Where’s Koshare?
ASSOCIATION USES BALLOON’S POPULARITY TO PROMOTE EVENT, GALLUP
By Molly Ann Howell Managing Editor
One hundred and ten balloons will soon fill the sky above Red Rock Park during the 43rd Annual Red Rock Balloon Rally, which will take place from Dec. 6-8. But only one of them will be smiling down at the crowds: the famous Koshare Gallup balloon, which is owned by the Red Rock Balloon Association.
The Association came up with the idea for the balloon after Gallup local Johnny Blueeyes designed a T-shirt with the impish character front and center in 1997. Koshare comes from both the Pueblo and Hopi Native American cultures. He is known as a fun-loving, mischievous character, akin to the jesters of the Middle Ages.
BRINGING KOSHARE TO LIFE
The Red Rock Balloon Rally’s co-founder Peter Procopio said that the idea of turning Koshare
fi nancial help from the City of Gallup. Procopio’s wife Colleen McNeely Marchand said people were showing their excitement for the Gallup balloon before it was even created.
“People started telling us they had seen it at events before it was ever constructed,” Marchand said. “‘Oh, I saw the Koshare at the Durango’, or ‘Oh I saw the Koshare at Page.’”
The dream became a reality in 2002 after the Association reached out to Lindstrand Balloons USA, a hot air balloon manufacturer in Illinois. The company offered to help create the Koshare balloon. But the Association needed something unique for the Koshare.
else? The Hopi man simply replied with “yes.”
and they take it to anywhere from 12 to 16 events in a year.
into a hot air balloon started out as a sort of joke, but then the Association decided to make that joke a reality.
They began fundraising for the balloon, and even received
They decided on an appendage balloon, meaning it’s a normal balloon, but it has some appendages on it. Procopio said he and Marchand once asked a man from the Hopi tribe what exactly was poking out of the top of Koshare’s head — were they pigtails, horns, or something
Once it was fi nally created, the Association received the balloon in November 2002, and it made its first public appearance at that year’s Red Rock Balloon Rally.
Twenty-two years later, and the Gallup Koshare has been to many balloon events, most of them in the Four Corners region.
Procopio and Marchand are the main pilots of the balloon,
They use the events as a way to educate people about Native American cultures such as Navajo, the Zuni Pueblo, and Hopi, while also promoting the City of Gallup, and of course, talking about hot air balloons.
“We see our responsibility as lightning peoples’ loads and it
KOSHARE | SEE PAGE 4
Peter Procopio and his wife Colleen McNeely Marchand use this trailer with the Gallup Koshare balloon on it to haul it around. P hoto Credit: Peter Procopio
Red Rock Balloion Rally co-founder Peter Procopio and his wife Colleen McNeely Marchand are the primary fliers of the Koshare Gallup balloon. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Peter Procopio
KOSHARE | FROM PAGE 3
gives people something to smile at because [Koshare’s] got such a silly grin on his face,” Marchand said.
SHARING
LAUGHTER WHEREVER HE GOES
Marchand and Procopio shared some fond memories they have from their adventures with the Koshare Gallup balloon.
During one balloon festival near Angel Fire, N.M., the couple landed their balloon near a Catholic church. It was a Saturday, so they didn’t think there was a church service going on in the chapel.
But they soon learned that Koshare’s big grin was hovering over the pastor’s head during a Mass service. They also didn’t know how much Koshare had brightened up one family’s day.
They were packing up their equipment after the balloon
festival was over when a woman came running out of the church, wanting to catch them before they left.
The woman asked if she could show them a picture, to which the couple agreed. The picture featured Koshare, peeking into the church with one of his big old eyes while the priest was preparing for mass.
“You made my mom’s day,” the woman told Marchand and Procopio.
The woman explained that her mother had been diagnosed with breast cancer the day before and had been crying for a solid 24 hours.
But as soon as the mother and daughter saw the balloon with its big eye staring into the church, they instantly got the giggles. The woman said it was the type of giggles people get when they know they shouldn’t be laughing. The duo couldn’t stop; every time they looked out
the window they’d start back up again.
