Blair County Balloon Artist Brings Global Happiness Campaign to Area

When department of health and state officials across the country mapped out plans for mitigating the spread of COVID-19, one of the most polarizing mandates was the requirement to wear a mask while in public.

Pro and anti-mask lines were drawn, creating a whole new set of issues for people who work with the public to deal with.

For those who work in any service industry, enforcing their company's mask policy has been met with abuse and ridicule from some, putting them in the impossible situation of doing their jobs while maintaining their composure.

For Steven Jones, a professional balloon artist from Seattle Washington, watching employees of his local grocery store getting "abused and mistreated" by angry customers was too much to take and he decided to create a way to bring a little happiness without being confrontational.

Jones created a mural made of balloons with the simple message, "Be Safe, Be Kind."

"Balloons make people happy in ways nothing else does," Jones said in a statement on his website. "If working balloon professionals cannot make people smile right now, who really can?"

The message caught on quickly and Jones realized he could expand it further than his community by enlisting the help of balloon artists across the world, giving rise to a global campaign of kindness called "One Million Bubbles."

According to Jones, 2,200 balloon artists in 81 countries joined forces to be a "source of light" in a dark world by decorating yards, public spaces, windows and balconies with their balloon art, and thanks to professional balloon artist Kerrie Baughman, Blair County has joined communities all over the world in spreading happiness through her talent.

For Baughman, who by day works for the county, spreading happiness is a way of life. When not behind her desk at the courthouse, she can be found entertaining people as her alter-ego, Miss Choo the clown, or creating unique balloon art displays for any event imaginable.

Baughman's gift of balloon art is a way for her to bring a little happiness into people's lives, and as a member of the balloon artist community, jumped at the chance to participate in the One Million Bubbles campaign and bring it to Blair County.

"I am thankful for Steven Jones," Baughman said. "We were in a bad place last year and then he came out with One Million Bubbles. It was a great way for us to express hope, joy and love with the community."

For this year's campaign, Baughman chose Poocheychef Pet Store in Duncansville to set up a display.

Poocheychef owner Chris Schezzini said she was thrilled when Baughman approached her about doing a balloon art display in her business.

"We thought it was so nice that she picked our shop to put them in," Schezzini said. "We were happy about that and all our customers were happy, too."

Schezzini said Baughman's display more than achieved its goal of bringing a smile to the faces of everyone who saw it.

"It definitely did its job," she said. "We posted it on our Facebook page and people were calling to come in and get a picture of their dog in front of the display."

For Baughman, bringing the One Million Bubbles campaign to Blair County is an extension of what she tries to do every day.

"There is never enough kindness, and my hope is that my contribution to pay it forward with one million bubbles puts a smile on the faces of others and gives people a moment of happiness," she said.