Stories from the Street

“I had the exciting opportunity to tour the Creative Ministry Solutions’ office in May 2021 and meet their wonderful staff. I have admired CMS (originally known as One Way Street), since I received the training DVD, "Puppet Ministry: Basics and Beyond", as a Christmas gift in 2008. The instructors in this DVD, founders Dale and Liz VonSeggen, and puppeteers Todd Liebenow, Dave Privett, and Keir Schmidt inspired me to improve my manipulation techniques to operate puppets in a more lifelike manner. Since then, I became very interested in CMS’ fabulous productions. For quite some time, I have hoped that I might have the opportunity to meet some of the CMS artists.

During my visit, I was thrilled to meet the original co-founder of CMS, Liz VonSeggen, and I learned so much as she shared her experiences. She was such a sweet lady and was very pleased about my passion for puppetry and my knowledge about their organization. The staff, including Keith and Susan Schmidt, allowed me to see some of Dave Privett’s professional custom puppets and so many other interesting puppets, as well. I also discovered information behind the songs that CMS recorded over the years.

I not only got the chance to tour their facility, but each person there was so gracious and caring and made sure that I had the opportunity to review all the materials that I wanted to research.”

“For many years our yearly family vacation was I-Fest! Both our sons were on the Puppetry Dream Teams. My husband and I directed a puppet team at our church so the training we received at One Way Street conferences was so helpful! I also learned ventriloquism at I-Fest which allowed me to begin my second career as a children's entertainer. We are thankful beyond what words can express for the impact One Way Street has had in our lives. God blessed our lives through Dale and Liz and everyone else we met and worked with at One Way Street/CMS conferences, and we pray that we have been able to bless others through our ministry as well.”

“Growing up at my church, my dad and brothers were both on our puppet team. They would go to regional conferences and I-fest every year and come back with amazing stories of all the wonderful people they had met. I could not wait to be old enough to finally go to the conferences. Once I did, I felt like I was meeting celebrities when I met the workshop leaders that I had heard so much about. People like Susan, KJ, Todd, Dale, Liz, Ryan, Branden, Bertha, and so many others. Both of my brothers made it onto dream teams at I-fest, so that was my big goal. Unfortunately, the year that I was finally old enough to join, was the year that I-fest was on break. I wasn’t able to apply to be on the dream team until it required you to have multiple creative talents. Without the experience from going to conferences every year, I wouldn’t have ever been able to make it onto that dream team. But I made it! And eventually I became an instructor at regional conferences, able to pass on my knowledge that I had been given to the next generation. I am so thankful to OWS/CMS/OW2 for all the resources and knowledge they have provided, allowing me to minister through a puppet team that I eventually led, and also using my talents at the elementary schools I have taught at. And I also now have a built in unique answer to all of those ice breaker questions asking for something that makes me different or an interesting hobby.
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met my husband 15 years ago at a regional conference.

He captured my attention while performing with his team. Then we talked at the product table because I wanted to learn how to make puppets and I heard that he knew how to make them. Been making puppets together ever since!

“Mercy! Where to start and end? Attended our first regional in Irving, Tx like 30 years ago. Since then we’ve attended or taught in Ca, Az, Tx, Fl, Co, Ms, Ks, Mo, Mi, NM, Il, Ok, La, Al, plus. I think more than 20 different locations. I’ve shared motel rooms with Mel, Dale, Farrell, KJ, Andy, Todd, and Tim. Planes and shuttles and all night road trips with Sandy and I think Liz was with us. My oldest kids were raised and born at festivals. Great memories! Too many for a single post.”

“I don't remember how old I was, but my first memory is when my father hosted a festival at Anona United Methodist Church in Largo, Fl. I remember peaking out of the kitchen and watching Liz VonSeggen and the original Taffy. I grew up going to the festivals and knew the products just as well as the employees, that once I had gone to every workshop multiple times, Dale used to let we work behind the tables and paid me with a CD of my choice. I was always so excited!! When I got old enough I competed with my fellow puppeteers in our youth groups in the different churches we were at and continued to help at the sales table We hosted many festivals throughout the states of Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee over the years. My dad, Jack Keefe, was a workshop leader and judge many times over the years as well and had been working with Oneway almost since the very beginning. I became a second generation Onewayer when I was asked by Dale, Todd Liebenow , and Kj on different occasions to come work, judge, and lead workshops myself. Oneway and Creative Ministries Solutions led me to meet many fantastic people over the years such as Liz, Dale, KJ, Todd, Sandy Noe , Dave Privett, Jason Bonilla, and so many more. I have always been proud to be a Oneway kid!!”

