The First United Methodist Church of Arroyo Grande Celebrates 125 Years of Ministry

Rock founded, Christ centered, Faith sustained

The Puppets

(as of 1996)

Quimper's Corner

Mr. Quimper operates a soda fountain frequented by a number of kids: Priscilla, Skip, Herb, Bernie, and Bernie’s dog, Saint. The kids and Mr. Quimper get wrapped up in all manner of stories from which there is invariably a lesson to be learned.

The Innova Family

Mr. Wanco, Vinnie, Hugh, Felicia, and Beamer are the teenage version of the Quimper characters. Their escapades might remind one of a youth group - scary, isn’t it!

The Animals

No puppet family would be complete without some animals. In addition to Saint, the dog, from Quimper’s Corner, this troupe includes a donkey, a lamb, and a lion. All but the lion had starring roles in the Christmas production of “The Littlest Shepherd,” as did most of the Quimper and Innova group.

Create-a-Puppet

That leaves one unnamed puppet that is our quick change artist. In fact, everything about him or her can change: eyes, ears, nose, hair, etc. With a little additional costuming help, this puppet played Akbar, the mouse, in “The Littlest Shepherd.”

The Puppet People

The Wilma Dixson Memorial Fund made possible the formation of the Puppet People in 1995. Each of the original puppets bears an embroidered patch with Wilma's name on it. This Youth program continues to this day, and is often seen during the Children's Moment as part of Sunday morning worship.

The logo above was drawn by Kelly Ballagh, a founding puppeteer.

Lynn and Jamie Foster were the founding directors. Directors since then include Kelly Ballagh, Julie Walters, Sandy Underwood, Mike Herber, and Willy Ford.

The Puppeteers listed on the January 14, 1996 Dedication Service program included Anne Awalt, Kelly Ballagh, Jeff Cross, Jennifer Cross, Tracy Foster, Trevor Foster, Megan Geremia, and B. J. Tamai.