Inaugural Pride Balloon Glow to kick off Pride Festival

Albuquerque's Pride Festival organizers are taking to the skies when it comes to celebrating this year's event, creating a first-of-its-kind event that is a New Mexico staple.The inaugural Pride Balloon Glow is set to kick off this year's celebration. "Albuquerque's always been a very diverse city. It's a melting pot of sorts, and there's always going to be and always has been a queer community here," said balloonist Bryce Risley.Risley has been taking to our skies for nearly 20 years. Now he's trying to build a bridge between the LGBT+ community and the ballooning community at this year's Pride Festival. By inviting both communities out to the very first-ever Pride Balloon Glow. "We have 20 balloons that are going to participate in this event, including some radio control balloons. A handful of us are actually members of the queer community, and then we have a lot of allies," Said Risley. "There's plenty of queer people in Albuquerque that would really love to get into ballooning," Risley added.Everyone is invited to Balloon Fiesta Park to watch as 20 balloons stand up and glow.Risely also wants you to get involved."We want them to feel comfortable around us and, you know, get involved with ballooning if they want to learn. There's an open door for them here," said Risley.The event is family-friendly and will feature live music, food trucks, and vendors. And for collectors, there will even be a special balloon pin being sold."We'll start to see this next generation step up and be the change that they want to see to make ballooning feel more representative of Albuquerque's actual demographics, which is colorful," said Risley.The event begins at 7 p.m. on Friday, June 9, at Balloon Fiesta Park. The glow is set to happen around 8 p.m.Admission is free.