Happy Easter! Easter is the culmination of the religious season, Lent and the day that Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. In addition to its religious importance, Easter is also a popular secular holiday due to its association with the Easter Bunny, decorated eggs, and candy. The first recorded celebration of Easter was in the 2nd century, but the origin probably goes back even further. Per a popular theory, early Christians adopted the holiday from a pagan festival celebrating Eostre, the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility. The goddess consorted with the hare, which was the inspiration for the Easter Bunny. Rabbits are an ancient symbol of new life and fertility, two ideas strongly associated with spring and Easter. The connection between rabbits and Easter arose in Protestant Europe in the 17th century and was thought to be brought to North America in the 18th century by German immigrants. The Easter Bunny is not the only animal associated with the holiday. In Switzerland, the cuckoo delivers Easter eggs while in different parts of Germany, children wait for the Easter fox, chick, rooster, or stork. Though eggs also symbolize fertility and renewal, they may have become more popular on Easter for a more practical reason. For centuries, the Christian Church banned eggs along with other foods during Lent and it became a special treat to eat them again at Easter. Decorating eggs is one of the oldest Easter customs. For many Americans, Easter revolves around candy. United States candy makers produce around 90 million chocolate bunnies and 16 billion jelly beans for Easter each year. Jelly beans were invented in the 17th century, but they only became an Easter candy in the 1930’s after merchants pointed out they resembled miniature Easter eggs. Today, Easter is the second highest selling candy holiday and more than 88% of parents prepare Easter baskets for their children.
Although much has changed since Rudy Buchheit founded his general store over eighty years ago, the company’s commitment to family has not changed. As one of the few family businesses today, we value the traditions of the holidays – eating, laughing, and visiting. That is why we will be closed Easter Sunday so that our Team Members can celebrate with their families. We are so thankful for our family, friends, neighbors, loyal customers, free country, and rural lifestyle. We hope that you and your family enjoy this precious time together.
Sincerely,
The Buchheit Family
