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The Hunt is On
by Jennifer Weaver at thespectrum.com
CEDAR CITY, UTAH - Tyler and Lindsey Finch woke up at 7 a.m. to get their children ready for their first Easter egg hunt in Cedar City.
The 23rd Annual Sigma Nu Easter Egg Hunt claimed the title of largest egg hunt in the state of Utah. When the word "Go" was issued by the illustrious Easter Bunny, in less than three minutes, more than 15,000 plastic eggs filled with candy and winning tickets for prizes were gathered by hundreds of children in Main Street Park.
Bailey Finch, age 6, and his younger sister, Kennedy, age 3, came away with five kites and baskets of bubble gum, hard candy
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and Tootsie Rolls to last the rest of the month. The baby of the family slept soundly in the stroller the entire time.
"I think this event is great because it involves the college in the community and gives the fraternity exposure to residents in the community," said Tyler Finch. "It's been great."
Lindsey agreed with her husband and said rising early in the morning was worth all the effort.
"It was fun," she said.
The best part for Bailey, hands down, was picking up the pastel colored eggs as fast as he could.
"I got a lot," he said.
Leslie Becerra, age 5, got more than eggs. She won a bicycle. Her mother was so overjoyed that the only word that escaped her lips when asked about the prize was, "fun."
Family enjoyment is why the Sigma Nu alumni stepped in to ensure the tradition of the egg hunt was carried out when the fraternity's depleted finances threatened the event's cancellation. The Haunted Hospital fundraiser the fraternity puts on in October to partially fund the egg hunt did not yield enough revenue last fall. That's when former "brothers" from all over the country stepped up to help.
Sigma Nu alumnus Nick Langenfeld traveled from Las Vegas to participate in the egg hunt because the outpouring of support from parents, kids and business sponsors was something he could not ignore.
"The parents and the kids are always a standout in the Easter egg hunt that, as alumni, we wanted to continue because it is a philanthropic activity that supports the mission of Sigma Nu as well as the rest of the sponsors," Langenfeld said.
Twenty local business sponsorships and nearly $6,000 donated from the alumni made the event possible. It was by far the largest turnout in the egg hunt history. More than 5,000 people braved the overcast skies and snow flurries in cold temperatures to welcome the Easter Bunny's arrival atop a Cedar City fire truck that also transported local winners of a coloring contest sponsored by Bulloch Drug in partnership with Sigma Nu.
Fond memories of that annual appearance are what beckoned Sigma Nu alumnus Troy McKinnon from Salt Lake City to Cedar City. He wanted to share the experience with his 3-year-old daughter.
"It's all about community," McKinnon said. "Growing up in Cedar City and being a member of Sigma Nu was a big part of my life and that's why I brought my daughter for the first time."
It certainly wasn't the first - or the last - time for the Easter egg hunt, said David Nyman, also a Sigma Nu alumnus. A motivating factor not to abandon the event was its popularity, not to mention an objective the alumni were able to achieve.
"We wanted to make it bigger," Nyman said. "I think we did that."
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