Nobody’s puppet

Alicia Robinson

When Cynthia DeBaun offers her services as a volunteer, she does it

with no strings attached.

DeBaun helps teach students as a puppeteer for the national Kids

on the Block program, which is operated locally through the

Assistance League of Newport-Mesa. The program brings puppeteers to

schools to perform skits about cultural differences, abuse, physical

disabilities and other issues in terms children can understand.

As the operator of Eddie, a three-foot high puppet dressed in

jeans and a baseball cap, DeBaun draws on her acting skills to teach

children about bullying. The puppets talk to each other about topics

such as what to do when they see someone being bullied, if a weapon

is involved or when the bully is their friend.

When DeBaun started with the program, she followed other

puppeteers around for a year to learn from them. She’s been a

puppeteer for about two years now.

Students are fascinated by the puppets, and teachers say the

performances have a lasting effect on students’ behavior, DeBaun

said, and that makes the work rewarding for her.

“What is not to love about being in front of these kids, to know

that you’re making a difference,” she said.

DeBaun also works on the public relations committee for the

Assistance League, which offers a number of child-centered services

such as inexpensive dental care and free school clothes for needy

children and college scholarships for students who participate in

community service.

The 64-year old Assistance League chapter has more than 600

members and about 70 active volunteers, league President Jean Loomis

said.

“I think we’re unusual in the fact that we work in this

organization,” Loomis said. “We don’t write checks; we work.”

The Kids on the Block program is important because it relates

directly to children, and being a good puppeteer is a gift, Loomis

said.

It’s a gift that seems to come naturally to DeBaun, who worked as

an actress years ago and hasn’t forgotten those skills.

“The ham in me is not gone,” she said.

For information on the Assistance League of Newport-Mesa, call

(949)645-6929.