Before the Easter egg hunt began, families enjoyed pizza and snacks inside the Hayfield House.
Visually impaired kids enjoy Easter fun
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Liam Reznak, 6, of Mountain Top, dances with the Easter bunny during Sunday’s ‘beeping’ egg hunt.
Kristen Reznak | Submitted photo
Kids burst out onto the patio of the Hayfield House in Dallas, eager to hunt for some ‘beeping’ eggs.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
The Easter Bunny arrived just before the egg hunt began, bringing smiles to just about everyone’s faces.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
The eggs are brightly colored and emit a high pitched beeping sound, which helps children who are blind or visually impaired locate where they are hidden. The beeping egg is an important education tool that teachers kids mobility and location skills.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
Northeast Sight Services hosted its annual ‘beeping’ Easter egg hunt on Sunday afternoon at the Hayfield House on the Penn State Wilkes-Barre Campus in Dallas.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
Johnine Bickauskas, of Jefferson Township, stands with her son, Kaze, 8, as his Easter bag is filled with candy.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
DALLAS — Northeast Sight Services hosted its annual ‘beeping’ Easter egg hunt at the Penn State Wilkes-Barre campus in Dallas on Sunday afternoon, giving children who are blind or visually impaired the chance to enjoy a holiday tradition at an event tailored to their needs.
The plastic eggs that dotted the lawn of the Hayfield House were brightly colored and emitted a high pitched beep that aided the kids in finding them. The hunt was both fun and educational, a chance for kids to practice their location and mobility skills while also scoring some early Easter candy.
The hunt is one of many group events offered through Northeast Sight Services’ Insight Kids Club. About a dozen children who are visually impaired, along with their siblings and parents, were in attendance this year.
Before the egg hunt, families enjoyed pizza and snacks inside the Hayfield House. Around 1 p.m. the real fun began, as the staff ushered everyone out across the patio and onto the lawn. The youngest kids went first, followed by sighted siblings and finally, the oldest kids.
Of course, no egg hunt would be complete without an appearance from the Easter Bunny himself, who made sure to give out unlimited high fives and several hops of encouragement.
Inside, kids enjoyed arts and crafts activities like coloring and cookie decorating. When they were done hunting, the kids exchanged their eggs for a bag of Easter candy.
Director of Development for Northeast Sight Services Amy Feldman said she was happy to be back at the Hayfield House, after hosting the event at Wilkes the year prior, because the facility offers easy access to the outside.
“Even if the weather is not on our side, it works out really well,” said Feldman.
Thankfully, the weather was on their side. Despite the wind chill, the sky was clear and the sun was shining.
The event brought together families who have been apart of Northeast Sight Services for years as well as newcomers such as Megan Ruseskas, of Swoyersville, who attended the event along with her 1-year-old son, Hudson, and two other children.
It was Ruseskas’s first experience with Northeast Sight and while she admits she didn’t know what to expect in the beginning, she found everyone was very welcoming. Ruseskas said it was nice to connect with the other parents.
Johnine Bickauskas, of Jefferson Township, who came to the egg hunt with her son, Kase, 8, said Northeast Sight does a “wonderful job” setting up the event.
“They really make it accommodating for these kids,” she added.
Kristen Reznak, of Mountain Top, and her son, Liam, 6, have been coming to the egg hunt for about five or six years now. Liam began working with the staff at Northeast Sight when he was 1, after suffering a stroke at 3 weeks old that left him completely blind. Some of his vision has since returned, but he does not have any peripheral vision.
Kristen said “it’s necessary” for children who are blind or visually impaired to have events like this that are tailored to them. While Liam does fit in with other kids, Kristen said “he feels more at home” among children who can understand him.
When Liam was asked if he was excited for the egg hunt, he tore himself away from his coloring sheet just long enough to give a big thumbs up.