Hot air balloons will fill the air over Fuquay-Varina’s Fleming Loop Park during the Freedom Balloon Fest, May 25-28. This annual Memorial Day weekend event includes live music, food trucks, arts and crafts vendors, plus tethered balloon rides and nightly “glows.”

Admission is free, but balloon rides are $20 each with a portion of the proceeds benefitting Project Uplift USA. The nonprofit provides hot air balloon experiences to military veterans and their families, promotes science education through ballooning, and honors those who have died in service to our nation.

Visitors are invited to purchase flags, which will fill a reflecting area at Fleming Loop Park. On Memorial Day, volunteers will take the flags to cemeteries, military monuments, and VA nursing facilities. Organizers hope to sell 10,000 flags at $3 each. All proceeds of flag sales go to AMVETS Service Foundation.

For more festival info, including parking details, see freedomballoonfest.com.