“Peter looked at the picture and he could tell it was taken inside of the church looking out, and in his very Catholicupbringing priestly voice, he said ‘Did you take that from the pew?’ Marchand said with a laugh. “And the woman hung her head and said, ‘Yes I did.’”
The woman said that as she was walking out of the church with her mother the older woman patted her hand and said “Honey, I think everything’s going to be alright.”
Marchand said her favorite part of flying with Koshare Gallup is seeing the joy it brings people.
“I have never been to a balloon event where I didn’t have at least one person say ‘This is my favorite balloon. This guy makes me smile. I see the big smile on Koshare’s face up in the sky and I can’t help but smile back,’” she
At Perry Null Trading, we have been celebrating the culture and craftsmanship of Native Americans since 1939.
said. Koshare Gallup will be front and center at this year’s
Red Rock Balloon Rally, which takes place from Dec. 5-8.
The Koshare balloon once interrupted a Catholic mass by peeking into one of the church windows. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Peter Procopio
Where’s Koshare map Where’s Koshare map
RED ROCK BA LLOON R A LLY BALLOON
Finding a passion in a new town
JEFF HALICER’S MOVE TO GALLUP 40 YEARS AGO INTRODUCED HIM TO BALLOONING
By Molly Ann Howell Managing Editor
Forty-one years ago, Jeff Halicizer was fresh out of college, looking to pursue a teaching career. But in the summer of ‘83, he was stuck in Michigan chopping wood.
He spent his time chopping wood and sending out resumes to schools across the country with the help of the local placement office. One day in late August he got a call from the placement office asking about his preference for where he might like to teach.
“How’s Gallup, New Mexico, sound?” The placement director asked him. Halicizer knew he wanted to go somewhere west of
the Mississippi River, so he said “Sure.”
The trip from Michigan to New Mexico proved difficult, with his truck’s motor blowing out somewhere in Iowa, forcing him to buy another truck.
NEW IN TOWN
When he finally got settled in Gallup, he went to his school’s resource center to try and learn more about his new home.
The woman working drew up a map of Red Rock Park for Halicizer, and told him that her boyfriend Carl Lowman, a co-founder of the Red Rock
Balloon Rally, was a balloon pilot. Halicizer spent his first weekend in Gallup cruising the backroads of town. When he returned home, he had a voicemail from Lowman. Lowman was asking if Halicizer wanted to crew for him the next weekend.
A hot air balloon chase crew handles the hot air balloon equipment, assists the pilot with flight preparation, makes sure any guests receive the best customer service, follows the balloon during flight, and packs up equipment. Many people venture into the hot air balloon sport by crewing for a pilot before they themselves earn
JEFF HALICIZER
| SEE PAGE 7
Jeff Hallicizer enjoys showing kids the magic of a hot air balloon. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Jeff Hallicizer
Jeff Hallicizer’s Queensland Blue Heeler Bandit has tagged along for 600 hot air balloon rides since 2013. Photo Credit: Jeff Hallicizer
JEFF HALICIZER
their pilot’s license.
And that’s exactly what Halicizer did. He crewed with Lowman and Red Rock Balloon Rally co-founder Peter Procopio for six years. He said crewing really helped integrate himself into the Gallup community.
“The nicest thing about it was that it was an instant group of friends,” Halicizer said. “It was people I could hang out with, people I could do things with, and I could help them.”
After six years in Gallup, another teaching job took Halicizer to Arizona for a year, and then he moved to Reno, N.V.
That’s where he tried to pick up the sport again, but he couldn’t find a pilot he got along with like he did with Lowman. He said one of his favorite parts about working with Lowman was the fact that he didn’t try to teach him the craft of ballooning, but rather gave him an opportunity to learn.
Halicizer tried out a couple different balloon instructors before he found the right one. He finally got his private balloon license in 2002. He got his commercial license in 2007.
He currently has four balloons.
