The weather outside may have been frightful but the joy inside was delightful during the special needs Easter party on Sunday afternoon.
Kids, full of smiles and friendship and energy, ran from game to game and got their faces painted in Easter and Superhero themes before refueling with a pizza and dessert lunch.
The Easter Bunny hopped in for photos, and then the kids picked out an Easter basket stuffed of treats, a stuffed animal and other goodies.
Mary Vellucci and her husband have been organizing the Easter egg hunt and Easter party since 2008 for the Down Syndrome Guild.
“Last year I started opening it up to all special needs kids in Lake Orion Schools,” Vellucci said. “This year I added Oxford schools’ special needs and WNIC Jay’s Juniors. My daughter was one in 2016.”
Vellucci enlists volunteers – family, friends and community members – to help during the event with running games and passing out food and baskets.
“It allows them to interact with our kids on a different level. The Knights of Columbus allow me to hold my event there and they reimburse me for my out-of-pocket expenses because they like that I do this every year,” Vellucci said. “The Knights have been very supportive.”
– By Jim Newell

See April 17 issue of The Lake Orion Review for more photos.