VICKSBURG, Miss. (WJTV) – Palm Sunday is this coming Sunday, so Easter is just a week away.

Santa has the North Pole for Christmas, and the Easter Bunny’s headquarters may have been found considerable closer than the North Pole. Gibson United Methodist Church in Vicksburg has an Easter Egg Factory every year, and the Easter helpers have been cranking out the candy eggs all week this week.

You can’t miss the big sign for the church out on Oak Ridge Road in Vicksburg just off of Highway 61 North, but it’s the little sign beside the big one you need to pay attention to this time of year.

The one advertising chocolate covered candy eggs. Gibson UMC has been making the eggs for so long they have become an ingrained Easter tradition for many Vicksburgers.

The process isn’t all that complicated said church member Mary Westbrook in on the Easter egg Factory since the beginning.

“Of course, we mixed them yesterday. And you didn’t see that, but they weigh them. Three point five ounces. And then they’re shaped. And these over here are dipping them in chocolate. Then they’re decorated with the flowers and leaves,” said Westbrook.

There is work involved in being an assistant bunny right here at Easter time. But, just like the elves at the North Pole, it’s worked these folks look forward to according to the pastor.

“It’s a simple thing, but it’s become something that people love to do. It’s a way of connecting with the community. It’s a way of fellowshipping one with another while we’re gathered together here making them,” said Rev. Mitchell Cochran at Gibson UMC.

The thing to remember is the money goes to missions. Each egg is finished off with a flower. Pragmatic as well as decorative. The colors are a code to the flavor.

Call the church at 601-636-2605 to put in an order. They will run through the nine flavors for you, and you have to come by the church for pick up. The eggs are $3.00 each.