Just a little bit of love inc. was founded by accident. Tricia Pedro was hiding Easter eggs for her eight children at Jerry Burrell Park, across from her home in Schenectady. It wasn’t long before other neighborhood kids noticed what was happening.
“We only had enough for our family, but we shared,” Pedro said.
The success of the unexpected event inspired Pedro to continue doing it, so in the next few days she bought a bunch of Easter eggs and treats on sale, to use next year. The event became Easter on the Hill, a free Easter egg hunt for kids. This year, the event will return to Jerry Burrell Park, located at 753 Hamilton St., from 3-6 p.m. on Sunday.
But, this year, the non-profit organization is struggling to find volunteers for the event. The event consists of games and bounce houses, which require supervision to ensure safety. In previous years, Pedro’s own children would volunteer, but this year she wanted to let them enjoy the event’s offerings themselves.
During one of her post-holiday sale shopping sprees, Pedro noticed bikes were on sale for around $25.
“I was like, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if we could give away a bike?’” Pedro said.
They were able to give away 25 bikes that first year. The struggle with stockpiling however, is finding suitable storage.
“Right now, I have 20 bikes in my living room,” Pedro said. “I love a good sale. If I had the storage, I could buy more things little-by-little.”
For its first few years, the event was just an unofficial community gathering, with Pedro reaching out to her friends and family for donations. Eventually, a friend suggested she make it official so others know where to donate. In 2017, Just a little bit of love inc. was born.
The organization still runs on donations, but they’ve managed to secure some partners, such as the and Mayor Gary McCarthy.
In addition to Easter on the Hill, Just a little bit of love also throws events for Halloween and Christmas. For Christmas, they give out gifts at Pathways Nursing Home. For Halloween, they host a haunted house in Jerry Burrell park.
Pedro hopes to grow Just a little bit of love to be a suitable organization, “so I’m not always hounding people for $20.” She wants to continue with holiday events to provide consistent, safe activities for kids in her community.
“Wherever a little bit of love is needed, we want to be there to show its face,” Pedro said.
To get involved this Sunday, contact Tricia Pedro at 518-881-9876, or [email protected]. Monetary donations can be made via Venmo or CashApp at ALittleBitALove on both platforms.
Contact Reporter Ameara Ditsche at [email protected].
Categories: -News-, Schenectady, Schenectady County
