65 Pre-school Children Play Inside Giant 75-foot Tall Balloon

PNC & BALLOON FESTIVAL HELP LOCAL CHILDREN GROW UP GREAT MATAWAN, NJ — The QuickChek New Jersey Festival of Ballooning and PNC Bank brought a giant, 75-foot-tall hot air balloon to Matawan on Friday, June 5 to promote PNC’s “Grow Up Great” school readiness program with the YMCA Children’s Learning Center in Matawan. 65 pre-school children between the ages of 3 and 5 years old enjoyed the unique opportunity to step inside a giant hot air balloon to experience the thrills and visual attractions this event offers as they study the world around them. In this “walk-through” event, a giant hot air balloon was inflated with cold air and laid on its side and secured to the ground, allowing the children to play inside. Festival executive producer Howard Freeman provided an age-appropriate lesson on the science of hot air ballooning. PNC’s “Grow Up Great” program is the most comprehensive corporate-based school readiness program in the country, a $350 million, multi-year initiative that began in 2004 to support school readiness. The balloon is a retired balloon from the 33rd annual QuickChek New Jersey Festival of Ballooning in Association with PNC Bank, to be held July 24-25-26, 2015 at Solberg Airport in Readington, NJ. To learn more visit www.balloonfestival.com. ### MEDIA CONTACT:     Russ Mensch Mensch & Company, Inc. Public Relations & Event Marketing phone: 201-797-2448 email: [email protected]