Easter Bunny visits Lombard

With Easter just two weeks away and a schedule filling up, the big bunny made an early stop in Lombard Saturday morning.

There to greet the Easter Bunny were more than 250 children and their parents, eager to get a wave or high-five and be on their way to collect the hundreds of eggs he had hidden, not so discreetly behind the Lombard Commons basketball courts, 433 E. St. Charles Road.

Following the hunt, many joined the Easter Bunny for brunch and photos.

Three-year-old Jacob Hobica was among those excited and right upfront for the bunny’s arrival.

“This is great to see him excited because the Easter Bunny freaked him out last year,” said his mom, Emma. “I think he’s finally made the connection between the Easter Bunny and the candy.”

Moments after the bunny’s arrival, hundreds of children and their parents scrambled for plastic eggs within cordoned-off lanes. Most of the eggs were filled with candy and small toys, but a select few also had prize tickets for large Easter baskets filled with the traditional fare of jelly beans and other candy.

“I wonder if there’s any eggs with a toothbrush inside,” mused Jacklyn Tripp as she watched her daughter Emily seemingly search only for orange-colored eggs. “She certainly is being selective. She better hurry up.”

Special events director Matt Fairbanks said the annual hunt and brunch is consistently one of the Lombard Park District’s most popular events.

“Kids love it. Parents love getting photos of their kids grabbing the eggs. It’s just a fun time for all of us and the weather cooperated.”