Children from the Little Friends Day Care had a surprise visit from the Easter Bunny thanks to the efforts of students from Mount Carmel’s Compass Academy.

Students at the Academy were challenged to find a way to give back to the community. One of the ideas was to organize an Easter Egg hunt. In preparation for the event, the teenagers filled plastic eggs with candy and toys, made “bunny baskets” for the children, and acquired a bunny costume. The teens also cleaned up the town park the day before the event.

Children from Little Friends Day Care followed, from a distance, a very shy Easter Bunny. The walk ended at the town park. After sitting quietly, the children were able to coax the Easter Bunny over to them.

Students from Compass explained to the kids how to participate in an egg hunt, handed out bags to collect eggs, and then helped lead the children to find the eggs. Several eggs held coupons for larger prizes. After the egg hunt, the youth from Compass Academy provided other activities, including face painting and taking portraits with the Easter Bunny.

Mrs. Gidaro, the teacher supervising the Compass Academy students, said, “I’m very proud of the students. They worked very hard to put everything together for the kids. And I think everyone had a good time.”

Brandi McDowell, a senior at the academy, was a face painter. When asked what she had learned out of the whole experience she said that, “It required a lot of patience, I really enjoyed watching the kids smile and have a good time.”