Residents Flock to Fourth Annual Eggstravaganza at Rec Center

By ERIKA MARTIN | Reporter

About 1,000 Palisadians turned out for the fourth annual Eggtravaganza, held at the Palisades Recreation Center on Saturday, March 26.

Residents young and old came out to enjoy the sunny afternoon and egg-citing festivities, including the Palisadian-Post’s booth where kids decorated cookies and eggs and had their photo taken with the Easter Bunny, who arrived on the Station 69 fire truck. Other activities included bounce houses, face painting, a petting zoo, arts and crafts and, the highlight, an Easter egg hunt.

Even the Easter Bunny was in attendance, making a grand entrance on a fire truck courtesy of Station 69.

Resident Stephanie Smith was in attendance for the third time with her daughter, Lovely Smith, who was decked out in a Wonder Woman Easter Bunny costume, complete with a star-spangled leotard and spring-inspired accessories.

“She dresses up every year,” Stephanie said. “The outfit was her idea, because the antennae on her headband are Wonder Woman Easter Bunny ears.”

So far, the Smiths’ highlight had been the “smorgasbord of delicious cookies” at the Post booth.

But the most eagerly anticipated event of the day was the Easter egg hunt. Todd McKee came with his two-year-old daughter Harper.

“I told her about the Easter egg hunt, and she got so excited,” Todd said.

“We come to this park all the time. It’s so great to have events like this put on in the community,” McKee continued.

Six-year-old Bruna Peris agreed that she was most looking forward to the egg hunt, but there were plenty of other enjoyable activities.

“It’s so nice to be out in the sun,” she said. “Mostly I like the crafts, like decorating eggs.”

Nousha Soofi and her two daughters—Aria, 4, and Ava, 2—were drawn to the art activities as well. Nousha said she was grateful such events are held in the community.

“One of the wonderful things about living in Pacific Palisades is that it feels like a small town,” Nousha said. “It has a sense of belonging.”

Some even trekked from across the LA area to partake.

Rushette Banks and her 1-year-old daughter Alyssa traveled from the San Fernando Valley after looking into several Easter festivals in the region.

“We definitely researched, and this one’s the best,” Rushette said, citing features like the range of activities available to kids and food trucks on site. “We’re trying to make this event into a tradition.”