Congratulations to 7-year-old Clarica Shivley for winning the youth division of Cake Wars with her butterfly cake bringing in 161 votes. Tammy Ungerer won in the adult category with her puppy cake, gathering 327 votes.

With 20 entries into the contest, we have quite a few talented cake decorators in this community! 

We still have openings in the upcoming Free Senior Snippets classes. These classes are an excellent opportunity to learn a new hobby such as crocheting or brush up on your Wells County History. To register, call 824-6069.

Special thanks to Bluffton Regional Medical Center for supporting this program and River Terrace for the fabulous treat bags. Class options are Movie/Book Club, Senior STEAM (Art & Technology), Games Galore, Healthy Living, Wells County History, Foreign Countries, and Crochet Lessons.

Mark your calendars for the next Theater Thursday! On April 21, we will be showing the movie “Dolittle,” rated PG, at 10 a.m. Bluffton Parks Department and the Wells County Public Library have partnered to offer a free monthly film for adults. This is a year-round event on the third Thursday of each month.

Our free Easter Egg Hunts will be Thursday, April 14.  The baseball fields at Roush Park, 925 W. Silver St., will be full of 4,000 colorful eggs, thanks to Bi-County volunteers who helped stuff them. Come at 5 p.m. to meet some furry farm animals. The hunt will begin at 5:30 p.m. sharp (be sure to arrive by 5:15 p.m. for instructions). Age groups are 4 and under, 5-8, and 9 and up. This is a drop-in event. Follow Bluffton Parks on Facebook for any weather-related announcements. 

We will host a free dog bone hunt at Roush Park near the basketball courts, following the children’s egg hunt. The scheduled start time is 5:45 pm. Pets must be on a leash at all times for this drop-in event. Make sure to bring an Easter basket or bag to put the dog treats in.

Sensory-friendly Easter Egg Hunt ­— Often, the crowds of people and loud noises at community Easter events and egg hunts can be overwhelming for children with exceptional needs. Bluffton Parks has decided to create an event that will be less stressful for these individuals at 6:30 p.m. April 14 at Lions Park. Registration is required by calling 824-6069.

Pedal Wells Bike Challenge – We had more than 200 participants complete our 100-mile walking challenge, and now it’s time to sign up for the bike challenge to keep you pedaling through the spring and summer.

Choose either the 250-mile (15 miles/week) or the 500-mile (about 30 miles/week) option.  Track your outdoor or indoor biking miles from May 1 to August 31. You can record your miles on Strava to automatically submit your bike miles or tabulate them manually on a spreadsheet we provide.

The cost is only $20 and includes a T-shirt available for pick up June 1.  A medal is included for everyone who reaches their goal by Aug. 31  

Even though it has been cold and wet the past few days, signs of summer can still be found. We have three baseball diamond rentals next week, and we are scheduling clean-up days to start tidying up the Wells Community Pool. Our summer recreation guide is almost finalized, and we will be ready to drop them off at the schools in the next week or two. We think we have found a volunteer willing to facilitate a regular meet-up for those of you who enjoy Pickleball. Yay!

If you have a program idea you would be ready to lead, there is still time to reach us at events@blufftonindiana.gov.            

Have a great week!