Balloon Man. Clown. Marine.
Sgt. Chase Morrison dresses as Pocky the Balloon clown when entertaining larger groups, and as Tino the Balloon Man for his smaller audiences.
Tino the Balloon Man spends most of his time as Marine Sgt. Chase Morrison. Or as Pocky the Balloon Clown.
A meteorological and oceanographic forecaster stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan, Morrison has been making balloon characters and flower crowns for 13 years. He started creating balloon animals when he was 12 years old after another artist offered him a job if he could make 25 animals in one night.
What started as work for tips turned into a successful enterprise. The Balloon Man opened his own balloon sculpting business and has performed at hundreds of birthdays, fairs and weddings. Now,Morrison creates balloon magic for the children of his fellow Marines, and he volunteers twice a week in the Japanese community.
“Whenever Morrison sees an opportunity to use his talent to volunteer on or off base, he makes it a priority to be there,” said 1st Lt.Lindsay Pirek, spokeswoman for III Marine Expeditionary Force in Okinawa, in an email.
Morrison arrived on Okinawa in April 2010 and quickly became known for driving around base in a clown costume. Initially, most of the Marines in his unit laughed at the idea of Morrison dressing up, but his passion for volunteering soon inspired others to give back to the local community,Pirek said. The best part of being a clown? Morrison says it’s the chance to leave a lasting impression on the Japanese people as he performs,all while practicing his Japanese language skills.