Holiday hunt boasts large turnout

The melting snow and chill in the air didn't stop the third-annual Candy Cane Hunt from being a success.\nSixty-five children registered for the hunt and almost all of them made it to Thomson Community Park on Sunday for the event. Marcia Veldman, the community events coordinator for Bloomington Parks and Recreation, said she was pleased with the attendance.\n"This is the biggest turnout we've ever had," Veldman said. "It keeps growing every year."\nThe event started at 2 p.m. After signing in and paying their $2 admission, parents and children were directed to a larger shelter to participate in some preliminary craft projects. At one table, the kids decorated brown paper bags with a wide array of holiday stickers to use in the hunt. At another, kids selected candy-cane-shaped cookies, donated by the Village Deli, and decorated them with icing and sprinkles. Volunteers made sure every child had a bag and a cookie, and they passed out steaming cups of hot chocolate to help ward off the cold.\nAt 3 p.m., the parents and kids were ushered over to a field to begin the candy cane hunt. A large area had been roped off with multi-colored streamers and volunteers spread candy canes, candy-cane-shaped pens and other goodies around the area. Several golden candy canes were also hidden in the field, which could be redeemed at the shelter for a prize. \nThe prizes consisted of snowman note pads, snowman candy dispensers, and "snugglies," a felt sleeve in which kids could put a candy cane and hang on the tree. \nThe hunt was divided into three rounds by age -- four and under, five through seven and eight and above. After each round, the volunteers replenished the area with treats for the next set of children. Parents accompanied their children who were four and under, and volunteers helped the other children to find some of the treats hiding in the snow. \nSusie Deckard brought her eight-year-old son, Zack, to the candy cane hunt for the first time this year. She said they had heard about the event from a flyer Zack received at school.\n"We're really having a great time," Deckard said as she watched Zack scramble around the field. "I hope he gets a gold one. He really wanted to."\nSatisfied that he hadn't missed anything, Zack ran back up to the front, victoriously clutching a golden candy cane in his right hand. His mom snapped his picture before inspecting his hoard.\n"I got some pens and a whole bunch of candy canes," Zack said to his mom. "You can have one of the pens since I got two."\nZack thanked the volunteers and headed off to the shelter with his mom to collect his prize. \nFrosty the Snowman also made an appearance at the event Sunday, mingling among the children as they decorated bags and cookies and helping them find candy canes. \nGinny Gruber was one of the 20 IU student volunteers to participate on Sunday. She said she enjoyed getting off campus and doing something for the community.\n"This is the first time I've been able to work with kids from the Bloomington community," Gruber said. "I had a lot of fun."\nAttendees said the event had been fun. Parents chatted cheerfully with friends as they ambled to their cars and their children trotted beside them, grinning as they munched on candy canes. The cold fingers and noses suffered by all didn't hinder the fun and enjoyment.