PHGC hosts balloon glow for community

PARADISE HILLS — On Oct. 8, Paradise Hills Golf Course held a hot air balloon glow event for the community.

"I thought it was perfect. The Balloon Fiesta — and hot air balloons — represents the state of New Mexico. It's one of our staples, like green chile," said Rudy Perez said, good and beverage director for both PHGC and The Office Bar & Grill.

Six balloons were set up on the PHGC driving range, and families set up lawn chairs throughout the course.

"Some balloonists reached out to me ... they told me that they would like to do a balloon glow for this side of town," Perez said. "The balloonists were so nice. They did not charge any money, either. All of us involved just wanted to make an event for the community, for the families, for the kids."

The free event was created as an alternative to anyone who could not attend the 2024 Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

"But — and I hate to say it like this — a lot of us locals don't go all the time because of a lot of traffic, because we don't have four to six free hours to go in the morning," Perez said. "And the response we got was incredible; they told me, 'You know what, I was not going to go to the Balloon Fiesta, but when we saw your social media about it, we said we can do that!'"