Puppets in the Park

In August Calvin Christian Reformed Church in Oak Lawn, Ill., hosted its second puppet show of the summer, a combined effort with Southwest Chicago Christian School’s Community Family Night.

“When we had the idea for Puppets in the Park, I never imagined that the park district would okay the idea,” said Phillip Leo, pastor of Calvin CRC. “But they said that as long as we weren't charging for the puppet shows, we could perform in their parks as often as we like. I realized then that there's a lot of potential for other events and/or services in the park.”

John Vande Werken, a lifelong member of Calvin CRC  said, “Our pastor, Phil, asked if we would do a puppet show in the park in our neighborhood in hopes of introducing our church to our neighbors.”

Vande Werken explained that high school volunteers helped produce the puppet show.  “We used a pre-recorded script purchased from Puppetsinc.com. Our volunteers move the puppets’ mouths as appropriate for their parts. The scripts contain a Christian message on subjects like forgiveness, kindness, and so on. I would gladly do this again,” said Vande Werken. “I really didn't know what to expect. It turned out to be a nice experience seeing the kids’ smiles.”