Two of them are “special-shaped balloons.” He flies Off the Wall, a balloon made to look like an upside-down Humpty Dumpty. He bought “Off the Wall” as soon as he got his commercial license. It’s the balloon he flies the most during balloon rallies and events.
“With a special shaped balloon, you can go to events and they pay you to be there,” Halicizer explained. “As a regular balloonist, you pay an entry fee.”
TRAVELING ACROSS THE WORLD
During his decades-long career as a balloon pilot, Halicizer has traveled to 30 states, two countries, and two Canadian provinces.
He shipped Off the Wall to Taiwan in 2013 and got to fly with pilots and crew from all over the world. He’s also been to Northeast China, where he and a couple other pilots got to hike along the Great Wall of China, and even stuck their fingers — and only their fingers — through a barbed wire fence. North Korea was on the other side.
“You didn’t want to poke anything more in that fence because on the other side of that fence about 200 yards away was a guard tower with guys with big rifles,” Halicizer said.
During one of his summer trips, he participated in a balloon festival in eld, K.Y. While on his Friday ight, he landed in a pasture that belonged to a farming family. As he was landing, two little girls who were eight and 10 years old ran up to him. He placed them in his basket and walked the balloon to an area in between their barn and their house.
The event he was attending would be over on that Saturday, so he offered to take the girls on a flight on Sunday.
But when Sunday rolled around, the early morning hours were extremely foggy and terrible for flying. Instead of flying, Halicizer went out for breakfast with the girls and their parents. But he promised them he would be back some day to give them a ride.
Three years later, he kept that promise while passing through Mayfield. Nowadays, those two little girls have families of their own, and he keeps up with their kids through postcards. In fact,
JEFF HALICIZER | SEE PAGE 11
Back home in the U.S., some of Halicizer’s favorite memories involve the children he’s met during his journeys.
Jeff Hallicizer owns four balloons, but the one he flies the most often is “Off the Wall,” a balloon made to look like an upside-down Humpty Dumpty. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Jeff Hallicizer
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C ouple hangs up their pilot sungla sses, takes Couple up their sunglasses, takes on leadership role
By Molly Ann Howell Managing Editor
Tom and Maggie Robinson have been married for 47 years. They started crewing for Red Rock Balloon Rally co-founder Peter Procopio in 1988, meaning that ballooning has been a part of their lives for 36 years — or over 75% of their marriage.
Maggie was the one who caught what Tom calls “the ballooning bug” fi rst. Procopio approached her and asked if she would like to crew for him, and she accepted.
“He said he needed help with his balloon, and I thought ‘Well that’s something different to do and a way to get out of the house,’” she said.
Then, less than a year later, Maggie says Tom suggested they buy a balloon of their own. Or at least that’s how she remembers it. Tom says it went a little differently than that.
“That’s how she remembers
it, but actually she was crewing for Peter and she came home one day and said ‘You know, there’s a balloon for sale, and I think we should buy it,’” Tom said. “It was right out of the blue, but it sounded exciting.”
Tom said that when they took their balloon out to Red Rock Park for the fi rst time, it was “like magic.”
Now, 36 years later, Maggie and Tom are both heavily involved in the ballooning community and specifically the Red Rock Balloon Rally. Tom actually took over as the Red Rock Balloon Rally Association’s president this year after the former president Bill Lee stepped down.
The couple is in charge of organizing many different aspects of the upcoming event to make sure it goes smoothly, from making sure every pilot has a hotel room to acquiring sponsors.
“We both feel that this rally
is a good thing for the community,” Tom said. “It’s a source of pride for the community, and it has some economic benefits. For us personally, it’s something we can be proud of and we want to keep doing it.”
FINDING THEIR COMMUNITY
Both Tom and Maggie said they’ve loved how their hobby has allowed them to meet a variety of different people.
