Maggie Lombardi, left, prepares a shaken lemonade at the Maggie’s Lemonade booth at the All Ohio Balloon Fest Friday afternoon as her father, Tim Norris, watches. Maggie’s Lemonade has been at the balloon festival for 13 years.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Will Channell)
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From volunteers to vendors, the All Ohio Balloon Fest has many partners who have worked with the event for years.
One thing they agreed on is the value of the festival.
“It gets Marysville on the map,” said Pat Farmer of the Rausch-Darby Kettle Korn booth at the festival.
According to Grenna Rausch, the Rausch-Darby Kettle Korn has been at the balloon fest longer than she can remember, and Farmer herself has been working the booth for nearly two decades. Farmer said she’s enjoyed seeing her friends at the event and helping out the community.
Farmer said the Balloon Fest is an event that helps to show that members of the Marysville community support each other. She used the work Impact60 is doing at the event as an example. She said the fact that money from ZZ Top ticket sales is going to a local charity shows that Marysville looks after its own.
“The money from last night’s concert (is) supposed to go to the Hope Center,” Farmer said. “That’s something to keep it here.”
Maggie’s Lemonade is another vendor that’s been present at the event for a long time. According to Norris, their stand has been at the balloon festival for 13 years. Tim Norris and his daughter, Maggie Lombardi, own and operate the business.
“I think it’s a nice event,” Norris said. “We had a heck of a crowd last night.”
He said he enjoys the music that comes through the festival, “especially some of the local stuff.” He said he appreciates the collaboration the festival has with the local community.
This collaboration includes local volunteers as well. Bob and Carol Whitman have served as volunteers at the Balloon Fest for about a decade, according to Bob.
The pair has sold tickets both at the festival and the annual Taste of Marysville event.
“It’s a way of paying back to the community,” Bob said.
Carol is originally from Marysville. She said volunteering is as much a “social thing” as a much as anything else.
“We just enjoy seeing people and it’s just fun,” she said.
Maggie’s Lemonade is local itself, and Norris lives in Marysville. He said the balloons, music, planes and sky divers combine to make something unique for Marysville.
Norris said the festival has been a consistently good experience for them. There have been times, he said, when the weather hasn’t cooperated, but other than that, it’s been positive.
Thursday night’s crowd was a particular high point in terms of attendance, according to Norris.
“They had a really big crowd last night,” Norris said. “It’s probably the largest we’ve seen on a Thursday night.”
Bob Whitman agreed, saying the huge crowd was particularly memorable.
“I’ve never seen that many people out here,” he said. “There’s so much to do and the people really enjoying themselves.”
Norris also highlighted the new balloons at the festival and said if he and his daughter didn’t enjoy the festival, they wouldn’t keep coming back.
“Good Lord willing, the wind holds up and they do the glow,” Norris joked.
Norris also said the festival helps with exposure. He said when people come to the Balloon Fest, many of them seek out Maggie’s Lemonade.
Norris mirrored Farmer, and said the event is a “community effort.” He said the fact that the All Ohio Balloon Fest has been around for decades shows that.
“This is something I think people look forward to,” Norris said.