LAKE PARK — Thousands of parents and children flooded the sprawling grounds of Grassy Pond Saturday for the park’s Third Annual Easter Egg Hunt, a festive event marked by clear blue skies and smiling faces.

As blood-pumping summer anthems blasted from loudspeakers, children squealed in delight as they scrambled to gather colorful eggs lying in the grass, which they traded for toys and trinkets, stuffed animals and candy.

Dunking booths, bounce houses, inflatable obstacle courses and other games captured children’s interest elsewhere. A full spread of pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, snow cones and frozen yogurt satisfied hungry families.

Some lounged quietly on the lawn while others traveled onto the pond in pontoon and pedal boats.

The day of fun was especially significant for Sionte and Denisha Campbell and their children, Kamiya, 3, and Brayden, 1. It was the last family outing before Sionte, an airmen, left for a six-month deployment to Iraq Sunday.

As Kamiya eagerly scooped up eggs, Denisha said she was thankful for this opportunity to have some fun as a family.

“(It’s) a bit refreshing because I didn’t think we would have anything,” she said. “This is our Easter together.”

Grassy Pond is a 600-acre military park that was opened to the public in 2015. The vast space includes campgrounds, playgrounds, volleyball and basketball courts, nature trails and a large pond for fishing, canoeing and boating.

Steve Black, Grassy Pond’s manager, said the park and the annual egg hunt allows airmen from Moody Air Force Base to relax and have a great time with their families.

“This is just something to give back to the airmen and their families, a place to come and have family time in a safe, clean environment,” Black said.

Adrienne Wilkerson, Moody AFB’s marketing director, said the egg hunt is a great bonding opportunity for the community and the Air Force base that is one of the area’s strong economic pillars.

“This is one of the times that we get to interact with our community neighbors, bring them out to the property, let them see what we have to offer out here and build that camaraderie with Moody Air Force Base and South Georgia and North Florida.”

The egg hunt was a collaboration between Moody and the community, with sponsors including Southeastern Credit Union, the Walmart Neighborhood Market, Big Lots and iHeart Radio.