“It really is a great sport,”
Tom said. “And I think what a lot of us enjoy the most is the other balloonists and the crews and the people we take
ROBINSONS | SEE PAGE 11
Maggie and Tom Robinson have flown their balloon in many locati ons. Here, they pose for a photo in their balloon with their fri end Dave before a flight in Bluff, UT in 2010. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Tom Robinson
| FROM PAGE 10
for rides, and of course just the experience of being up in the air. It’s such a peaceful experience, it’s quiet and you have a tremendous 360-degree view.”
Tom said it’s helped strengthen their marriage.
“ I think it’s kept us together in a way where it’s something that we can do together and it’s something we’re both interested in,” he said.
JEFF HALICIZER
| FROM PAGE 7
he sends many postcards to kids across the country who he’s met during his travels.
RETURNING TO GALLUP
After spending about three decades away from Gallup (besides his annual return for the Red Rock Balloon Rally), Halicizer returned to Gallup in December 2023 shortly after that year’s Rally.
Now, he and his Queensland Blue Heeler Bandit, who he’s had since 2013, call Gallup home. Bandit has been on 600 flights with Halicizer. Halicizer himself has logged over 1,600 hours in the air.
“I could’ve gone anywhere, being retired and single it’s like ‘Where do I want to go?’ I looked at probably half a dozen different towns, and I kept gravitating back toward Gallup,” Halicizer said.
When asked what his favorite part of Gallup is, he said the people. But he also highlighted the beautiful sites Red Rock Park provides.
“People ask me where my favorite place to fly is, and my smarta** answer is ‘in the sky,’” he said. “But to be serious, the prettiest place that I fly is Gallup. Flying out in the Red Rocks is the ultimate flight.”
HIS WORK TO CONTINUE
But it can prove to be a time-consuming hobby.
“The only downside is that at one point I was going to 12 or 13 rallies a year, and that was using up all my vacation time [at work], so at one point Maggie says ‘Can we do something else instead of always going to balloon rallies?’” Tom said with a chuckle.
Maggie explained that not only has it been great for their marriage, but it’s also a nice family activity. Their kids are not active in the sport, but
THE SPORT
According to the Balloon Federation of America, about 80% of balloon pilots will age out of the sport in the next 10 to 20 years. In order for ballooning to continue as a sport and pastime, the younger generations will need to become more involved.
Halicizer is doing his part to make that a reality.
In 2013, 2015, and 2017 he was a camp director for a balloon camp for teens in Reno. The camps helped teens learn anything and everything about ballooning. The camps allowed about 20 campers to spend six days and five nights learning about ballooning and participating in ballooning events from 5 am to 9 pm every day.
They’d perform flight operations in the morning and training sessions on a variety of topics.
“Pilots would come up to me at events and say ‘Jeff, be honest with me, are those camps making kids pilots?’ And I’d look them in the eye and say, ‘No. They’re not becoming pilots right away, they’re 13-17 years old,’” Halicizer said. “They’ve still got to date the cheerleaders, they’ve still got to get out of high school, then they’ve got to go off to college and they’ve got to get on with their lives.’”
But Halicizer said the camps across the country are sparking the younger generation’s curiosity. He knows of at least 40 campers
Maggie said it was a great teaching opportunity for them.
“We always took our kids when they were younger,” she said. “It teaches kids teamwork and how to get along with others.”
Tom acknowledged that ballooning is an expensive hobby, but he suggested that anyone who is taken aback by the pricetag of a balloon could start by crewing for an established pilot.
“People shouldn’t be intimidated, they should just go out
who went through the program when he was a camp director who have now become pilots themselves. And the Balloon Federation of America posts one or two new pilots with their logbooks a week on their Facebook page.
ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO COME OUT TO THE BALLOON RALLY
there and meet the pilots and start crewing,” he said. “If the bug catches them, they should go out and get a license.”
THE END OF AN ERA
While Tom and Maggie are still heavily involved in the balloon rally, they haven’t piloted their own balloon in three years. They actually sold their balloon to Procopio’s stepdaughter Marissa Myers, who owns a balloon ride tour agency in Pagosa Springs, CO.