“Some of my fondest memories in Junior High and High School involve attending and competing at our regional festivals in Minneapolis, which led to being on the Dream Team, and the Summer Ministry Team the year I graduated from High School. That was my first taste of “adult life”, traveling with perfect strangers (who became amazing friends by the end), and exploring the US, meeting amazing people, and experiencing new things everywhere we went. I remember bawling on our last day together, convinced life could only go downhill from there, and June Privett pulling me aside and telling me “the world isn’t as big as you feel like it is right now”. Sure enough, she was so right, that day wasn’t the end of my travels and new relationships-it was just the beginning. That became more clear every year as that Summer lead to more opportunities back in Colorado, interning at I-Fest, coaching other teams teams back home, and eventually even with other companies. All of that lead into my eventual move to Oregon, where I met my husband and started my family and continued to stay involved in occasional festivals. And the incredible thing is that all these years later, more than 20 years at this point, I still think about those relationships and experiences on a daily basis-they are such a huge part of who I am today. And to the boys on the ministry team that said Sam and I wouldn’t stay friends forever: we just talked to each other earlier today.

I have so much gratitude and respect for all the people who have poured so much into this company, so this company could pour into the lives of people like me. Love you all!”

“I would not be where I am today with out OWS. I attended festivals with my puppet team in high school and knew when I was in college that I wanted more but I had no idea what that was. I applied to the ministry team and met Leah and the boys and had the best summer ever! It was such a huge step of faith to even apply and then fly to Colorado. I discovered how much I could do it I just trusted God. A few years later, I ended up on the mission field. I had my own puppet team in the Philippines and shared God's love to kids around Metro Manila using puppets for many years. I helped Dale and Liz when they came to visit and host a puppet festival in the Philippines and traveled with a mini team to do some puppet shows. I have had so many wonder opportunities and made some great connections thanks to OWS and Dale and Liz and their willingness to follow God's call for them. Yes, the boys told Leah and I we would not stay in contact and here we are 20+ years later, still connected and sharing our hearts together even if we are an ocean apart. We both love puppets, God, and foster care. We were destined to be friends, God used puppets to bring us together.”

“I became interested in puppetry around age nine, my Sunday teachers (at the time) and my parents encouraged this by purchasing me a couple of little hand puppets and letting me do a puppet show after the lesson. Eventually this also branched into an interest in Ventriloquism. Over time my parents developed an interest too and decided we needed to find resources to help us develop a puppet ministry (or even just how to start one). We were so excited at finding one relatively close to us that we made it a yearly priority. I learned so much about creative ministry and techniques from many talented puppeteers, ventriloquists, and creative ministers. And now that I am grown, I lead a puppet team and there is so much I've shared with them that I learned at One Way Street.”

“Starting in 1995 and the performance of "Take a Stand" I met my best friend and to this day our sisterhood is undiminished! From skits to musicals, from local convention/competitions to the International convention with more than quite a few RPM's thrown in...my love for this kind of ministry is a deep running thread that holds my faith together!”

“I remember doing so many workshops and competitions at Tempe Nazarene Church for One Way Street! It’s such a unique and fun way to engage people of all ages in the gospel.”

“I bought my very first "burds" puppet at a One Way Street event in 1995. I have been involved in puppet/kids ministry ever since. The joy of seeing kids faces come alive when interacting with puppets is priceless and all for the glory of God!”

“I attended the very first ONE WAY STREET International convention of Puppetry and Ventriloquism and went there after for many years. I loved the art of Ventriloquism and One Way Street helped me develop my skills in that art and who knew that I would start my own ministry and reach out to many people, adults and children, sharing God’s Love!

I am grateful to One Way Street for helping me to achieve my dreams and goals. They were a great asset being a supplier of puppets and script materials. They were always willing to give you help when needed and if it wasn’t for Liz VonSeggen I would not be doing what I do today!”

“It was a One Way Street catalog that spurred my interest in starting a puppet ministry in the 90s! We ordered all of our puppet ministry needs from One Way Street. We used the "Adopt A Puppet" program to get us up and running. If we were in the Denver area, we would make it a point to stop at the store. What a treat that always was!! Now many years later, in a different state, at a different church I am looking to start another puppet ministry and will once again use One Way Street for all of our needs. I still have our original troop of puppets and am excited about adding more and creating a long lasting ministry here.”

