Fiftieth wedding anniversaries, tradition dictates, are a time for bestowing gifts of gold.

But the only thing golden about the whimsical puppet theater the children of Bernie and Joan Hoover chose to honor their parents’ anniversary milestone with is the memories it’ll create for the children who play in it.

The “puppeteria” is the newest addition to the children’s section of the Edmonds Library. It was unveiled in December during a surprise presentation to the senior Hoovers by their children, who traveled from as far away as Connecticut and California to be with them. The couple’s actual 50th wedding anniversary was about 18 months ago.

Painted with cheerful motifs in vivid hues by artist Cheri O’Brien, who also decorated the rocking chair in the children’s area, the wooden theater was built by a set builder in Seattle. It was purchased with the Hoover family’s gift of $800.

The theater already is a magnet for children who dash for the puppets behind the stage and play act for appreciative parents, library staff say.

The idea of a gift that would benefit the library and honor the senior Hoovers came from their son-in-law, John Drain, according to his wife, Michelle, the Hoovers’ older daughter. The family consulted with Edith Farrar, the children’s librarian, before choosing the puppet theater.

“That sounded like so much fun … not some boring old magazine rack,” Michelle Drain said.

It was appropriate, too, because Bernie and Joan Hoover, who moved to Edmonds from Seattle about 12 years ago, live only three blocks from the library. They or other family members visit the library almost daily, Michelle Drain said.

If that’s not enough of a connection, Joan Hoover, 79, is a former librarian, and daughter Michelle is working on her library sciences degree from Southern Connecticut University.

Bernie Hoover, 78, is a retired pharmacist.

The family also includes Tamara and Mark Sutton, who live in Edmonds with their 7-year-old daughter, Natalie, an avid reader and library user. There’s also Brad and Kathy Hoover and their adult children, Ben and Katie Hoover, of California; and Todd and Carla Hoover and their teen-age daughters, Terra and Laura, of Edmonds.