Tom explained that getting older has affected his ability
Halicizer said his favorite part about flying a hot air balloon is the people, from the people who crew for him to the people he meets during his travels.
As the 43rd Annual Red Rock Balloon Rally inches closer, he wants to encourage people to come out to crew and to join him and the other pilots for a ride.
to fly. He also came down with COVID-19 about three years ago, and he believes that affected his cognitive abilities.
“I just reached a point where I didn’t feel comfortable with it anymore,” he said. “I wasn’t comfortable about my decision-making and things like that. And I thought for safety reasons, I should stop fl ying.”
But of course he’ll still be present at the upcoming Red Rock Balloon Rally.
“We need help from the local community to help crew the balloons and make [the Red Rock Balloon Rally] happen,” he said. “[And] I hate flying alone, and Bandit’s already heard all my dumb jokes.”
The 43rd Annual Red Rock Balloon Rally takes place from Dec. 5-8.
The history of the hot air balloon
Staff Reports
The history of ballooning is a fascinating one. It includes a couple of French paper makers and some barnyard animals.
After many repeated experiments during more than 20 centuries, the secret of aerial navigation was discovered toward the end of the 18th century in 1782 when Stephen (Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier) and Joseph Montgolfier made their ingenious aerostatic experiment.
Stephen realized that if a light paper bag were to be made and fi lled with smoke or ash from their fi re, then it would
naturally rise up toward the sky. In November 1782, in Avignon, the Montgolfier brothers built a light paper bag in an oblong shape with approximately 40 cubic feet of capacity and used it to test their experiment.
The paper bag had an opening at the bottom, and when they applied fi re beneath it, the internal temperature increased, causing it to rise. Their fi rst balloon experiment rose to a height of 75 feet.
Encouraged by their success, the Montgolfier brothers made their next experiment on a much larger scale. Their new envelope was 600 cubic feet in capacity and in a spherical shape. The shape of the
envelope was designed after a large short-necked glass bottle used in chemistry called a “Balloon.” When the heat was applied to the opening of the paper balloon, its strings broke and ascended to 600 feet above the ground.
The success of larger hot air balloons gave Motgolfl ier brothers the confidence to build a very larger balloon. This time the hot air balloon was 35 feet in diameter. On April 3, 1783, the balloon, after being fi lled and released, reached a height of 1,000 feet and covered a distance of three-fourths of a mile.
It was time for the
Participants & Spectators to the 43rd Annual Red Rock Balloon Rally
King Louis XVI suggested a sheep, a duck, and a rooster serve as the first hot air balloon passengers. The animals landed safely at a distance of 10,000 feet from the place of the ascent. Image Credit: Shawn Braley
Montgolfiers to show off their invention to the public. They built a spherical paper balloon with nearly 23k cubic feet and had a lifting capacity of 500 pounds. The hot air balloon was released from its tether ropes and ascended to an astonishing 6,000 feet above France.
THE FIRST HOT AIR BALLOON RIDE
On Sept. 12, 1783, a hot air balloon with a load of about 500 pounds ascended before he members of the Royal Academy. Unfortunately, high winds damaged the balloon.
A new hot air balloon was ordered to be built in the same
dimensions. The new balloon included a basket of wicker-work and was inflated in the presence of King Louis XVI and the royal family in the Palace of Versailles.
The French king suggested a sheep, a duck, and a rooster be placed in the basket as the fi rst hot air ballooning passengers. With these three living animal passengers, the balloon was launched into the upper air and reached an altitude of 1,500 feet. The animals landed safely at a distance of 10,000 feet from the place of the ascent. The first official balloon flight was a success.
10 other top places for hot air balloon rides
Staff Reports
Many pilots call Red Rock Park one of their favorite places to fly hot air balloons, but there are other places across the U.S. that balloon enthusiasts should also check out if they get a chance.
Albuquerque is known as the “Hot Air Balloon Capital of the World” and for good reason.
