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Easter

Fitchburg Parks and Recreation first Easter Egg Hunt a success

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FITCHBURG — The first ever Easter Egg Hunt put on by the Parks and Recreation Department was a huge success.

On Saturday, April 8, at the Sam Pawlak Playground, kids braved the chilly weather. Over 500 eggs were found during the hunt and 100 bags with coloring books, crayons, toys, stuffed animals, and reading books were given out. One hundred children also received meal coupons from Texas Roadhouse.

The event was spearheaded by James Bunnell, director of the Fitchburg Parks and Recreation Department.

Pictured, left to right, with the Easter Bunny is Cheryl Cucchiara and Lisa Fortunato from JJ's Helping Hands. Cucchiara and Fortunato donated close to 100 Easter bags filled with stuffed animals, coloring books, crayons, toys, and reading books. (COURTESY OF FITCHBURG PARKS AND RECREATION)
Pictured, left to right, with the Easter Bunny is Cheryl Cucchiara and Lisa Fortunato from JJ’s Helping Hands. Cucchiara and Fortunato donated close to 100 Easter bags filled with stuffed animals, coloring books, crayons, toys, and reading books. (COURTESY OF FITCHBURG PARKS AND RECREATION)

“This being the first community event I have organized for the city as the Parks and Recreation Director, I was nervous as to how it was going to go,” Bunnell said. “However, I was pleasantly surprised as to how many people came out and participated, not only from Fitchburg, but surrounding communities as well.

Bunnell said the people he spoke to at the event were very grateful and excited that the city had an event like this for the children.

“There were a lot of people who helped make this event as successful as it was, and I cannot express how grateful I am to all of the people who helped,” he said.

Bunnell would like to thank Cheryl Cucchiara and Lisa Fortunato, of JJ’s Helping Hands; members of the park’s crew; Jeff Hillman and Wendy Boulay of the Fitchburg DPW; Texas Roadhouse of Leominster; Fitchburg Mayor Stephen DiNatale; Councilor Paul Beauchman; the Rev. Annie Louise Belmer, Pastor of First Baptist Church of Fitchburg, and her husband, Fred Keel; Bunnell’s daughters, Gabrielle and Giuliana Bunnell, and of course, the Easter Bunny.

“I have made my notes and I will definitely need more eggs for next year because of how many people attended,” said Bunnell. The Parks and Recreation Department is looking forward to hosting other events throughout the year for the community to enjoy.”

Tales from Tri-Town: Friends, family underscore Easter traditions

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Do you ever have the experience of meeting someone and saying right away: “Oh, we’re going to be good friends!” I recently had this experience at Fitchburg Historical Society as I looked through a box labelled “Diaries,” and found one from 1914 kept by a Helen Hardy in Fitchburg. Here’s her entry from Sunday, January 4, 1914:

“Put up a holler & pouted so I didn’t have to go to church. Papa wouldn’t let me read all day. It rained and snowed and hailed. It was quite cold to. If it freezes it will be great skating. School tomorrow until Feb. 28.”

Any girl who’d spend the day reading inside while a storm rages outside definitely has the right attitude.

With Easter (and Passover and Ramadan) this season, I was curious to see how Helen celebrated the holiday. The family had an outing. “Sunday, April 12. Easter Sunday wore my new things. Fine day but rather windy. This afternoon, Chet, Ma, Pa, Paul & me went to ride in the new Auto. The motor is awfully silent.”

Wishing you all a fine day, and hope everyone is wearing “new things.”

Easter memories

Do you have a family Easter tradition? Amy Lantry Jue grew up in Lunenburg received a solid chocolate bunny every year, right into adulthood thanks to her “sentimental Dad.” As Amy’s own children got older, “each year, I’ve kept my Dad’s tradition,” and her adult daughters can expect chocolate bunnies again this year.

Chris Mulholland of Gardner grew up in an early 19th century home in Lunenburg. His memories included “sneaking down the stairs to see what the e-bunny had brought. The door to the dining room was locked but we could peek through the old keyhole. There we would spy the tall baskets covered with colored transparent plastic wrap, and a hollow chocolate rabbit in gold foil sitting on bright green shredded plastic grass, surrounded by shiny jelly beans and hard-boiled eggs we had drawn designs on with wax and then dipped in bowls of vinegary dye the day before. Egg salad sandwiches for a late snack!”

Dani Kumpaleinen loved the egg hunts during her childhood in western Mass. and remembers that one year “the parents assigned each kid a different color, and we kids all had the same number of eggs to find. We could only collect the ones in our color and had to leave the others.”

Other traditions: new shoes from Goodwins (Paul Grant of Fitchburg), or new outfits “flowered hats, white gloves, little purses, new dresses and coats and jackets (Jane Lonnqvist, Fitchburg). Jane and others had very busy days during Holy Week.

Joanne McGuirk of Fitchburg sang in her church choir and remembers: “We would start after Holy Thursday Service at Sacred Heart, then proceed to St. Joseph’s in Cleghorn, Immaculate Conception, St. Francis, St. Bernard’s and some years go to St. Leo’s in Leominster.”

Amy Newberg of Leominster grew up in Pennsylvania and notes: “Apart from having a Seder on the first night (some do a second night), Passover traditions are limited to getting drunk on sticky sweet wine at the Seder and avoiding leavened bread for eight days. Usually being the youngest at the table I had to ask the Four Questions in Hebrew. Luckily there’s a tune that goes with it which makes it easier to memorize for those of us not great at reading Hebrew.”

Rev. Wil Darcangelo, pastor of First Parish Unitarian at the Upper Common, Fitchburg had a memorable Easter morning when he was nine-years-old and sang his first solo in “One Early Easter Morning.”

“I really wanted to memorize it like the grown-ups did. The choir director, Marion Dalton (later Rogers), cautioned me against it, but I insisted. The first verse went perfectly, and the choir sang the refrains. The second verse, however, must have ascended to heaven before I could get the words out. I completely blanked.

“The choir, realizing what was happening, began to sing, as did the congregation, in an attempt to get me back on track. I stood my ground and started to sing again with their help.  I finished the rest of the song without incident. That is, until I walked crying to my seat. I was embarrassed, but at the same time, reassured that I was so loved and supported in my struggle. I’ve carried that feeling with me throughout my life.”

Another year, when we were a bit older, they put numbered slips of paper inside the eggs. We could collect as many as we wanted, and at the end we had a great time opening the eggs and finding out which number corresponded to which prize. The prizes ranged from dollar bills to scratch tickets to candy, nothing major. It was a lot of fun!”

I am glad it is an Easter Season. That lasts 50 days after Easter Sunday. A beautiful time of year.

My sister and brother were older with their own families. Get together would be Easter Sunday. Also, I sang in Sacred Heart choir. Memories to always remember. Thank you and Happy Easter!