Local church ‘eggs’ houses for Easter  

Despite the governor’s stay-at-home order, the Easter Bunny was able to deliver some safe holiday fun to local families with the help of Daystar Church in Hartselle. Approximately 150 families were treated to Easter egg hunts in their yards after being “egged” by volunteers from Daystar.  

Michael and Ginger Cataline oversee community outreach for Daystar Church, and they said delivering Easter eggs to families at home was a way to continue to spread cheer during a time of uncertainty.  

“Our motto is that we do community transformation through the power of Jesus Christ. So it was just on our hearts to do something,” Michael explained. “Right now there is a lot of fear and anxiety because of the virus. A lot of children are being forced to stay at home … It was really important to do something for the children.” Michael said they saw the need firsthand with their own children, ages 10 and 13. “Before this started they had a lot of children in the neighborhood to play with, but now families are being more cautious, and they don’t have anyone to play with, and they haven’t been able to finish the school year.” 

The Catalines and Daystar Hartselle campus pastor Tom Watson came up with the idea to redirect the 25,000 plastic eggs they typically use for the annual helicopter egg drop to deliver straight to the homes of local families. Using the children’s roster at church, they contacted families to get permission to egg the houses and gathered a team of volunteers to deliver. 

Equipped with masks and gloves, volunteers “egged” the homes of as many families as they could reach.  

“Members of Daystar recommended families in the area they knew who had children, and then teams were sent to scatter the eggs on their front lawns so the kids would be surprised the next day,” said Watson. “We knew it would be impossible to egg everyone, but we wanted to do for some what we wished we could do for all.” 

Through the help of approximately 35 volunteers, Daystar Church was able to deliver the Easter surprise to homes in Hartselle, Athens, Priceville, Union Grove, Hanceville and surrounding areas.  

Cataline said the eggs not only generated excitement in the community but inspired others to share an act of kindness.  

“We had a little girl in particular … She knew of a friend that didn’t have any eggs, so she collected all the eggs and took it to the next house and paid it forward,” Cataline said. “We went back the next morning and got her some more eggs and a little stuffed Easter bunny because it was an act of kindness, and I wanted to be able to repay her.” 

Cataline and Watson said the main message they wanted to share was one of hope.  

“The most important thing we want to share is that 2,000 years ago, Jesus paid the ultimate price for us all,” Watson said. “This virus will not stop us from spreading the joy that comes from knowing the One who sacrificed everything for us this Easter. As a church, we will find a way to share the greatest news anyone has ever received to as many as possible.  

“That’s why our services continue to be streamed online at daystarathome.com as well as our Facebook and Youtube pages.” 

Cataline said it’s a message many in the community are looking for during the current crisis.  

“This was to bring some joy to those that have been in a lockdown and to invite people to church,” she explained. “Even though we are not meeting in person, we have been doing online church, and we are seeing amazing numbers. I think when this is all over, we can actually see growth.  

“At the very beginning we were all worried about people losing touch with each other, but we have converted all our small groups to Zoom and do online church on Sundays,” she added. “We are staying in touch and seeing new growth.”