(Seguin) – Easter fun returns this weekend at Bulldog Stadium. Families from across the community are invited to the 4th Annual Eggapalooza All Abilities Egg Hunt this Saturday at Texas Lutheran University’s Bulldog Stadium.
Hosted by Emanuel’s Lutheran Church in partnership with Texas Lutheran University, the free event is designed for children of all abilities, ages 2 to 12, and will feature tens of thousands of eggs, games, and activities.
Pastor Marcus Bigott, of Emanuel’s Lutheran Churchsays what started off as an idea has now become an annual tradition.
“This started four years ago, and blessedly enough, it started in the backyard at a birthday party between me and a gentleman named Bryce Kennedy, a member of our congregation here, wanting to do something big for our community. We didn’t know of an egg hunt that brought everybody together, and we reached out to partners like Texas Lutheran University and said, hey, we have this
idea for this big egg hunt. You have a beautiful field that’s accessible by everybody. You’ve got wonderful sidewalks and beautiful astroturf. Can we make this happen? And Dr. (Debbie) Cottrell and Coach Miller, and other folks who are like Susan Rinn and others that are there said, yes, absolutely, let’s make this happen. So, thanks be to God and to them, including Wes Cain, Campus Pastor, we partnered through campus ministry to make this happen,” said Bigott.
Now in its fourth year, Eggapalooza has grown into one of the largest egg hunts featuring more than 40,000 eggs spread across the various age groups. Bigott says what makes the event even more special is that it is carefully organized to ensure every child has “a fun and accessible experience.”
“We welcome every single family, every single kid, from little bitties, from three years old and under, all the way up to 10 years old and over. We have used the entirety of the football field. Every age group is broken down with a wristband and a color that coordinates to a flag. And each group then hunts independently in the same area. So there’s about 8,000 eggs per group of kids, which is wonderful. We have 5 full groups. Folks will come on Fleming Drive, right by TLU’s Bulldog Stadium. They can walk down the side — the gravel pathway that’s there. If they need assistive devices or wheelchairs or other walking things, we’ve got
volunteers that will open the road alongside TLU’s Police Department to make sure they can drive right up to that main entrance, right behind the grandstands. They’ll get their wristbands from our volunteers. if they need an Easter basket — Walmart’s donated Easter baskets so they can pick up one of those. There’s going to be Kona Ice for free as well,” said Bigott.
In addition to the egg hunts, Bigot says families are encouraged to get to the stadium early for a fun filled morning.
“Then at 8:30 a.m., the gates open and folks are invited to come on in. We will have donuts for folks if they would like a donut. There’s water out there. And then, we have 17 booths. Everybody from our own Compass Cooperative Ministry, to scouting here at Emanuel’s, to incredible community partners that will have games and activities and prizes and face painting and all sorts of stuff for folks to do and to be a part of the day. And then at 9:15, the greetings of our MC, Mr. Brandon Kennedy, will start and we’ll have
just welcomes from Mayor Dodgen and some of our big sponsors, Texas Coastline Roofing and Remodeling. And then 9:30, that’s the key time, 9:30 is when the first egg drop happens. So, our youngest, from three years old and down, they start at 9:30. But everything is completely free. Everything that folks will do there is completely free. Our hope is just for community to be celebrated, for diversity to be celebrated. And we would love to have everybody come,” said Bigott.
Due to the large scale of the event, Bigott says parents should take note that the egg hunts will run on a rolling schedule immediately after the first group begins.
“It is a rolling start. So, there’s no set time for those for the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th groups, because we don’t know how fast some of those egg hunts will go — sometimes they go in 5 to 10 minutes, sometimes it’s a little bit longer than that. So, we just set the time for the first one at 9:30 a.m. and then everything else just rolls right after that. So, we want folks to come early if they can. If not — just be there by 9:30 for sure,” said Bigott.
The 4th Annual Eggapalooza All Abilities Egg Hunt will take place from 8:30 a.m. to noon Saturday, March 28, at TLU Bulldog Stadium. Admission is free, and families are encouraged to arrive early to check in at the main Fleming Street entrance.