Kutztown native Marian Gehman of Marian and Friends entertained children during the Kutztown Community Library Summer Reading Program finale on Aug. 18.
Marian performed with several puppet friends, including a PA Dutch mouse named Chester. She also brought her daughter Jenny, 19, who performed with her own puppet Forrest Duck.
There was much singing and laughter as Marian and her friends made jokes and acted silly but at the heart of the entertainment Marian hoped the children learned to exercise their imaginations.
“Every summer the library has a different theme so I try to take that theme and cater my show, my lessons that I want to teach children I cater it to the theme of that summer,” said Marian.
This year’s Summer Reading Program theme was “On Your Mark, Get Set, Read.”
“This summer it was all about getting up and moving,” said Marian. “I mentioned exercise but I also talked about getting moving using your imagination. I love to encourage kids to use their creative minds using imaginations whether it’s with developing puppets or being creative. That’s what I wanted them to learn, to learn to use their imaginations.”
Marian learned ventriloquism from her mother Evelyn Adam at age 8. Now Marian’s daughters Jenny, 19, and Jessica, 15, continue the family tradition into a third generation.
“I’m so happy we ended (the Summer Reading Program) with Marian and Friends,” said Youth Librarian Taylor Kutz. “They were an awesome program, very entertaining for the crowd.”
Aug. 18 was the final day of the Summer Reading Program for the Kutztown Community Library.
“I can’t believe this is the last one, it’s gone by so fast,” said Kutz. “I think we’ve had an awesome year. We had great participation and I’m happy with how it went.”
One thing Kutz hopes the children gained from the Summer Reading Program is that they continue to read all year long.
“Just continue good reading habits,” she said. “Reading is important because it keeps your mind thinking over the summer instead of sitting in front of the TV and video games.”