“I started attending One Way Street Workshops in October 1997 in Georgia. I was twelve and my mom would take me. We found out about the workshops through friends at church. A couple of times my friend from church and I would go and learn as much as we could to take back to our puppet team. When I was older and at another church directing a puppet team we competed and took home a silver award. I won a couple of lip synch challenges at state and competed at I-Fest,I think I won one time at I-Fest. My mom and I drove up twice 2002(Dream Team directors Joe Bruce and Fondee Bruce)and 2004( Dream Team Directors Carrie Michael Murphy) to I-Fest. It was a fun trip for my mom and I. I had the best time on the dream team both years,and I'm still friends with those made on the two teams. I also learned a lot from the workshops from Amy Vaughn Harder and Andy Holmes(workshop on Charactes),and Raymond Carr(video workshop).In 2006 I was on the One Way Street ministry tour with Dale VonSeggan,Liz Vonseggan, Ben Goodman,and Philip Haught. I'm so glad I had that time with them. I learned about being a traveling puppeteer/ministry. One of my favorite memories was going with them to VENT Haven and Meeting Paul Fusco(Alf)and Jeff Dunham. Also because of One Way Street's workshops I was able to pass an audition and get the job to work at Walt Disney World as a Character Performer and Puppeteer from 2011-2013. If I had not been trained by One Way Street I do not think I would have made it to Disney. Right now I'm a stay at home mom and RPM's have been ministering to me in the car. I lost my uncle,Dad,and Grandmother(my last grandparent)in January 2020 before the pandemic. Listening to RPMs have brought back some fun memories and has helped to heal my heart.”

“I accidentally stumbled upon one-way street looking for puppet material and fell in love.

I was able too go to a training in St Louis Missouri and met some wonderful people there. Although I'm a puppet guy at heart I would have to say the gospel illusion Bible is my favorite. As long as God allows me to continue puppets I will 100% always buy from one-way street.”

“I have been part of One Way Street for years! My husband Brett L. Belleque and I have led teams and workshops and hosted regional conferences here in Oregon! Some of my favorite memories are judging the lip synch contest with Branden Treu, running the store with KJ and reviewing my algebra homework with Dale. The kids from our teams have gone on to run their own teams, develop ministries and spread the fun of creative ministries.”

“We are a travelling Evangelistic ministry in Australia. We have used one way streets puppet resources for decades to help us reach the lost and impact lives.

Excellent material”

“I was raised knowing puppets and One Way Street my entire life. I was in the womb when my parents first hosted the Minnesota Puppet Festival. Gaining knowledge through the festivals and I fest were huge for my life. I was honored to help preform with KJ and other CMS staff on the feature presentation. I even was able to teach several classes.”

“It was 1975-ish, I was about 15 years old and my idea of a fun Saturday was attending the Chicago area Sunday School Convention. Dale VonSeggen was teaching a puppet making class and afterwards offered my friend and I each a free puppet if we helped him clean up. Those were my first two puppets (the one I made and the one he gave me) and was the launch of 35 years of puppet ministry.”

“Went to a workshop years ago and at the end the presenters said that the stage they used was for sale as they didn’t want to have to drag it back with them. I thought about it and finally went ahead and bought it. Glad I did! Have used it for years ever since! Used a lot of the music CD’s for puppet shows - especially the one based on old TV shows! People at the nursing homes recognized the theme music and kids find them catchy!”

“I started as a puppeteer in 4th grade with Christchurch XP's WORD puppet team. I attended the local Prattville, AL One Way Street competition every year until I graduated high school in 2016. I was on the Dream Team three separate years and loved every experience dearly. I'm just shy of 26 now and have since used what I've learned in One Way Street workshops and training to assist my home church children's ministry in training young puppeteers; it is the greatest joy in my life and I thank God continuously for these opportunities I've had and continue to have in working with children and puppets alike.”

“It has been too long since I've attended an event. I love this company.”

