MARYSVILLE — The annual Easter egg hunt was held on April 19 at Jennings Park in Marysville.

Tiny tykes of all ages, along with their families, engaged in the joyous festivity of hunting for goodies incapsulated in plastic Easter eggs.

“This is one of the better events we do,” Marysville Parks and Recreation Director Jim Ballew said. “There’s not a lot of opportunities like this for families these days.”

Marysville attendees came in by the masses about an hour before the hunt, which began at 10 a.m.

“The Easter egg hunt is just a good day for families to come out and be together in the park,” Recreation Coordinator Andrea Kingsford said. “It’s a wonderful way to be with your neighbors, and be a part of the community.”

In addition to hunting for eggs, the event also acted as a charity for the Marysville Community Food Bank.

“At all of our events, we take collections for the Food Bank,” Kingsford said. “It’s just a great way for people to give back to the community.”

Since 1991, the event has been held annually.

“We normally have 2,000 attendees or so,” Kingsford said. “We had a very good turnout today.”

“It’s a community collaboration to celebrate the Easter holiday or Passover,” Ballew said.

Ballew said that the Easter egg hunt had a conventional start before it became what it is today.

“It started off a long time ago as a conventional hard-boiled egg giveaway,” Ballew said. “It was almost a riot.”

The event has transitioned from its chaotic roots to that of a social meet-up for the community.

“We decided to tame it down a bit, and create opportunities for people to mingle with community,” Ballew said.

Volunteers arrived well in advance to help set up the event.

“We had people that were here at 6 a.m setting up events in the park,” Ballew said. “We can’t do this without the help of volunteers.”

Ballew estimated there to be 70 volunteers who helped out with the event.

Ballew is very grateful for all of the sponsors who helped put on the event.

“I want to thank Parks and Recreation for getting the park ready,” Ballew said.

The Easter event was sponsored by Steve Fulton State Farm, the Marysville Noon Rotary Club and Grandview Village.

Four-year-old Myles Maddocks enjoyed his time hunting for Easter goodies, and so did his mother, Brandi Maddocks.

The Maddocks travelled all the way from Bothell to attend the event.

“It’s huge. It is our first time at the park,” Brandi Maddocks said. “A friend invited us out here.”

The Maddocks said they would return to the event next year.

“It seems really kid friendly and festive,” Brandi Maddocks said. “It’s a lot of fun.”