People who are looking for activities to celebrate Easter will have plenty to choose from in El Dorado.
In addition to local church services, several groups have planned family-friendly events that will include Easter egg hunts, free food, games, prizes and opportunities to take photos with the Easter Bunny.
The El Dorado Jaycees will host its 23rd annual Easter Egg Hunt at 10 a.m. in the South Arkansas Arboretum, 501 Timberlane.
The event is free and open to children from infants up to 10 years old in Union County and surrounding areas.
The hunt will be broken into four age groups, including 0 - 2, 3 - 4, 5 - 6, and 7 - 10.
Jaycees said the 10 - 12 age group was eliminated this year, making the hunt open only for elementary school children and younger.
The Jaycees’ hunt is one of the largest Easter egg hunts in South Arkansas.
Participants are encouraged to arrive early.
The younger two age groups will begin at 10 a.m. and the older children will follow at 10:30 a.m.
The Jaycees ask that participants bring their own Easter baskets. Easter grass is prohibited.
Parents may bring cameras to snap pictures of their children with the Easter Bunny.
For additional information, visit the Jaycees’ Facebook page.
Downtown El Dorado
The Easter Bunny will leave the arboretum and head to Union Square for a “Downtown Easter Egg Hunt Extravaganza.”
The event will be held from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., with the Easter Bunny making an appearance from noon until 2 p.m.
Main Street El Dorado and the Downtown Business Association are teaming up with local radio station “Big 96.1” and radio personality Bud Cross to host the event.
Big 96.1 will broadcast live from the east side of the Union County Courthouse during the event.
Organizers are encouraging participants to come early for a greater chance of winning a prize egg worth nearly $500 in goodies from downtown businesses and the Murphy Arts District.
For more information, call the Main Street El Dorado office at 870-862-4747.
Fun day and soul food
The fifth annual Sharion Bailey Whitlock Proclamation and Birthday Weekend Celebration is set for Saturday and Sunday.
The events are free and open to the public. Meet Me at the Court and The Bailey Family are the hosts of the weekend celebration.
Activities will kick off with an Easter egg hunt at 2 p.m. Saturday in the area of Lester and Columbia behind Arby’s restaurant.
Fun Day activities will follow at 3 p.m.
In the event of inclement weather, the event will be rescheduled to April 6, said organizer Veronica Bailey. The event honors Bailey’s late sister, Sharion Bailey Whitlock, who passed away in 2012 at the age of 51.
Bailey had said that her sister had a passion for helping children, prompting Bailey and her family to honor Whitlock’s memory by launching Meet Me at the Court in 2013.
Age divisions for the Easter egg hunt will be 1 - 4, 5 - 8, 9 - 13 and 14 - 18.
Bailey said parents or guardians may assist children 1 - 4 in the egg hunt, but parents will not be allowed in areas for the other age groups.
She said adult volunteers will be on hand to assist older children.
Bailey said a piece of paper listing the prizes will be inside plastic eggs and children must come to the prize table with a volunteer and present the paper to claim prizes that they find.
Several golden eggs will be hidden for each age division and will contain grand prizes, including bicycles, gift cards, comforter/bedding sets and electronics.
Participants ages 14 - 18 will have the opportunity to find a golden egg with a prize for a new pair of Jordan sneakers.
“We do that every year. They can go to (Hibbett Sports) and pick out the Jordans of their choice,” Bailey said.
For Fun Day, there will be free food — grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, fried fish, potato salad, baked beans, dessert and beverages — a bounce house, bingo and a youth and adult three-point shootout.
Bailey said cash prizes will be awarded to first-, second- and third-place winners in the adult and youth categories for the shootout.
Special guests for the Fun Day will be the Sugar Town Motorcycle Riders Club.
The celebration will continue Sunday with the Sharion Bailey Whitlock Soul Food and Fellowship Dinner.
The event will begin at 2 p.m. at Greater Paradise Missionary Baptist Church, 729 Marsh Ave.
The theme of the dinner will be “Be Ye Steadfast (Hang in There)”, Whitlock’s favorite gospel song.
Bailey said the event will include the reading of a proclamation memorializing Whitlock, a balloon release and soul food dinner.
For more information, call Bailey at 870-310-0391, Theodore Bailey at 870-814-6396, James Curley at 870-310-0745 or Willie McGhee at 870-314-1441.
Tia Lyons may be contacted at 870-862-6611 or tlyons@ eldoradonews.com.