A Childhood Dream

One of my favorite childhood memories at Christmas was finding a marionette under our tree on Christmas morning. Sometimes I would find one in the tree itself.

I loved these marionettes and would get every year for several years. They were specially made by a company in England called "Pelham Puppets," and I only ever saw them at Marshall Field’s on State Street in Chicago (about a 2-hour drive from our farm in Central Illinois).

I recently unboxed all of my childhood puppets and took the picture above.

More than 50 years later, I’m still getting the same thrill I got as a kid, but now it’s coming every week or two in the form of pictures from my new puppeteer friends in Italy who are hand carving not just one or two marionettes, but SIXTEEN for our new "puppet opera" premiering in Italy for Christmas 2023.

Here are a few pix I’ve received.

This is Nicholas…

This is Anna Maria…

And this will be Young Dimitri!

I can’t wait to see them all—and the show—when they’re done next year!

Would you like to help me bring this show to life? By donating $25, $100, or even $1,000 by the end of the year, we can put together the entire show, from the puppets and costumes to the sets and scenery.

In appreciation of your gift, I’d love to send you a "token" of appreciation that you can carry in your pocket or purse as a reminder to pray for our show, that MANY would see, MANY would hear, and MANY would put their faith in the Lord.

Here’s the link to make a donation ONLINE:

Donate to our "St. Nicholas Puppet Opera

(If your donation is over $250, you might rather send a check to Eric Elder Ministries, 25615 E 3000 North Rd, Chenoa, IL 61726 and save the higher processing fees. But either way is great! Thank you!)

P.S. If you’d like to watch the FREE ballet version of our St. Nicholas story that we filmed in South Carolina, you can watch it online at the link below! It’s a beautiful hour and ten minutes of Christmas inspiration, filled with music, dancing, and a heartwarming story that points clearly to Jesus.

Watch "One Life: A Christmas Story Ballet"

Thanks for your prayers and encouragement, and Merry Christmas!