FORT CARSON, Colo. -- Most children clamored to hug the bunny and duck mascots walking through the crowds at Saturday's Eggsperience. But when the Easter Bunny hopped to greet Elle Mouton, 2, the toddler screamed and ran to her mother, sobbing.
"Some of the kids run right up to me and there are some kids that are scared," said Sherri Kunkel, a volunteer bunny at Eggsperience. "When I see they're scared, I just back away. I want them to like the Easter Bunny."
Kunkel hadn't anticipated donning the bunny costume for Eggsperience 2011 but said she was happy to help.
"It's hot, but it's fun," Kunkel said.
This year, Eggsperience's theme was "Bunny Extravaganza" and featured five bunnies, three Easter egg hunts, an egg launch, magic shows, puppet shows, arts and craft stations, face painting, bouncy houses and more than 30,000 pieces of candy.
"It took six months of planning," said Ann Edinger, organizer of Eggsperience and chief of events and entertainment for the Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation. "Different organizations took on different roles so it's really a community effort. A four-person team could not do this without their help. This is really what MWR is all about."
Edinger said more than 4,200 people attended the all-day event.
"There were more people this year and they showed up earlier," Edinger said. "We had people there at 8:30 a.m."
Edinger has helped organize the annual event for the last 22 years, helping it evolve and grow.
"We used to do a giant Easter egg hunt and let everybody go at once," she said.
Edinger and other organizers have refined the event, which now features three egg hunts for younger children and awards everyone with the same amount of candy.
Eggsperience was one of the main events of Month of the Military Child, which recognizes and honors the sacrifices military youth make throughout their lives.
Other events for MOMC included Clubs for Kids Day, scrapbooking classes and a teddy bear parade and picnic. An Easter Egg Wall Crawl, the Harlem Ambassadors Basketball Show and Boo Boo Bears Mission will take place throughout the remaining days in April. Visit http://www.mwrfortcarson.com for a list of events and more information on Month of the Military Child.
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