Phillies Surprise Cinnaminson Teacher, Puppeteer With Award (PICS)

CINNAMINSON, NJ — A Cinnaminson educator received quite the surprise: a walk down the red carpet where he was greeted by the Phillies organization and hundreds of cheering students.

Before teaching fifth-graders at Eleanor Rush Intermediate School, Forrest Harding was a puppeteer and voice artist for children's programming. As an educator, he's known for wearing Hawaiian shirts on Fridays and singing along with students as he plays his ukelele.

On Friday morning, the man who once portrayed Chica the Chicken ("The Chica Show") and Hatty the Hamster ("Ruff-Ruff, Tweet & Dave") took on a new title, becoming a Phillies All-Star Teacher.

Before the ceremony, Harding thought he was attending an outdoor pep rally as the school kicked off standardized testing. Instead, he was led down the red carpet, surrounded by the Eleanor Rush's 600 students.

Phillies broadcaster Gregg Murphy and the Phillies Ballgirls presented Harding with his own Phillies jersey and Phanatic puppet. Then, the Phillie Phanatic himself presented Harding with his infamous ukelele.

During the event, Harding was honored with a special Phanatic dance and a victory lap with his fellow teachers. He also got to throw a ceremonial first pitch to Milt Thompson — a former Phillies outfielder who later served as hitting coach for the 2008 World Series-winning team.

Harding was honored ahead of the Phillies' Teacher Appreciation Night. At 6:40 p.m. Friday, he and nine other All-Star Teachers will be honored before the team faces the Giants at Citizens Bank Park.

Principal Kerry DiSimone nominated Harding, who was among 600 educators up for the award.