Gentry balloons travel to Missouri, Michigan

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

— GENTRY - Balloons released from Gentry High School during a send-off for the football team which was headed to the state playoffs in Nashville were found in neighboring states, with one traveling more than a 1,000 miles to Michigan.

On Friday, Nov. 12, Gentry cheerleaders, football players and coaches released balloons at 10 a.m. in honor of the football team, which wasabout to leave for state playoffs. Approximately 75-80 balloons were released, according to cheer coach Joni Wilson. Half of the balloons were white and the other half, maroon. A laminated note explaining the reason for the balloon release was attached to each balloon,along with the name of a player, coach or cheerleader. A phone number was also included, asking anyone finding a balloon to report the time and place the balloon was found.

The first balloon was found within 1 1/2 hours. At 11:30 a.m., MichaelHoover of Neosho, Mo., was pulling off a ramp 4 to 5 miles north of Neosho when a balloon hit his windshield, according to Wilson. He said the balloon fascinated himbecause he saw the tag hanging from it. He watched it float over into a tree and he pulled over and retrieved the balloon. It was the balloon of football player Clay Norman. Player Shannon Smith's balloon was also found near Neosho at 11:54 a.m. when Neosho residentTim Mason went out to check his cows.

That afternoon, about 2:45 p.m., football player Ben Tuttle’s balloon was found 45 minutes north of Springfield on a fence. The balloons of football player Bobby Montez and of Coach Marty Edmiston were also found in the Neosho area. The balloon of cheer captain Chelsey Beach was found in Wheatland, Mo., by a quail hunter, according to Wilson.

Though most of the balloons were found in Missouri, the balloon of football player Jarod Cozens was found on the morning of Nov. 14 by Daryl Purdy, in East Port, Mich., according to Wilson. Purdy said he was deer hunting when he found the balloon. He said he immediately calculated the distance the balloon had traveled on his computer and found it had been carried more than a 1,000 miles.

While Cozens’ balloon was found the greatestdistance from Gentry, the balloon of Olivia Godin, senior cheerleader and co-captain, was found last week only a few miles away. It was found by a Gravette man, near a pond.

Among interesting facts reported by Wilson are the following: all eight of the balloons found and reported were white; only about 10 percent of the balloons were reported found; and what happened to the maroon-colored balloons is unknown. A few years ago, in a similar balloon release, the balloons were carried to the southeast. A balloon released in 2008 was found in the area of Fort Knox, Ky.In an earlier release, a balloon was found in Mobile, Ala., the morning after the release.

“The kids enjoyed this and have had fun seeing who all called in and from where,” Wilson said. “The people that called, I think, had just as much fun, as they all gave us their addresses and want a copy of this article.”

Community News, Pages 7 on 12/15/2010