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Preschoolers love to use their imaginations to laugh and play. "That's the great thing about our imagination. When you think of silly things, your imagination creates a silly picture," says BOZ, The Green Bear Next Door™ in "Thank You God for Adventures in Imagination," produced by Exclaim Entertainment. BOZ is the exuberant main character in Exclaim's animated DVDs made just for preschoolers. And BOZ encourages kids in their pretend play and helps them experience imagination as a gift from God.

Preschool entertainment is nothing new to Exclaim co-founder Dennis DeShazer, who created Barney the Dinosaur in 1988. Dennis worked as executive producer of the TV show "Barney & Friends," overseeing production of 128 television episodes. He enjoyed his experience with Barney. But after working on the show for 13 years, he was ready for a new adventure.

"For most of my Barney years, I didn't have children," explains Dennis. But when he started Exclaim, Dennis and his wife had two preschoolers (the inspiration for the lovable twins on the show, Drew and Gracie). "I felt like it was a fresh point. My life had changed; I had children, so my experiences were somewhat different. And I thought, I can bring this all to bear in a new venture."

Dennis and his partner, Jon Green, looked around and saw there was nothing that really combined faith, family and fun all in one show. "As a creator and producer of preschool programming, I was amazed," Dennis said. "So we decided, 'We can do that!'" And BOZ, The Green Bear Next Door™, was born!

Dennis and Jon wanted BOZ to be a character children would fall in love with—one that's fun and friendly and completely expressive; a character who'd play and roll around on the ground. They also were intentional in showing the family unit on the program. "Parents and certainly grandparents are absent from so many preschool shows, but they anchor a preschooler's life," Dennis says. "Preschoolers love to go out and have adventures. As they're gaining independence, they want to do it themselves. But at the same time, they're right back in a parent's lap at the end of the day, wanting to share what they've experienced."

The co-creators also want BOZ to start conversations. They hope when preschoolers watch BOZ, they'll have questions about God and life and will go to Mom and Dad for answers.

And of course, beyond that, they want preschoolers to have fun watching BOZ. "This show is a celebration—and what I love most about BOZ is his boundless enthusiasm for taking on the day," says Dennis. "I like that this green bear wakes up every morning completely ready to look for what's interesting and fun in every situation."

Check out BOZ's newest adventure DVD, A Wowie BOZowee Christmas,— available now in the MOPShop at www.MOPShop.org.

Rachel Ryan is the Media Manager at MOPS International and proud Aunt "Rayree" to preschoolers Jack and Maryn, who both adore BOZ.

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