A red hot air balloon, with giant poppies, popped up in central Ashburton on Monday raising awareness about the RSA and its Poppy Appeal.
Poppy, as its known, was in the Ashburton RSA car park and around 30 people turned out to see the tethered balloon in all its glory, which took about 25 minutes to inflate.
It was up for about 45 minutes until rain setting in meant it had to quickly be deflated and it was all hands on deck to squash the air out of the balloon before it was packed up.
RSA president Rob Aldridge said he was pleased with supporter turnout.
‘‘It was absolutely amazing and so much fun being at the hot end,” he said.
Poppy is owned by Balloon Brand Marketing Ltd owners Daryl and Dianne McKee of Hamilton. The company does banner advertising and custom balloons for companies like Air New Zealand, Kit Kat, Whiskers and Kodak.
The McKees were in the district to take part in Fire & Ice Hot Air Balloon Glow and Laser Festival in Methven this Saturday. Fourteen hot air balloons were expected.
Dianne said they were looking forward to taking part in this year’s event since at their last visit in 2024, they got covid and could not take part.
They hoped, weather permitting, to be flying mornings and some afternoons ahead of the event.
The McKee’s have been flying for around 40 years.
Daryl, who previously served with the Royal New Zealand Air Force and Navy, has more than 2700 flying hours.
They have flown balloons in many countries including yearly visits to the United States.
The pair bought Poppy after their son, Kieran — also a pilot with their company — saw it for sale in England.
“We looked at buying the balloon but didn’t initially. With the 2015 commemoration of World War 1 beginning we decided to purchase it,” Dianne said.
It was freighted to New Zealand and its first tethering was at a dawn Anzac Day service at Waiouru Army Camp.
“The sight of the balloon, and hearing the footsteps of the soldiers in unison along with the horses still gives me goose bumps,” she said.
The McKee’s first flight with Poppy at the Wairarapa Balloon Festival was “surreal”.
“We took off from the Soldiers’ Memorial Park and Daryl brought it down in Featherston in the grounds of the former army camp,” Dianne said.
The McKee’s have a close relationship with the Cambridge RSA.
“We enjoy attending the dawn service there tethering the balloon. It’s quite a sight especially if the fog is around,” she said.
