Twenty colorful hot air balloons floated through the skies during the Gila Valley New Year's Balloon Extravaganza.  For the fifth year in a row, the event hosted pilots from six states.  Gila Valley Balloons, a local nonprofit organization, has organized the Extravaganza as a way to promote tourism and offer free, family-friendly activities over the four day holiday from December 29th through January 1st.  The Extravaganza is now listed on sites as one of the top ten FREE, family-friendly New Year's activities in Arizona.

Co-organizer and balloon meister Susan Lindsey said, "We want families to have free activities to celebrate New Years that are not associated with drinking or partying."  Lindsey said  New Year's is the perfect time to hold the event to accomplish this goal and because hotels have the capacity to accommodate the housing needs of pilots, their families, and their crew, which equates to over 100 people.  

Based on drone footage, the Extravaganza activities attracted several thousand people to the evening events and morning drone footage showed cars lining the streets around the launch field, full parking lots and people throughout the valley watching and following the balloons as they flew west from Safford past Pima.

While all sponsorships received free balloon rides, 55 community VIP's and Duck Hunt winners were also invited to fly during the event.  The committee offered Golden Tickets to VIP's who had given back to their community including the Pima Turkey Trot organizers Cody Marshall and Melinda Pratt Nelson who, for almost 20 years, have given all proceeds from the Turkey Trot to Pima Schools.  Luke and Lisa Hatch were invited as VIP's as a thank-you for helping local families going through cancer. VIP Dr. Debbie Chapman flew based on what she does to help animals in the valley.  A very special guest, 10-year-old AJ Broderick-Alonso was invited to fly after the committee learned about her Christmas Backpack Project. AJ collected over $2,100 to assemble backpacks for the homeless which she filled with blankets, first aid kits, reusable water bottles, socks, rain ponchos, hand warmers, military surplus meals and even Bibles.  AJ's mother, Chas Broderick said, "When I told her about getting chosen to ride in the hot air balloon, she was confused and asked "why me?" I explained that she was being honored for the efforts she did on her Christmas Backpack Project.  She said, "Wow! I can't believe they chose me!""  According to her mom,  AJ had an absolute blast and wants to join the balloon chase crew now and hopes she can fly again.

Gila Valley Balloons board members, Greg and Susan Lindsey, Marie Arrington, Jon Anderson, Casey Gable, and Karen Ramirez-Ragland, work with a committee throughout the year to organize the Extravaganza.  Hosting the Extravaganza is dependent on two factors–recruiting volunteers to crew, and obtaining financial support through sponsors, donations and grants. "The United Way of Graham and Greenlee Counties is our biggest supporter through a $5,000 grant," said Susan Lindsey.  "They have supported us for a couple of years now as a way to give back to our community through this free, family-friendly activity."  They, along with 23 businesses either donate money or purchase sponsorships to make the Extravaganza happen.   As a 501c3, the organization received tax-deductible donations and were grateful to receive a grant for non-profits from the City of Safford.  Board member and co-balloon meister Greg Lindsey, who single-handedly gathers all of the financial support for the event, said most sponsors have supported the Extravaganza for a number of years.  "While sponsorships come with free balloon rides during the event, most of our sponsors do it because they believe the Extravaganza is good for our community. They find it is a great way to give back to our community and we truly appreciate them supporting us," Greg said.  

Besides funding, volunteers are essential.  Board member Marie Arrington explained how the committee recruits volunteers by reaching out to local schools, putting up flyers, talking to people at Merry Mainstreet, and volunteering all of the people they know.  "Simply put, if we can't get enough volunteers to help the pilots launch and chase the balloons, the balloons can't fly," Arrington said. The committee is grateful that the LDS missionaries have been allowed to help as part of a service to the community.  "They have made a big difference and we hope to have missionary help each year.  Crewing for a balloon is not only fun but it is a community service because we can't offer the Extravaganza if we can't get volunteer crew for the pilots."  This year all volunteers received a free event t-shirt and many were invited by the pilots to fly.  "Many volunteers have formed ongoing friendships with the pilots and return each year to help.  We try to make sure our pilots have a day or two to fly crew as a thank you for their service," Arrington said.  

One of the goals of Gila Valley Balloons is to promote local businesses and the Duck Hunt has become a highly anticipated activity.  Beginning in November, participating businesses hide Extravaganza ducks somewhere in their business.  When the public find an Extravaganza duck, they are given a QR code to go online and register to win a free hot air balloon ride.  This year over 150 people who found ducks registered and 21 winners were offered free hot air balloon rides.  According to the Lindsey"s, only about one percent of the world's population will ever have an opportunity to fly in a hot air balloon, so they were excited that 55 VIP's or Duck Hunt winners from the community were able to fly for free.

The Extravaganza also promotes local businesses through hosting vendors at the events.  "Our goal is to help our local businesses, so we don't charge our vendors a fee to participate.  We want them to make money," said food and vendor director Casey Gable.  The committee limits how many vendors can participate and they don't allow vendors to overlap what they sell.  "This helps ensure our vendors make a profit during the event.  We were excited to offer nine vendor spots this year and based on lines being busy, we plan to expand this number next year," Gable said.

The Extravaganza started in 2020 when a small group of eight pilots were invited by Greg and Susan to fly in the Gila Valley.  The Lindseys said the late, great Jason Kouts, mayor of the City of Safford, saw the balloons flying and thought this would be a great thing for the community, so he asked the Lindseys to make this an annual event.  "We travel to 18 balloon events a year in seven different states.  We have seen what an economic impact balloon rallies can have on towns smaller than ours like Saline, Kanab, and Bluff, UT, Bloomfield, New Mexico, and Mesquite, Nevada.  We are the only hot air balloon event in all of southern Arizona and the only free one in most of Arizona.  We truly believe the Extravaganza, already listed as one of the top ten New Year's activities for families in Arizona, can continue to grow and greatly benefit our community," Susan Lindsey said.

Extravaganza sponsors this year included 5-year returning sponsors Az Air Ventures, Ice King and Mattlock Gas; 4-year returning sponsor Tom & Tracy Pursley of Tierra Antigua Reality; 3-year returning sponsors Advanced Air, Boulevard Glass, Copper Hills Dental, Tyson Richins of Edward Jones, Goodman Ag, Griffin's Propane, Kempton Chevrolet, Tri-County Materials, Vining Funeral Home, Vista Recycling; 2-year returning sponsors Barney Trucking, American Mattress/Valley Furniture, Gila Valley Embroidery, Graham County Board of Supervisors, and first-time sponsors Desert Bloom Dentistry, Sparklight, and Sundt Construction.  A generous grant from United Way of Graham and Greenlee Counties, a grant from the City of Safford and in-kind donations, as well as in-kind donations from Comfort Inn of Thatcher, Home Depot, and Relax Tax and Accounting all are crucial to keeping the Extravaganza funded. The Lindseys emphasized that because they want this event to remain FREE to the community, one of the only free balloon events in the state, sponsors, grants and donations are the only way they can continue to offer the event.