Sunday, April 13 was the perfect day for an Easter egg hunt, and Raynham Hall Museum was ready with 500 plastic eggs filled with treats placed in the yard of the museum. The hunt started at 11:30 a.m. with more than 100 excited kids and grown-ups swarming through the gate.
Theresa Skvarla, director of public relations, and Alex Sutherland, director of education, were ready. Kids were armed with baskets to fill and parents had their cameras ready for memories with the Easter Bunny.
“We have 500 eggs, which include nine special golden eggs,” said Sutherland. “These special eggs contain chocolate coins in gold foil. The kids love them.”
The two women explained the rules of the hunt to the crowd. The eggs were all in the side yard, some on the ground and some higher. There were no eggs in the back or in newly planted areas. Most of the eggs were placed on the lawn so the kids, some as young as 12 months, could find them.
Lisa Orellana’s 7-year-old twins, Ava and Jake, each found a golden egg as they filled their basket.
Orellana said, “I’ve toured the museum before and I love it here. This is our first Easter egg hunt, and we are having a great time.”
Little Miles Moligano is 1 year old. Four-year-old brother Joey brought him eggs, and volunteer Emily Lattanzio gave Miles a lollipop. Gena Moligano grew up in Oyster Bay, and has enjoyed the Easter egg hunt for several years. “Joey goes to the same pre-school that I attended over 20 years ago here in Oyster Bay. It’s a great place.”
After the hunt, the museum offered a class in Pysanky egg painting. Pysanky is a centuries old Ukrainian style of painting designs on eggshells. Anita MacDougall set up stations for the eight students who’d signed up for the workshop.
She said, “I became interested in the art of Ukrainian egg painting about 30 years ago. My children and I would paint the eggs. Now we have wonderful keepsakes. Then we used a tool to apply hot wax to resist different colored dye, and followed design patterns. Today the kids can use Sharpie markers to make their designs.”
The eggs had been pierced, and their contents emptied through the small holes. The kids chose designs, outlined picked their colors, and applied the Sharpie colors on the eggshells.
Volunteers for the museum included Emily Lattanzio and Isabella Skvarla. Raynham Hall is located at 20 West Main St. in Oyster Bay. For information on programs, events and collections, visit raynhamhallmuseum.org or call 516-922-6808.