Only a short two-hour drive from Gallup, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is famous for a reason. Albuquerque is known for its ideal ballooning conditions, including favorable weather patterns, open spaces,
and flying together create a colorful and awe-inspiring spectacle.
Napa Valley, Calif. isn’t only
and low levels of air traffic.
During the festival, balloonists from all over the world gather to participate in events including mass ascensions, competitions, and night glows. The mass ascensions are particularly popular as hundreds of balloons taking off
known for wine. Hot air ballooning in Napa Valley is a unique way to experience the scenic beauty of the region’s rolling hills, vineyards, and wineries. Napa Valley is known for its world-class wines, culinary delights, and bucolic picturesque landscapes.
Many hot air balloon companies here offer early morning rides that launch from various locations around the valley.
even spot local wildlife like deer, fox, or black bears.
The best time of year for hot air ballooning in Asheville is
The best time of year for hot air ballooning in Napa Valley is during the summer and early fall months, when the weather is mild and the vineyards are in full bloom.
Asheville, N.C. is a popular tourist destination known for its vibrant arts scene, craft breweries, outdoor activities and hot air ballooning. There’s no better way to take in the beautiful mountain scenery of Western North Carolina than from the skies above.
Several companies in Asheville offer flights over the Blue Ridge Mountains and the surrounding countryside. Balloons typically take off in the early morning when winds are the calmest. Balloon passengers can enjoy stunning views of the mountains, forests, and rivers, and may
during the fall months when the leaves are changing colors, or in the spring when the mountains burst with new life.
between California and Nevada. It is known as the Sapphire Jewel of the Sierra due to its mesmerizing deep-blue lake. Surrounded by soaring alpine snow-capped mountains, its vivid landscape provides unforgettable postcard-perfect memories.
Summertime, when the weather is mild and the lake is at its finest, is the perfect time to get up, up and away.
Letchwork State Park is located in western New York, about 35 miles southwest of Rochester. It covers over 14,000
10 OTHER PLACES | SEE PAGE 14
Lake Tahoe lies on the border
Letchwork State Park cover over 14,000 acres and is often called the “Grand Canyon of the East.”
In Asheville, N.C., there’s no other better way to take in the beautiful mountain scenery of Western North Carolina than in a hot air balloon.
Albuquerque is known as the “Hot Air Balloon Capital of the World.”
Lake Tahoe is known as the Sapphire Jewel of the Sierra due to its mesmerizing deep-blue lake.
Going up in a hot air balloon is a great way to experience the scenic beauty of Napa Valley, Calif.
acres and is often called the “Grand Canyon of the East” due to the stunning gorge running through the center of the park. Three dazzling waterfalls plummet into the gorge providing breathtaking views for visitors.
Hot air balloon rides typically take off from the park’s lower gorge area.
Ballooning over the park during sunrise or sunset is extremely popular as the colors of the sky and surrounding landscape magically change with the
shifting light.
Sedona, Ariz. is known for its vibrant art scene, spiritual energy, stunning topography and outdoor adventures.
Ballooning over Sedona is an awe-inspiring experience providing riders with bird’s eye views of its vibrant red rock formations, deep canyons, bluebird skies and desert landscape. Many tour companies offer hot air balloon rides which typically launch just before sunrise when the weather is calm and the light is perfect for capturing award-winning photos.
Temecula, Calif. Is another
Passengers enjoy panoramic vistas atop the vineyards, mountains, hills and valleys of the Temecula Valley as the balloon silently drifts over the picturesque wine country.
capturing stunning photographs.
Passengers can enjoy jaw-drop-
town known as a part of wine country, but it also has beautiful sights.
Passengers enjoy panoramic vistas atop the vineyards, mountains, hills and valleys of the Temecula Valley as the balloon silently drifts over the picturesque wine country.
Park City, Utah is known for its world-class ski resorts, outdoor activities, and lively arts and culture scene. The city is nestled in the Wasatch Mountains and boasts stunning mountain views, with year-round opportunities for outdoor adventures.
Hot air ballooning provides a unique and exciting way to witness the magnificent mountain scenery and natural beauty of the area.
