“We’re off death row, but we’re not out of jail yet.”

That’s how Howard Freeman, executive producer of the New Jersey Festival of Ballooning, described the continuing search for one -- or multiple -- new lead sponsors following the exit of QuickChek, which had served as the event’s title sponsor for 26 years.

While initially stating that one or more head sponsors needed to be secured by Friday for the festival to continue into this year, Freeman said negotiations are continuing with “a major New Jersey entity” for whom he has extended the agreement deadline to Friday.

“The event was on its way to the electric chair, and the warden got a phone call," Freeman quipped. “We are in discussions now. Hopefully they will be fruitful; you never know until all the I’s are dotted and the T’s are signed."

“(The new sponsor) is going to be a hero for keeping this event in the state of New Jersey,” he added.

Billed as the largest summertime balloon and music festival in North America, the event is currently scheduled to take place from July 24-26 at the Solberg Airport in Readington Township in Hunterdon County but remains at risk of being canceled.

“We’re really not bluffing here. This is an event that could go away,” Freeman said.

More than 2,500 people are employed by the annual festival, which in 2019 drew a record crowd of 169,500 people and pumped $52.4 million into the state’s economy, according to organizers.

Caroline Fassett can be reached at cfassett@njadvancemedia.com.

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