Children in Homer and Anchor Point have the opportunity to hunt thousands of eggs over Easter weekend at several local events. More than 3,000 real and plastic eggs will adorn fields and lawns outside organizations and churches, waiting for tiny hands to put them into bags and baskets.
Elks Lodge and Emblem Club
Homer Elks Lodge No. 2127 is joining with Homer Emblem Club No. 350 to put on their annual event at the Elks Lodge on Easter Sunday, March 27. The event has gone on for more than 35 years, though no one is sure of the exact date the tradition began, said Past Exalted Ruler and Elks Lodge Secretary Jan Jonker. The event, which is open to the public, starts with a breakfast from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. The meal includes eggs cooked to order, ham, sausage, bacon, biscuits and gravy, toast, juice and coffee all prepared by past exalted rulers. Breakfast is $12 for adults, $8 for children 6-12, and free for children under 5.
The Easter Bunny will arrive by helicopter at 1 p.m. to start off the hunt for 120 dozen real eggs, cooked and colored by the Emblem Club. Elk members hatched the bunny’s aeronautical entrance over two decades ago, Jonker said.
“We’ve been doing it as long as I can remember and I’ve been a member for 26 years,” Jonkers said. “The owner of Maritime Helicopters, Don Fell, is a longtime member here and there must have been a discussion over a cold beer and we’ve been doing it ever since.”
The egg hunt is open to children ages 0-12 and will take place on the Kachemak Bay side lawn of the lodge.
Timeless Toys
Timeless Toys’ third annual egg hunt will be held in the field behind the store on Saturday, March 26, at 2 p.m. The hunt is open to children 0-10, with a small section set aside for toddlers and babies. Homer’s warmer winters made the event possible in the last few years, said Timeless Toys owner Becky Pfeil.
“Now we have such light winters, we just go ahead and go for it,” Pfeil said. “I always wanted to do it before but the snow was always too daunting, deep and icy, and not too much fun.”
Kids can hunt for the few hundred empty plastic eggs, which can be redeemed inside the store for candy. Pfeil started using the empty eggs instead of filling them with candy last year, at the request of some parents.
“The parents who don’t want the kids to have candy, they’re good, they go home,” Pfeil said.
As the children bring in eggs to trade for treats, an employee sneaks out and replaces the eggs on the field to keep the event going strong as long as there are eager egg hunters.
Veterans of Foreign Wars
The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 10221 in Anchor Point is holding an egg hunt on Sunday, March 27, at 2 p.m. The hunt will split children into groups based on age and set them loose to hunt for 100 dozen eggs, according to the VFW office.
Church Services and Events
Homer United Methodist Church:
March 24: Maundy Thursday service, 7 p.m.
March 25: Good Friday service, 7 p.m.
March 26: Holy Saturday service, 11 a.m.
March 27: Easter Sunday service, 11 a.m.
Christian Community Church:
March 27: Breakfast, 9 a.m.
March 27: Easter service, 10:30 a.m.
Refuge Chapel:
March 26: Easter worship service with communion, 6 p.m.
St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church:
March 24: Maundy Thursday service, 7p.m.
March 26: Labyrinth meditation walk and compline, 8:30 p.m.
March 27: Holy Communion service, 11 a.m.
St. John the Baptist Catholic Church:
Easter Triduum:
March 24: Holy Thursday service, 7 p.m.
March 25: Good Friday solemn service, 6:30 p.m.
March 26: Easter Vigil, 8 p.m.
March 27: Easter Sunday Mass, 10 a.m.
Glacierview Baptist Church:
March 27: Extravagant Love choir presentation: an Easter expression of God’s grace, 11 a.m.
Faith Lutheran Church:
March 24: Holy Thursday, 7 p.m.
March 25: Good Friday service, 7 p.m.
March 26: Easter service, 7 a.m.
March 26: Breakfast served by youth to fundraise trip to National Gathering for Youth, 8:30 a.m. Open to public. Cost: donation.
March 26: Easter service, 10 a.m.
Anchor Point Church of Christ:
March 27: Easter service, 11 a.m.
Great Land Worship Center:
March 27: Easter breakfast, 9:30 a.m.
March 27: Easter service and egg hunt, 10:30 a.m.
New Life Tabernacle:
March 27: Easter service, 10:30 a.m.
Salvation Army:
March 25: Going to see “Risen” at Homer Theatre, 3:30 p.m.
March 27: Breakfast, 10 a.m.
March 27: Easter service, 11 a.m.
Anna Frost can be reached at
anna.frost@homernews. com.