Balloon rides usually take off early morning, when the winds are mild and the light is perfect for
ping views of the surrounding peaks, slopes and rivers as the balloon slowly rises above the landscape.
Pagosa Springs, CO. offers an exceptional ballooning experience due to the area’s natural scenic beauty. Balloon rides offer a unique perspective of the San Juan Mountains and surrounding valleys, allowing visitors to admire the area from an elevated vantage point.
Cool morning temperatures in the summer make for ideal ballooning conditions, and the crisp autumn season provides a stunning backdrop of splashing fall colors.
Lake Geneva, WI. is known for its picturesque lakefront, historic mansions, and outdoor recreational activities. Instead of admiring it from a boat, ballooning kicks it up a notch – way up, to an entirely new level.
The best time of the year to go ballooning in Lake Geneva is from June to October. This is when the weather is the most favorable, with clear skies, comfortable temperatures and calm winds, providing the best conditions for a safe and memorable balloon flight.
The summer and fall months also offer stunning views of the surrounding landscape, with lush greenery, colorful foliage, and the sparkling azure waters of lovely Lake Geneva.
Ballooning over Sedona, Ariz. is an awe-insp iring experience providing riders with bird’s eye views of its vibrant red rock formations, deep canyons, blue bird skies and desert landscape.
Hot air ballooning provides a unique and exciting way to witness the magnificent mountain scenery and natural beauty of Park City, Utah.
Lake Geneva, WI. is known for its picturesque lake front, historic mansions, and outdoor recreational activities.
Pagosa Springs, CO. offers an exceptional ballooning experience due to the area’s natural scenic beauty.
Making the hot air balloon emoji to life
Staff Reports
SANTA FE — According to the Unicode Consortium, a non-profi t corporation that reviews and approves emojis for use on electronic devices around the globe, there are nearly 3,800 emojis – and yet, a hot air balloon is not among them.
But the New Mexico Tourism Department is calling for change. NMTD launched a petition on the opening day of the 2024 Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta on Oct. 5 that calls for the Unicode Consortium to review and perhaps approve a proposed hot air balloon emoji, which has been pending review since January 2020.
New Mexico residents, Balloon Fiesta guests and ballooning enthusiasts around the world are encouraged to add their name to the petition, which will be available on the NMTD website at www.newmexico.org/industry and at the New Mexico True booth at Balloon Fiesta Park over the duration of Balloon Fiesta, which runs until Oct. 13.
“In a world of global communication, emojis have emerged as a way for all of us to communicate meaning and experience no matter where we are from,” NMTD’s Acting Secretary Lancing Adams said. “We fi nd it rather ‘defl ating’ that the hot air balloon
is not one of the thousands of emojis that exist. As the Ballooning Capital of the World, we believe it’s time for that to change.”
There is precedent of individuals and entities advocating for depiction of a state’s identity through emojis, such as a state legislator from Maine who pushed for the creation of the lobster emoji. Despite the fact that a hot air balloon emoji has been pending review since January 2020, the Unicode Consortium has approved 483 emojis from 2020-2023.
“It’s certainly encouraging that a hot air balloon emoji is technically pending approval, but four years is a long time to wait for a decision,” Adams said. “We hope that by showing the folks with the Unicode Consortium how many people want to bring the hot air balloon emoji to life, we can drive action and deliver this for the world.”
43rd Annual Red Rock Balloon Rally
Thursday - December 5th
6:00
Friday - December 6th
7:30 AM
6:30 PM
6:30 PM
7:00 PM
December 6 - 8, 2024
Presented by McKinley County Schedule of Events
Perry Null Trading Company Pilot Appreciation
Saturday - December 7th
7:30
6:30
Rico Auto Complex Pilot Pack Sponsor
Big Mike's Equipment Rental Platinum Sponsor
Sunday - December 8th
7:30 AM
8:00 AM
Earl's Restaurant Pilot Appreciation Sponsor
Jerry's Cafe Platinum Sponsor
