Soaring in the summer sky

By Sean Rosner, seanrosner@miconews.com

A Kansas City Aerosports employee inflates a hot-air balloon south of Paola. (Photo by Sean Rosner)

When Michelle Grabber heard a knock on the front door of her north Paola home Monday afternoon, she thought it was a bit strange.

Living on the outskirts of the city, Grabber rarely gets any unexpected visitors. But when she opened the door, Grabber found that the nature of the visit was even more strange.

Standing on the porch was a crew chief from Kansas City Aerosports. He wanted to know if his company could land a hot-air balloon in Grabber’s backyard.

“That conversation will probably never happen again,” Grabber said.

Riding in the balloon’s basket were Kansas City Aerosports co-owners Chris and Amanda Sabia and Paola resident Melissa Fisher. Fisher, a Citizens Bank employee, won the chance to ride in the balloon in a contest at work. The ride was her first.

“It was so peaceful up there. You just don’t normally experience that,” she said.

Kansas City Aerosports has been doing advertising for the Bancability Group, which Citizens Bank is a part of, since April. The latest balloon launches, including Monday’s, have been promoting the High and Free checking account, which Citizens Bank recently started offering.

Fisher said she was in the air for about 20 to 30 minutes. Her favorite parts of the flight were seeing the Paola Park Square, Miami County Courthouse and Ursuline Sisters grounds from a different angle. The ride gave Fisher, who has lived in Paola for 11 years, a new appreciation for the town.

“I never realized how beautiful Paola is,” she said.

Unlike riding in an airplane, hot-air balloons do not have restrictions on cell phone use, something Fisher took full advantage of.

“I got a couple of different phone calls from friends, ‘Are you in there?’” she said. “It was quite amusing.”

Fisher said the balloon ride inspired her to do more adventurous things. She wants to try skydiving next.

The balloon also inspired people on the ground, namely Grabber’s four children, who were home when the balloon landed. When they heard the news, they ran outside to watch the landing and take pictures.

“Some of my kids now want that as a birthday gift,” Grabber said.