Kentucky College Graduate Joins 'Sesame Street' As A Puppeteer

A Kentucky college graduate has earned a role as a puppeteer on Sesame Street, reported LEX 18.

Chris Thomas Hayes attended Berea College, where he discovered puppetry.

Hayes explained his role:

"I started doing right hands for the puppets that have two live hands, like Ernie, The Count, and I would do assisting if there were any kind of weird hand-off's and I would do background characters."

Now, Hayes has a more prominent role. He is the puppeteer for Elijah, which is the father of Elmo's friend, Wes.

The character of Elijah is best known on the show for helping Elmo and Wes discover the colors of their skin and explaining the concept of melanin with how it makes skin different shades and colors.

Sesame Street has made headlines recently with tackling harder subjects like race and equality.

Hayes said:

"I'm just so excited to be a part of this legacy and I want to jump in and help as much as I can. Because I feel like, I've got skin in the game too. I've got kids, nephews and nieces and I want to make sure that they are set up for success in the future; educationally, socially, everything."

Photo: Getty Images