It’s the most eggs-citing time of the year.
That’s because, of course, the second annual Easter Eggstravaganza is right around the corner.
The pre-Easter tradition will run through the weekend, starting this Friday, at the Bektash Shrine Center.
The event serves as a fundraiser for ConcordTV, which uses proceeds to help provide scholarships for Video Camp, among other things, and it’s a festive and fun event for the whole family.
If you’ve ever been to the Feztival of Trees before, the Easter Eggstravaganza might sound familiar.
Over the course of the weekend, attendees will show up and buy a book of tickets, which will be dropped at various Easter baskets around the room filled with goodies donated by members of the community. At the end, all of the baskets will be raffled off – you can put as many tickets as you want into any of the baskets’ receptacles, so feel free to load up on your favorite baskets to increase your odds.
Apart from all the baskets – there will probably be about 150, Melissa Sweatt of ConcordTV said – there will be about 25 items available for silent auction.
To top it all off, there will be plenty of entertainment in the form of live music and readings all weekend long.
“We did have live entertainment last year, but this year we have more,” Sweatt said.
This year’s musical acts include the jazz stylings of Miles Hoisington on vibraphone and Jackie Bellows on keyboard, the Deuling Murphys, N.H. Accordian Association, New Hampshire Grammy nominee Judy Pancost with the Judy Crew Dancers, the Strings and Things Band and Myschyffe Managed.
The weekend will also feature a bunny hop with Alison of Concord Dance Academy, story hour with princess Belle (local stage actress Seraphim D’Andrea), karaoke with Lance Tremblay and Papa Joe traveling storytelling.
“We took into consideration the venue,” Sweatt said of what went into choosing the performers. “It’s a big, open room, and the focus might not solely be on the entertainment,” she said.
With these things in mind, they looked for acts that wouldn’t need to lug in a ton of big, clunky equipment. They also wanted acts that would fit with the family-friendly atmosphere.
If you’ve been reading all of your Insiders lately, you’re probably aware of the coloring contest, too – Tim filled out his own submission, though he’s 20-something years too old to officially enter. Hey, a guy can dream, can’t he?
Submissions were due last Friday, and winners from each age group (4 to 6, 7 to 9 and 10 to 12) will be contacted over the course of this week – you may have even already heard back by the time you read this.
The winning entries will be displayed around the room during the Eggstravaganza, so you’ll be a local celebrity.
By now you’re probably bursting with anticipation of what kinds of wild and crazy themes the baskets will have – there are bound to be some funny ones, and some big-ticket ones.
For the big kids, the Tower of Tools and the Dream Kitchen prizes figure to be the most coveted. These prizes will be separate from the regular baskets, and you’ll get your tickets for these ones right at the specific station rather than at the front table.
As you might imagine, the Tower of Tools is full of hand and power tools, and not the flimsy stuff you get from the dollar store. The Dream Kitchen prize contains a ton of goodies to create an ultimate kitchen, including a fancy new blender.
For the little kids, a Power Wheels Jeep and a Beauty and the Beast prize are likely to attract a lot of attention.
The Jeep has two seats and can be driven around like a real car (only not as fast). The Beauty and the Beast set includes dolls from the movie and the iconic tea set, among other things.
Then there are the “regular” prizes, the baskets.
Some of the more intriguing themes this year include a The Bachelor viewing party (which has wine, popcorn, a rose and more), Beach Day (beach towels, sandals, sunscreen, etc.), Italian Dinner (bag of pasta, nice pot and pan, nice spoons, seasonings, etc.), Just for Pups (everything you’d need for a puppy) and As Seen on TV (a bunch of stuff you’d see on late-night TV infomercials).
If the silent auction is more your speed, there will be some nice prizes there, too. The silent auction is in a separate room from the baskets, and each item has a sheet in front of it where you can write down your bid. As the weekend progresses, people will be able to keep bidding more until the end of the event.
There will be quite a few gift cards up for silent auction this year, mostly from local restaurants like Constantly Pizza and Dos Amigos. There’s also a high-end prize of a free chiropractic appointment that comes with a book on chiropractics.
And if that wasn’t enough prizes for you, there will also be a straightforward 50/50 raffle.
If you would like to donate a basket, there is still time. In fact, it’s okay to submit a basket basically right up to the last minute – the ConcordTV folks have implemented a new organizational system this year that will allow them to more easily handle last-minute submissions.
The event already has plenty of sponsors (including the Monitor and Insider, as well as Integrated Solutions Group, St. Paul’s School, Merrimack County Savings Bank and the Walker Lecture Fund), but there may be some last-minute sponsorship opportunities available – just call ConcordTV at 226-8872.
Tickets for the Easter baskets will be $5 for a sheet of 25. The special prizes, such as the Tower of Tools and the ride-on Jeep, will have tickets for $1 apiece or six for $5.
Everything will be raffled off at 5 p.m. Sunday, and winners will be notified after. You will get one phone call, and if you don’t answer, that’s it – no message; the prize will go to the next person to answer the phone.
For more info, go to yourconcordtv.org/projects/easter-eggstravaganza.