Out and about with Conner Prairie

Hello!

When I came back inside after visiting a photo shoot in Prairietown yesterday, I got to thinking about how exciting these behind-the-scenes activities really are. Fresh veggies, gigantic balloons, baby animals, Extreme Makeover—every day really is different at the prairie!

Luckily, that’s what I enjoy so much about working here. I’m Kimberly, and as the marketing assistant, I support the marketing and public relations team with writing, editing, assisting with photo shoots, coordinating with media—whatever is needed.

This spring and summer, I also have the privilege of representing Conner Prairie out in the community. Local events like the Indiana State Fair, CarmelFest and Broad Ripple Art Fair are a win-win—we get to support our community while offering people of all ages a taste of the adventures you can build when you visit Conner Prairie.

From Chase 500 Festival Kids Day on Monument Circle to Fishers FreedomFest right down the street from Conner Prairie, I’ll be out and about! Enter drawings to win tickets, find out what’s going on this summer at Conner Prairie and best of all, learn about our newest exhibit, 1859 Balloon Voyage, opening June 6. It’s not every day a giant, tethered, helium-filled balloon can be seen floating in the skies in Fishers! Stop by and I’ll tell you more about it.

Our first booth will be this Saturday at the Ransburg YMCA for YMCA Healthy Kids Day. Stop by and say hi—you'll even get to meet our Chief Balloon Pilot! See you there!

Balloon Pilots in Training

Hello to you all.

I am Adam Bouse and I’ll be posting from time to time on this new Conner Prairie staff blog. I am an Experience Manager and this will be my third season at CP. I’ve had my hands in a LOT of different projects around the grounds (and still do). I want to share with you the back story on how this place works – what does a “day-in-the-life” look like, how do we train, how do we get ready for events, and what are our inspirations. I figure that the best way to start posting here is to let you in on a little bit of what I’ve been working on most recently.

Maybe you’ve heard: we’re opening a new experience in June! (check out the pictures of construction under way) “The 1859 Balloon Voyage” will take you through the story of how Indiana played host to the first air-mail delivery. You’ll get to experience the excitement of being in Lafayette in 1859 for the original balloon launch, learn about balloon technology, and play with some fun balloon-related interactives. The whole experience will culminate in a real life ballon trip – up, up, up and away to almost 400 ft (weather dependent)!

Just last week, two other staffers and I went to begin our pilot training. Lots of physics involved, but going up is a great experience for sure. Here are some photos of the balloon we trained on. While the colors are different from ours, the size and operation are just the same.

(photos by John Elder)