Sunday, March 24th, turned out to be an amazing day filled with community spirit and loads of fun, all thanks to the fantastic volunteers at Gratitude. They managed to pull off two cracking Easter events that brought smiles and laughter to hundreds of kids and their families in our community.

The excitement kicked off at Martins Walk Playground with an Easter Egg Hunt that was anything but ordinary. With hundreds of kids diving into the action, the playground was buzzing. Hidden eggs were found by solving clues, turning the hunt into an awesome adventure that got everyone working together and thinking like detectives. Prizes were offered in the form of a chocolate Easter egg, a puzzle or board game, and a snack, making sure everyone went home with great memories.

Additionally, Louise and Noam Lederman graciously provided copies of their book ‘Jungle Jam’ much to the delight of all the enthusiastic readers. For an extra special prize an amazing lucky dip was offered, and it went down so well that kids kept coming back for more!

At the same time, the Easter Party was going strong at the Baptist Church. The place was decked out with everything Easter, with a corner where arts and crafts flowed as much as the snacks. The tattoo and face painting station, though, was the real winner, where kids got to turn into bunnies, chicks, or whatever they fancied, adding a pop of colour and creativity to the day. Kids spent time making Easter Cards, decorating baskets and Easter Bonnets, to proudly wear at school for Easter. Pastor Rachel led storytelling sessions that captured the little ones’ imaginations. Hot drinks and fresh pastries were served to the parents and their families.

The two Gratitude events saw over 220 chocolate Easter eggs being distributed together with 80-100 toys and games.

As always, the truly awesome Gratitude volunteers worked their socks off before, during and after the event making sure everyone had a great time, and they have every reason to feel proud of the joy and community spirit they brought to life. Their hard work truly paid off, making this Easter celebration one to remember. Hours spent planning, preparing, wrapping, and sorting, printing, and posting to make memories.

A massive thank you goes out to everyone at Gratitude for their dedication, love, and teamwork. It’s clear that without the incredible volunteers who put their hearts into these events, our community wouldn’t be the same. We would also like to thank the amazing community for coming together donating Easter eggs and toys for the little ones to enjoy. We really appreciate every gesture making memories of community cohesion and acceptance.

In no particular order, Gratitude would like to thank these volunteers for spending their Sunday supporting the event; Borehamwood Baptist Church for loaning the hall, Beata and family, Barbara with Wiktoria and Katie (glitter tattoos), Lorenzo, Lucy and her grandchildren; Natalya, Gabriella and Jake, Ionela, Sam with Tysian, Zaneta with Javeria (face painting), Masda & Zayn with Miriam (glitter tattoos), Blanka, Carol with her granddaughter, Lal, Rita, Jud, Graziella, Marta, Karlla, Rajita, Carla with her daughter, Keren with Dana.

It’s safe to say everyone had a cracking time.

Gratitude believes that through events like this, the community will come together and form lasting relationships for generations to come.

If you would like to be involved with future events organised by Gratitude please email info@gratitude.charity

Sending wishes for a peaceful and joyous Easter to the entire community.

Written by Carolyne Klein