A social distancing egg hunt in Oyster Bay that delights children

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When Sherry McKevitt’s teenagers were children they enjoyed not one, but three egg hunts during the Easter season. “My parents and husband’s parents and myself — we all did egg hunts,” she said, her voice filled with excitement. “And we color coordinated for each kid so they would get the same amount of eggs. I put candy in them but my father put money in some.”

An aide at Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School, McKevitt also lives in Oyster Bay. In addition to the family egg hunts she brought her children to those traditionally held in the hamlet at Sagamore Hill and Raynham Hall Museum, which are cancelled this year due to the coronavirus. 

It saddened her to imagine how disappointed children would be without an egg hung. So, McKevitt and her friends — Melissa Rosasco and Giovanna Miceli — also Roosevelt teacher’s aides, decided to create a different kind of egg hunt for area children. Although the eggs would not be the typical plastic eggs and children would not gather them, the hunt would provide something that is needed, Rosasco said — an opportunity for families to get out of the house to enjoy an activity, while also following Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s directive for social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic. The children would love the egg hunt, said Rosasco, adding that it could also be a comfort for the three teacher’s aides.

“We love our jobs and unfortunately we can’t see our babies during the coronavirus,” she said. “Now we might see some of them. I asked on the Facebook parent group for pictures of the kid’s standing by the eggs so I can see their faces.”  

Rosasco’s husband, Marc, said he would create the eggs. He went to Home Depot to buy  plywood and then to Aboff’s Paints in Oyster Bay, which donated cans of spray paint. He ended up making 33 eggs, which are 12 inches by 6 inches. 

It was the second weekend in a row that Marc, who is the commissioner for the town’s Housing Department, utilized his carpentry skills. On March 21 he participated in Facebook’s Rainbows over Nassau and Suffolk County and Beyond, making three large rainbows out of plywood with his son’s Tyler, 13, and Nicholas, 9, who attend the Oyster Bay-East Norwich Central School District. The rainbows are in front of the district’s schools. 

The Rosasco and McKevitt children painted over the spray painted eggs. The McKevitt children — Nicholas, 13, Laura, 15, Maria, 16, and Eduard, 17, — are very artistic, Melissa said.

Each egg is colorful and unique. One has a flowering tree on it, another Ursula from the Little Mermaid. Marc placed the eggs throughout the hamlet attaching them to trees, poles and fences. 

“Families can stay together, bike, drive or walk to look for the eggs,” Marc said. “Like the rainbows, this project went from small to large.”

The route is a simple one, he said, adding that he might change it next week to encourage families to participate once again.