More than 1,000 school-aged children and their parents filled the aisles of the two Stew Leonard’s supermarkets on Long Island for a one-of-a-kind Easter egg hunt on Tuesday.
Participants were issued a map of the store and a bag for depositing the colorful hidden eggs containing prizes ranging from candy and board games to toys and gift cards. In East Meadow, one lucky child won the Eggs-Travganza’s top prize: a $200 gift card to Amazon, while at the Farmingdale location, the top prizes were one of two $100 gift cards to Target.
“The kids are just happy to come in to see the Easter Bunny,” said Nat Zappia, the East Meadow store’s director of operations. “Everyone that comes in here has a smile on their face.”
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Kids waited for nearly an hour for a chance to meet the bunny. The free annual event proves so popular that the organizers required participants to secure tickets online to avoid overcrowding. Both events sold out in less than two weeks after tickets were made available March 1.
This year’s event was extra special, as Stew Leonard’s is celebrating its 50th anniversary in business. The company was founded in Connecticut. The supermarket is especially popular with families with young children who enjoy the singing animatronic farm animals and personified food products that line the aisles.
