Haleigh Jordan, of Ashland, was also happy with the results of her hunt. The best thing about the hunt was finding candy! Also, having fun with my cousins, she said.
Their baskets full, the children had the opportunity to visit and be photographed with the Easter Bunny. Meanwhile, bank employees handed out helium balloons and cotton candy and offered temporary tattoos and coloring pages.
Heather Kiner, office manager at the banks Apple Creek Midway branch, first came up with the idea of doing an Easter egg hunt this year. Were a local community bank, and wanted to provide an opportunity for the community to come together for a fun, family event, she said. This is a good time of year to do it when a lot of people are in visiting family over the holiday weekend. Apple Creek used to have an Easter egg hunt, and we thought it would be great to bring it back. Being active in the community is important to the bank, and Apple Creek is a wonderful little town.
The weather and the community cooperated to make the event a success. It turned out to be a great event with beautiful weather, Kiner said. We really enjoyed hosting this event and were very pleased to see so many in the community come out to enjoy the day. Lots of fun was had by lots of children and parents. We will be doing this again next year!
Cody Utt, First Nationals sales and marketing manager, said he also hopes to see the Apple Creek Easter egg hunt become an annual event, as it fits well with the banks philanthropic goals. Weve had a pretty big initiative in the last year, trying to get more involved in the communities we serve, he said.
First National is a community bank that is headquartered in Orrville, with 15 branches in Northeast Ohio. They have been serving the local community since 1881. First National Bank offers college scholarships and works with numerous community organizations. For more information on their products and services, see www.discoverfirstnational.com.
