In April 1961, after a spring snowstorm blanketed Boulder, lots of parents helped their kids build snowmen. But the Marvin Brown family was more creative. In front of their home on Fourth Street near Dellwood Avenue, Marv (as Marvin was called), built an Easter snow bunny — big enough for three of his children to sit on.

Sometimes, when doing historical research, I come across photos that are just too good to pass up. The accompanying one of the Brown family’s snow bunny is one of them.

Marv and Mary Ann Brown began their married life on a ranch in Nebraska. Then, in the 1950s, they moved to Boulder for better opportunities for their growing family. At first, Marv worked for Arnold Brothers Ford, but he soon made a name for himself as the owner of Marv’s Wrecker Service.

But Marv was a family man, too. With Mary Ann, he made Easter meaningful for the whole family.

“The snow bunny was Dad’s idea,” recalls Darla Brown Shupe, the child seated in the middle on the bunny. “It was big, and we had to be lifted up to sit on it.”

Darla, at the time, was age 4. Sheila, in front, was 3, and Jayne, behind Darla, was 5. Their older sister, Connie, was in school, and Susan was a baby. All were “outside girls” who also enjoying sledding and roller skating. Their mother took home movies.

Pumpkin-shaped tin disks, left over from Halloween, were used for the bunny’s eyes. The whiskers appear to be shrubbery branches. And the ears, nose, and mouth were outlined with ribbons, no doubt suggested by the girls’ mother.Retrospect » Page 10

Every Easter, Mary Ann, the girls’ mother gave each of the girls new matching dresses and bonnets to wear with white ankle socks and black patent leather shoes.

On the evening before Easter Sunday, everyone was bathed and shampooed. Then Mary Ann rolled the girls’ hair in metal curlers that they slept on all night. As was the style at the time, all had their bangs cut straight across.

After all of the girls were asleep, Marv and Mary Ann colored hard-boiled eggs. As the daughters grew up, the older ones helped with the coloring while the little ones (who still believed in the Easter Bunny) were sound asleep.

On Easter morning, after the curlers were removed and everyone’s hair was in place, the family, in their finest clothes, walked into church for the 7 a.m. service. Afterward, they went back home for a big breakfast.

Somehow, both parents had found the time to hide the eggs — some inside the house and some outside — for the family’s annual Easter egg hunt. Both Marv and Mary Ann continued to hide the eggs each year until their sixth daughter, Pamela, no longer believed in the Easter Bunny.

Easter traditions in the Brown household continued for many years and still provide happy memories. Added Darla, “We never knew when we’d get another sister.”

Silvia Pettem and Carol Taylor alternate the In Retrospect column. Silvia can be reached at silviapettem@gmail.com