Easter Trunk Hop in Lindenwald is twist on traditional egg hunt

The public is invited to collect candy going vehicle-to-vehicle at the Benninghofen Splash Pad in Lindenwald. CONTRIBUTED

The public is invited to collect candy going vehicle-to-vehicle at the Benninghofen Splash Pad in Lindenwald. CONTRIBUTED

The community Easter Trunk Hop that started as a new tradition in Lindenwald last year will return again this spring.

“This is a good way to get families out together, just to have fun, and to have free events in our community,” said Lisa Gebhart, organizer of the Easter Trunk Hop and children’s youth director at Lindenwald United Methodist Church.

She said the Easter Trunk Hop is modeled after the popular Halloween Trunk or Treat event. Children will go from car to car to collect candy and community members will pass out candy, filled eggs and other treats.

The event will be Saturday at the Benninghofen Park Splash Pad and is free to attend.

In addition to collecting candy and treats, other highlights for children include balloons by Balloon Artist Heather Klein. Kids can purchase a balloon for $2. Kona Ice will be on site with a variety of flavors of shaved ice, which will be available for purchase for $3 or $5..New this year, there will be a coffee truck that will offer coffee and hot chocolate for sale.

“We are looking for 30 cars to pass out treats. It can be filled Easter eggs, candy, pencils, stickers or any kind of prizes,” Gebhart said.

Presented by Lindenwald United Methodist Church, the Hop is a collaboration between several community partners including Linden Elementary School, PROTOCOL and the City of Hamilton. Officers from the Hamilton Police Department will be handing out stickers and the Hamilton Fire Department will have a fire truck on site at the event. Last year, there we 20 treat stations and 250 kids participated.

“We started this many years ago as a traditional Easter Egg Hunt. You prepare and hide the eggs, and then the kids go out, and it’s over in a matter of seconds. So, we started the Easter Trunk Hop last year,” Gebhart said. “We wanted to make it more of a family event, where the kids can come through and get their candy, and there are more special guests for them to meet. It went really well last year, so that’s why we wanted to do it again this year.”

Gebhart said she and her husband, Ed, and their two children, ages 17 and 21, started giving back to the community many years ago when the kids were young.

“It’s awesome to have people from the community come out and show their support ... that you’re out there making a difference in kids’ lives and in the lives of families,” she said.


How to go

What: Easter Trunk Hop

When: 1-3 p.m. Saturday

Where: Benninghofen Park Splash Pad, 913 Noyes Ave., Lindenwald

Admission: Free

More info: Community members who would like to pass out candy should call Lisa Gebhart at (513) 203-3587 or email lisa.gebhart75@gmail.com. Set up begins at 12:30 p.m.

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