COMMUNITIES are busy rallying around to make sure that Easter festivities are not cancelled this year.

Easter gatherings have been stopped due to the Government’s advice to stay at home and avoid all non-essential travel but many communities have been finding ingenious ways to mark the special event.

Whether you are looking forward to an Easter egg hunt in order to find that special chocolate prize or want to attend a church service over the Easter weekend, local residents and church members have organised something for everyone.

Easter began last weekend when Donna Thomas from Walkhampton donned an Easter bunny outfit and delivered a total of 62 Easter eggs, donated by Morrisons in Tavistock, to each child in the village.

Donna was wearing the outfit made from friend Mairead West who transformed a pair of fleece pyjamas into the bunny outfit.

‘It was a really fun day and it was fun to do something different,’ she said. ‘A lot of the parents loved my idea and the comments I received were that it made them smile.’

Saturday also saw the launch of Visit Tavistock’s virtual Easter Egg Hunt, sponsored by Tavistock BID.

While Horrabridge Cavaliers, a group of volunteers formed in 1977, have created something special for the local children in the village to celebrate Easter during this time of isolation.

Cavalier and Royal Navy petty officer Andrew Collins said: ‘All families in the village have been encouraged to get their children to design and decorate an egg and place it in their window. The cavaliers’ Easter bunny will then hop around the village and leave a chocolate egg on their doorstep over the Easter weekend.’

Currently there are 250 children set to receive an Easter egg.

Andrew added: ‘I very much hope this will bring a smile to their faces during this time we are currently going through.’

Others have contacted the Times to tell them about their activities during Easter. One person explained how she was hiding painted Easter egg pebbles on her road for children to hunt on their daily exercise walk.

Although churches have been closed for the time being church leaders in the Tavistock area will be recording Good Friday and Easter Sunday services for people to watch on YouTube or Facebook.