Volunteer Easter Bunny...

continued from page 11 now married, with children of their own— bring their families back and continue the cycle.

“It really is a joy to be a part of the community hunt now for two generations,” she says. “I remember one of the children, who is herself now a mother, reach for her kids and say, ‘now I want my kids to meet my bunny.’ I loved that.”

Walker is herself, not surprisingly, an Easter enthusiast.

“I have Easter eggs from all around the world, from about sixty different countries. All sorts. And I show them off whenever I can.”

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck down in early 2020, Walker went to Zoom to craft heartwarming messages for the children of the various organizations she was scheduled to visit, telling them how much the bunny would miss them this Easter, and to stay upbeat and positive. It was a difficult task for the outgoing and affable Walker, and was certainly a disappointment to the children who were anticipating the Easter celebrations.

But all seems to have returned to form ever since. Walker is ready to throw on the bunny suit once again in 2023, and is eager to see local children’s reactions.

“The best part of it all,” she says, “really is when you see a child come up to you and sit in your lap who was too shy or afraid to do so only a year before. Between that and seeing the parents come up to me and tell me they remember so fondly when they themselves were children gathering Easter eggs during one of our egg hunts with me as the bunny, I have a lot to be thankful for.”

NAME: Mike Lateiner, DMD, MS

NAME: Ami Dhaduk, DMD

NAME: Denise Kitay, DDS, MMSc