“I first became involved with one way street in the early 80”s. My name is Charlene Graham AKA Bananas the Clown. I became aware of One Way Street by going to The Clown Mime and Puppet Ministry workshops, which were held annually

At Ithaca College and the last one I went to was In Washington Dc. I first performed with a puppet at one of these conferences. Since that time I have bought Puppets, music scripts. We have had 2 puppetry festivals at our Church, we have the large puppet stage, and many puppets and 2 vent puppets. My husband and I teach Children’s Church and use many resources that were bought from One Way Street and Creative Ministry Solutions. I was in a sort of panic when Creative Ministry Solutions closed! I’m so happy that One Way 2 will be opening!! Thank you. We need to keep the Creative Arts Alive and Thriving”

“I was 8 years old when I entered the creative ministries world. I loved it from the start! At age 10 I was allowed to join the puppetry team and help in kids church. That was the start of the rest of my life. After a few years we had a director find out about these regional festivals where we could go and learn more and enjoy meeting other puppeteers and teams. I fest started the next year and that’s when we met Marc Mickle. We learned from all the pros: Liz VonSeggen Amy Vaughn Harder Todd Liebenow Dave Privett Dale VonSeggen and so many more.

I never fit in at school or youth group and people didn’t understand me. At Ifest, I found my people. I found people who understood me, appreciated me and accepted me. I never missed an ifest after that. I may have only made it to a single day of that week sometimes but I was at every single one. In 2000 I was on the dream team. It changed me. I met Raymond Carr that year and even then Christy Watkins knew he was talented beyond belief. He’s one of my dearest friends.

I met and got to work with the worlds first “propateer/props director” Nancy Bellinger and that was so important.

The next year at ifest (2001). My mother intrusted myself and my best friend to Bonnie Scott Jim Scott and Nancy Bellinger for the week at ifest. This was perhaps one of the most important weeks of my life. That week Celebration Puppeteers showed us such love and inclusion. They showed us a way to have fun and interactive devotion time with a team. Nancy even took me to the store because I forgot socks and deodorant. I had never in my life felt so included and loved outside of my family.

2001 my best friend and I were on dream team and that is when I met Elijah Knuckles. Some dorky techy guy from MI. (Ladies the dorky techy guys from MI are the best!).

In 2003 I interned at OWS and had the experience of a lifetime! It was amazing! While in college my friend Raymond would come up from GA and we would go to every puppetry festival we possibly could in a 5 hour radius. We wouldn’t even tell them we were coming. We would just show up and say “how can we help?” And Dale, being the generous father figure he was, would always ask “where are you staying?” And would end up making sure we had a hotel. Cause he always took care of his kids.

I believe it was 2005 I moved to Colorado to work for One Way Street. I made stretch a bellies 40 hours a week and I LOVED EVERY MINUTE! Keann brown taught me how to sew, how to glue, how to ….. everything! And I loved it!

I got to travel and teach. I met the most amazing people I have ever known in my life. I met Gabriel Galdamez in California and he has become such an important part of my continued influence in Christian puppetry.

God called me back to Ohio but I continued to be as involved in puppetry as I possibly could. I believe it was 2011 there was a summer fest in MI and I went up to help. Todd Liebenow look at Elijah that Saturday and said “hey Elijah, Melissa’s single…….” I pushed it off because he lived too far away and wellllll what if? Naaaaa

In 2013 After 12 years of friendship with my geeky tech friend, God brought Elijah Knuckles down to Ohio to set him right in front of my face! It took 2 weeks of hanging out as just friends for God to make it clear to us just what he had been planning all this time. The rest….. is history. Together we encourage our children to continue using creative ministries to tell others about Jesus. Even at age 2 my daughter was on stage performing so that others could see the love of Jesus. Ministry has no age limit.

But I’m thankful so much for all the people God has placed in my life through OWS, CMS. I will attempt to name some of them but I will probably leave out some names (never on purpose but probably just because I’m ADHD and the dopamine fizzled)

So here are just a few who I will always consider life long friends: Ryan Spittler, Jenny Davis, Emily Graham, Philip Haught, Leah Ghena,Samantha Mickle, Samantha Zipp, JJ Graves, Brittney Muth, Mary Martin, Bethany Bristoe-Frost, Meggie Bristoe Siener, Cory Alexis Goff, Essie Doolan, Langston Hatch, the Wray family, Dave Hellyer, Kristen Hays Schmidt, Garrett Elliott, Laura Howell, Kristofer Sommerfeld, Amanda Sommerfeld, Kristyn Nilson

Because of creative ministry solutions and One Way Street, I am who I am today. I have my family, I am a stronger Christ follower, and I have the most amazing people in my life.”