Mr. Chitchat upstages Tri-Cities principal in Facebook broadcast for homebound kids

For three weeks, hundreds of Columbia Elementary School students still have been getting their morning announcements.

But Principal Ian Yale has a co-anchor — Mr. Chitchat.

Yale and a chipmunk puppet have taken to Facebook most days to deliver a cheery message to school kids in the Burbank area.

The roughly two- to three-minute live videos combine jokes sent in by children with information about school lunches and homework.

Yale said it’s a chance to give the 377 elementary students and himself some normalcy after classes were shut down statewide March 17 in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

With a widespread school district that stretches across western Walla Walla County, students in Wallula or in Charbonneau may not get a chance to connect with friends.

“I know the kids and families pretty well,” Yale told the Herald. “It’s awesome to be connected with them.”

When the schools closed, Yale felt disconnected from the students, and was talking with son about it. And he suggested moving the morning announcements to Facebook Live.

At first, the 55-year-old principal was a little worried he might not be technically savvy enough to pull off the production.

“I’m not that into Facebook normally,” he said. “My son said, ‘You can do this, Dad.’ ”

After one failed attempt, Yale and Mr. Chitchat debuted on Facebook Live.

Mr. Chitchat puppet

In a April Fools’ video, Yale joked about replacing his stuffed chipmunk companion with a My Buddy doll with a lazy eye.

“Just kidding! No one will replace Mr. Chitchat. They would replace Mr. Yale before they replace Mr. Chitchat,” Yale told them.

Mr. Chitchat has plenty of fans tuning in for his antics, including misbehaving with permanent markers and hiding peanuts.

Until the closure started, the puppet had sat in a closet for years. Yale and his wife bought the toy in Port Townsend years ago as a gift for their son.

“I am a stress cleaner and due to the closing down of schools, I was completely stressed out,” Yale said. “Anyway, I was cleaning a cabinet out and the chipmunk puppet literally fell out of it. The next day, he was sitting on my counter so I picked him up and his name just popped into my head.”

Their technology expert, Dalton Lundgren, came up with the idea that only Yale could hear Mr. Chitchat, cementing the silent sidekick in the videos.

When he’s not on the air, Mr. Chitchat sits in a basket decorated with nuts and patches, so children can wave at him when they come to pick school work.

Yale also brightens up his broadcasts by wearing a variety of hats, many donated by the school librarian. They range from a Coyote hat with light up eyes to a Seattle Seahawks cap decorated with Christmas lights.

A touch of normalcy

Yale makes sure to put up the videos at the same time he would normally do the announcements in the school.

Burbank parents are tuning in and using it to prompt their children to start on their school work for the day. And even other friends and parents of students in the Tri-Cities are tuning in.

Burbank schools Superintendent Todd Hilberg told Yale, “I don’t know who enjoys this more — you, the kids or some of the adults.”

While Yale normally comes up with the ideas for the next video the night before, he is now faced with needing to record another 50 episodes.

“I want to keep in touch with our kids and families,” he said. “And, wow ... I now have 10 weeks to fill! My poor wife.”