In 2003, I made one of several trips with my balloon to Palouse, Washington to fly from my aunt and uncle’s (Richard and Marjorie Bourne’s) farm and over the harvested wheat fields. This was always a beautiful experience, with many cousins and other relatives turning out for the experience. But that year was unique. Not only did my brother-in-law, Jim, bring his powered parachute along, my uncle, Bob Donovan, created a video of the event with music. He used to call this his “magnum opus.” Sadly, as he was making the video, he was in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease, and no one knew it. He was able to finish the video, but it was the last thing he was able to do on the computer. The result was special and will give you pretty good idea of balloon flight from start to finish .
A couple of years ago, one of my cousins suggested that I post the video on my blog. At the time, it was more difficult to do that, but changes in YouTube have made it easier, so technology now allows me to share this video of the sport I loved, with the people I love and made by my uncle, whom I miss.
(Note: the video is 34 minutes long, so you may want to view it when you have the time.)
Thank you, Rich, for sharing our family legacy brought to us by you in sharing the balloon, and your uncle Bob in capturing these moments on video. I concur with Lorraine, it brought tears to our eyes to see Mom and Dad and other family members in the kitchen and at the ballooning event at their farm. Love, love, loved it! Planning on sharing it with my friends and other family members. Thanks so much!
Thanks for the many years you brought the balloon. Many great adventures in all different directions. That was neat to relive the full process. Great memories…
Fabulous! It was with indescribable joy (and with tears in my eyes) that I viewed this video. It brought back memories of so many other times you patiently and tirelessly brought our families together for this unique experience. It was wonderful seeing Dad (Richard) again and seeing Mom (Marjorie) and Claire in earlier days. And, yes, “butts on” was one of the highlights of the event. I want to share this with other members of the family. Thank you!
Nice to have this for the ‘record’, many memories here for your family and friends.
That is extraordinary! What an incredible legacy. The workmanship in editing that complete with the fantastic sound track is amazing. Most importantly, Uncle Bob captured the essence of Palouse and the family that gathered that day to work together just to witness a few of us leave the Earth for a moment. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house by “Butts On!”