Uneggspected

By Ariel Varner and Ethan Nahté 

The second golden Easter egg in the Pulse Golden Easter Egg Hunt was hidden and the clues made available at our sponsors the morning of April 4. 

By late morning or early afternoon, many people were calling, messaging or coming by the Pulse Multi-Media office, inquiring if the egg had either been found or possibly blown away by the day’s strengthening winds.

No one had claimed the egg via e-mail or phone, or turned the egg in. There were hints on both the Pulse and Mena Radio Facebook pages that the golden prize might have been discovered, but no confirmation.

By mid-afternoon, the office received a couple of phone calls stating that lots of people were looking in the same area, and a note had been discovered in the hollow of a tree that the egg had been found. 

Still, there was no official confirmation. 

There were also a couple of comments of finding a snake… not necessarily in the tree, but the general area people were hunting.

We posted a notice with a deadline. If the egg had been discovered. The person who had the egg in their possession had a certain amount of time to turn the egg in or there would be another Easter egg hunt initiated.

Come Wednesday morning there was a sealed package. Inside was the golden Easter egg along with an unexpected message that read in part:

“We found it! Thank you, Pulse Multimedia. Now, we would like to pay it forward.”

The winner asked that the $250 prize be donated to the Fresh Start Pregnancy Resource Center at the Ninth Street Ministries located at 306 Ninth St., Mena. 

The center is run by Nancy Patterson, executive director. She is assisted by Donna Hendricks, director of client services.

Fresh Start offers pregnancy classes, parenting classes, and life skills such as learning to budget and finance. They are open 9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Monday – Wednesday.

Although Fresh Start tries not to turn anyone in need down for baby items such as diapers, formula, car seats, toys and baby or maternity clothing, they hope to provide the parents with a necessary skill set with their “earn while you learn system.” For example, attending the classes earns a parent/family a certain number of points that is used to earn Mommy Money. The $10 money vouchers can be exchanged for the aforementioned items.

Patterson was surprised at the generous donation. She wanted to convey to the anonymous donor, “Thank you, thank you, thank you so much.”

Fresh Start can be reached at 479-394-1186 for those seeking assistance, classes, or to donate. Donations to Fresh Start stay in Polk County. 

As for the person who found the egg, you’ve probably helped a family or two, if not more.

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Ethan Nahté

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