Hunting for eggs on Easter eve

Stefanie Frith

NEWPORT BEACH -- The brightly-colored plastic Easter eggs that lined

the shore at the Newport Dunes Resort Saturday morning did not last very

long.

As soon as the announcer at the 10th annual “Egg-stravaganza” at the

resort said “Go,” hundreds of children clutching baskets took off down

the sand, making the families on the sidelines cheer and laugh out loud.

And within minutes, the eggs were collected, stored in baskets and

then opened to see what goodies were inside.

More than 200 children, including about 30 from the Costa Mesa-based

Orange County Interfaith Shelter, participated in the annual egg hunt.

The shelter assists indigent families so that they can become

self-supporting. The rest of the children were campers staying at the

resort, or members of the community. Following the Easter egg hunt, the

resort hosted a pancake breakfast.

“It was fun,” said Tracy Walker, who recently joined the shelter with

her 19-month-old son Andrew and husband Arthur. “He [Andrew] just took

off down the sand. He saw the other kids and just had to go too. It’s

nice that they [the shelter and Newport Dunes] does this.”

Frank Groff Incorporated organizes the egg hunt, which is for children

ages three to 16. The agency chooses a different organization to help

every couple of years.

This is the second year that the Orange County Interfaith Shelter has

participated in the “Egg-stravaganza,” and children’s program coordinator

Lori Glover said she is impressed with the moral boost it gives the

children.

“It’s good to have them out here mingling with other children,” Glover

said, watching the Easter Bunny greet families on the sand. “This way,

they don’t feel hopeless. And this year, even more people are here.”

Many of the children agreed that a highlight of the hunt was finding

black Easter eggs, which contained $10 inside. John Gasco, who is staying

at the shelter with his three children --John Jr., Valerie and Selena --

said at one point, John Jr. thought he had found one of the the $10 eggs.

“He came up to me and had a brown egg. He thought it was black,” Gasco

said as his children took off to continue hunting down the black eggs.

“This is really great. Being a parent, it’s good to see all the things

that are done for the kids. It’s almost overwhelming.”

Four-year-old Rachel Winfrey of Brea didn’t find a black egg either,

but said she did find an egg with an eraser inside.

“I got lots of things,” she said. “My favorite thing is the eraser.

And I met the [Easter] bunny. But I didn’t find the black egg. I just

didn’t see them.”