PUPPET POWER: CAPE WOMAN DOES GOD'S WORK THROUGH PUPPET MINISTRY

Charlotte Reed and a few of her friends gave a puppet show to children at the Lynnwood Baptist Church.

Charlotte Reed has made over 144 puppets during the last 11 years.

Charlotte Reed is doing God's work.

But to most people, God's work looks more like an episode of Sesame Street than a typical missionary outreach program. Since 1986, this Cape Girardeau woman has made more than 100 different kinds of puppets for her Christian ministry she calls Puppet Power.

Reed said her dream began after her oldest son, Randy, returned home from a summer church camp in Illinois. Reed asked her son how he liked the camp, and he told her excitedly that they had puppets at the camp.

"He said to me, `Mom, they had puppets there!' and I said to myself, `I want to make puppets!'" Reed said.

Reed was an employee of Mid-America Teen Challenge, but left the organization in 1996 to pursue her puppet-making full time.

Reed makes all of her creations by hand. She received a pattern for her people puppets from a missionary visiting her church, but all her animal puppets she designs herself. She also creates full-body costume suits used in skits and shows. Right now she has a chicken suit and is working to finish a whale.

"When I was in my second year of home ec in high school I was still putting my facings in backward," Reed said. "When my first son was born, I bought a sewing machine and a stuffed animal pattern. It was like a light went on in my head, suddenly I understood patterns inside and out."

Puppet Power performs many functions as a ministry. Reed organizes puppet seminars on how to begin a puppet ministry, does puppet shows and Kid Krusades. Kid Krusades are used by many area churches in place of Vacation Bible School. For a Kid Krusade, Reed and her crew of five people do a three- or four-night program of Bible stories, memory verses and real-life skits that incorporate Christian messages into them.

Reed has also gotten her church involved in her ministry. Every Wednesday night at 6 she holds puppet practice at First Assembly of God Church to teach people how to take part in one of her puppet crews.

Tom Lucy is the children's pastor at First Assembly of God. Lucy said Reed leads a powerful ministry for young children.

"Charlotte has been working with children's ministry for six or seven years in our church and she coordinates the puppet activities for the day-care program," Lucy said.

"Charlotte is very creative," Lucy said. "Not only is she creative with puppets but with skits and songs. I wanted to do a puppet video, like what is done with people but with puppets, and the actual performance was awesome."

"Anything that has anything to do with puppets, she's your lady," Lucy said.

Reed is very conscientious of her crew members and tries to put their needs and wants in the forefront.

"I don't want people to get discouraged, so after they work five shows they earn a puppet. The more shows they do, the more opportunities they have to earn other puppets," Reed said.

People on her crews can also help to make their puppets. The puppets are made of velour and ostrich feathers, yarn or synthetic hair is used for the puppet's tresses.

Reed said several of her past puppet crew members have gone on to be missionaries in foreign countries. People call and order puppets from Reed to start their own versions of Puppet Power. Therefore, Reed's puppets have found homes in Russia, Romania, El Salvador, Ecuador, Venezuela, Mexico, Cuba and Albania.

"I feel like the Lord has told me to do this and I need to use these gifts He gave me for Him," Reed said.

Puppet Power will perform for the American Cancer Society at 4 p.m. Aug. 8 at Houck Stadium. Reed and her crew will also perform Aug. 22 for the terminally ill at Black Forest Villages for Southeast Hospice.

Reed has performed puppet shows in Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri and Oklahoma.