CANN wishes everyone  a

Happy Easter!

May this day be filled with

lots of  love,

lots of fun,

and

lots of family and friends!

Here are some fun facts about Easter!

The Easter Bunny

The Easter Bunny is not a modern invention. The symbol originated with the pagan festival of Eastre. The goddess, Eastre, was worshipped by the Anglo-Saxons through her earthly symbol, the rabbit.

The Germans brought the symbol of the Easter rabbit to America. It was widely ignored by other Christians until shortly after the Civil War. In fact, Easter itself was not widely celebrated in America until after that time.

The Easter Egg

As with the Easter Bunny and the holiday itself, the Easter Egg predates the Christian holiday of Easter. The exchange of eggs in the springtime is a custom that was centuries old when Easter was first celebrated by Christians.

From the earliest times, the egg was a symbol of birth in most cultures. Eggs were often wrapped in gold leaf or, if you were a peasant, colored brightly by boiling them with the leaves or petals of certain flowers.

Today, children hunt colored eggs and place them in Easter baskets along with the modern version of real Easter eggs — those made of plastic or chocolate candy.

FACT: Americans eat more candy at Easter than at any other holiday besides Halloween.  An average of seven billion pounds of candy is consumed over Easter weekend. Sales of Easter candy top nearly $2 billion; in contrast, just over $1 billion of candy is sold for Valentine’s Day.

FACT: The most popular Easter confection is Marshmallow Peeps.  More than 700 million of these chick, bunny and egg-shaped marshmallows are purchased every year. A meager 90 million chocolate bunnies are consumed. At peak production, over four million Marshmallow Peeps can be made each day.

FACT: Eating Easter candy is a relatively modern tradition.  The first chocolate eggs, for example, were made in Europe in the 1800s. And Marshmallow Peeps, produced by the Russian-born U.S. confectioner Sam Born, didn’t get their start until the 1950s in the United States.

FACT: The most popular treat to hide inside an Easter egg is jellybeans.  Americans consume more than 16 billion of them at Easter — enough to circle the circumference of the globe three times!

FACT: Over one billion Easter eggs are hunted every year in America.  The most popular (or at least the most televised) Easter egg hunt is the one held at the White House. President Hayes hosted the first White House egg hunt in 1878, launching a tradition that has continued to this day.

FACT: Ham is the most commonly served meat at Easter dinners in America.  The tradition has its roots in Northern Europe, where, in the days before refrigeration, hogs were slaughtered in the fall. They were then cured for seven months and ready to eat just in time for Easter. If you aren’t a fan of the other white meat, turkey and lamb are also popular choices for Easter dinner.

I hope this fine Easter Day

finds

Clay Aiken

Enjoying the day with his

Wonderful family!