Do You Mind That There's No 'Easter' in Edmonds' Egg Hunt?

Edmonds Parks and Recreation Manager Renee McRae says despite attention called to the name of Edmonds' annual egg hunt by a column in the Herald, this year's event is much like the dozen previous in all ways except venue.

A piece by columnist Julie Muhlstein of the Herald explores the issue of naming events involving Christian holidays, noting that the Edmonds event does not include the word "Easter." The column quotes another Edmonds Parks staff member noting that someone complained last year (McRae said the complaint was in the form of a comment on an article published last year) about the city hosting an egg hunt at all.

Does it matter to you whether the word Easter appears in the name of Edmonds' community egg hunt? Tell us in the comments.

The egg hunt is hosted by the city and funded by private sponsors, including two Edmonds Rotary clubs, Sound Women's Care and Nama's Candy Store.

The city has left the word “Easter” off of the event since 2000. Similar situations have occurred elsewhere, in an effort to not exclude the nation’s increasingly diverse population, which of course includes many religions. Kirkland, for example, does not use the word “Christmas” in its annual “holiday” tree-lighting ceremony in December.

The Parks Department issued a statement to the press yesterday afternoon after the Herald column was published:

The City of Edmonds is excited to be working with various sponsors to provide an Edmonds Egg Hunt for this community on March 30, 10:00 am, Frances Anderson Center Field.   This event has been happening for the past 30+ years at City Park.  

This year, due to popularity, we changed the venue to the Frances Anderson Center field.  

The City, in the spirit of being inclusive of all of our citizens, decided to name this event the Edmonds Egg Hunt in the year 2000, and is not new for this community.  We have received no complaints about this until this year following a recent Everett Herald news article.  The removal of specific religious references is common throughout many cities recreation departments, schools, and other government agencies.  We want to recognize and welcome all citizens to our events, regardless of faith.

There are two egg hunts coming up this weekend in Edmonds, so folks who prefer a little Easter with their bunny have a less secular option, but all are welcome to either event, organizers say, and if you time it right, you could attend both.

See the full Herald column by clicking here.

If you go:

Community Easter Egg Hunt (Looking for Him in 2013) Saturday, March 30, 2013, 9:00 am at Edmonds Lutheran Church Elca. With over 12,500 eggs and about 400 baskets, everyone will leave this hunt with a prize. All children are separated by age group and given their own golden egg.

Edmonds Egg Hunt at Frances Anderson Center Field Saturday, March 30, 2013, 10:00 am, Kids ages 10 and under scramble for chocolate eggs, candy and prizes in age-appropriate hunt areas.  Bring a nonperishable food donation for the food bank and your basket.  Rain or shine.  Kids hunt while parents take pictures!