Easter egg hunt during Covid-19

Many have had to get creative concerning Easter celebrations this year. Christine Ward took it upon herself to spread some Easter joy over the long weekend, planning her own Easter Egg Hunt for her community in Natoaganeg. First Nations, formerly known as Eel Ground.

Ward is a Child and Youth Care student at NBCC. She is not affiliated with any registered group but does this kind of volunteer work on her own, “this just popped into my head, if I see a need for something, I try to take action.” She started preparing for the event by letting community members know what she was hoping to achieve and donating the first one hundred dollars.

With donations, she was able to buy an Easter Bunny suit and make up 110 Easter bags, full of chocolates and treats. There was an Easter egg hunt in the Band Hall parking lot, where Ward hid 200 chocolate eggs for children to find. Following Covid regulations, social distancing and masks were mandatory. Ward also bought fresh tulips to add to the Easter dinners that were handed out to seniors through the “Meals on Wheels” program.

Ward says her goal is to help build a safer and stronger community, “if we change our mindsets and find happiness triggers, then we can address the trauma in our lives.”

All 110 easter bags were given out, Ward said it was a great turnout and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves.

“After the year everyone’s had, it was so nice to do something semi-normal for Easter. My little girl went crazy seeing the Easter bunny and the egg hunt was so much fun,” said Liza Tozer, who brought her 8-year-old daughter.

“It made this Easter feel festive, which we needed after last year. It was also great getting pictures of the kids with the Easter bunny, which no one else seemed to be offering,” said Bella Ward, who brought her two young siblings.

While many are dealing with mental health issues due to Covid-19, the Indian Day School applications have meant reliving trauma from childhood for a lot of First Nations people. Day schools were residential schools that First Nations children attended during the day. While they were able to stay in their community, many children were harmed emotionally, physically and sexually during their time at these schools. Dealing with the events of the past and reliving this trauma can be very difficult.

“I wanted to help people deal with their emotions in a healthy and positive way, and then address the trauma,” said Ward, “Find what makes you happy, take a walk, listen to music, or bake your favorite cookies.”

“Working on wellness is an ongoing thing so I want to create a more enjoyable balance and positive lifestyle for people in my community,” said Ward. By creating space and activities for community members to connect, she hopes to create positive and tightknit relationships.

Ward has a long history of this type of volunteer work. She said she had always volunteered but things really started when she went to school in Prince Edward Island in 2016, “I was looking for a sense of community while away from home,” said Ward. She started volunteering at a soup kitchen, which lead her to make wellness baskets for the homeless. She had started making wellness baskets in 2012 when she started working at a group home in Eel ground, “there was definitely a need there, new clients were coming in with nothing,” said Ward.

She has continued making wellness baskets ever since. In February 2021 the baskets became a mandatory assignment for students in her victimology class at NBCC.

“Togetherness is how I feel we can deal with issues in our lives,” said Ward.