One-on-one with Tom Garrity

Tom Garrity remembers a problem in the midst of the 2000 Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta — the field was wet, hit by “horrendous rain.”

“Dirt turned to mud,” said Garrity, 61. “I’m like going, ‘Holy cow, we have an event coming up. How are we going to communicate that the field is dry but it's really not?’”

Luck had it that KRQE was looking to do some “low-level hovers” with its helicopter to get some shots.

Then KOAT called.

“What’s Channel 13 doing over there?” Garrity recalled someone from the local TV station saying. The helicopter was drying off the field, of course. Then came KOB. And, to put the icing on top, the 58th Special Operations Wing came calling.

“They said, ‘We want to send over a Black Hawk,’” Garrity said. “I said, ‘Everybody’s welcome.’ And so we had four helicopters over the field, all drying it off as a part of a community effort to get everybody ready for Balloon Fiesta. That was a fun moment.”

Garrity is the founder and president of Albuquerque-based The Garrity Group, a firm that specializes in public relations. He has many of those stories as the long-time spokesperson for the state’s biggest event.

Garrity, a former television journalist, has been working in public relations for roughly three decades. He’s also served on boards across the state, including the United Way of Central New Mexico and Visit Albuquerque. He takes great pride in his role as an intermediary between his clients and public-facing media — or, as he puts it, “shaping the brands that shape New Mexico.”

“A client will only have one shot to tell their story. They’ll have one chance to inform their first draft of history,” Garrity said. “And so, from my perspective, … to be in that position to help our clients shape what could be that first draft is really quite an honor for me.”

What is the Garrity Group?

“The Garrity Group helps small businesses to be heard and large organizations to be understood. We’re, in business terms, professional services, and we just happen to provide public relations, media relations and community engagement on behalf of our clients. We also do a lot of other things, like issue management, crisis communications.”

How many companies do you work with?

“Right now, I’m working with about 20 clients, and it’s not just me. We have a great team. We have a full-time staff of four team members and three contractors right now, and so it’s clearly a team effort.

And when I look at our alumni base and see others who are successful in the field, it’s just truly humbling for me to work with the team I have and then just to see how different team members have gone on to be successful as well.”

What has kept you going for so long in this industry?

“It’s fun. I still get a kick out of developing and implementing strategies, helping clients to message through situations, making connections on behalf of clients.

To me, it’s really something that’s a passion. I don’t think it can be taught. You know, you can teach a lot of the tactics and the strategies. But for me, I’ve always just had a passion for helping others tell their story, and that’s why it just doesn’t get old being able to help a client who is in a good place and helping a client who’s not necessarily in a good place.”

How did you land the contract to work with the Balloon Fiesta?

“I was working with the (Albuquerque) Convention and Visitors Bureau, which is now Visit Albuquerque, and Dick Gilliland, who was the CEO at the time, reached out and he says, ‘Hey, Tom. Why don’t you find out what those balloon people are doing up at the north end of town?’ And I said, ‘What do you mean? You mean the Balloon Fiesta?’ He says, ‘Yeah. We haven’t really gotten too involved with them before. And we’d like to really increase our involvement.’

So having covered the Fiesta and having won an Emmy for producing specials on Balloon Fiesta, I had some ties, and so I went up there and I talked to Jodi Baugh — she headed up the sponsors and she had landed part of the Kodak Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. I said, ‘Hey, I’m with the CVB and I’m here to help.’ And she goes, ‘Fantastic. You can coordinate the media. I’ll take care of sponsorships.’ And so that’s how the relationship started. It was very much roll up your sleeves kind of stuff.

Marge Ruppenthal was very much in charge at the time as the executive director and was a great leader for the organization. … When I left to start my own firm in 1997, I said, ‘Hey Jodi, let’s turn (the Fiesta) into a client. And she said, ‘Great. Let’s do it.’ And so that’s when The Garrity Group started working with the Fiesta.”

What does this job entail during Fiesta time?

“This time of year is very fast-paced. We’re getting inquiries from not just a number of great local reporters, but we also are getting a lot of international (inquiries). And then we’re also just getting ready to host hundreds of media organizations to the event each year that travel literally from around the world to help tell the Balloon Fiesta story.”

Do you have any hobbies outside of work?

“I have done a lot of trail running and just running in general … and occasionally fly-fishing. But I enjoy running, kind of going up into the foothills. Earlier this year, I had an opportunity to hike Kilimanjaro. I love anything outdoors and being active are things that I really enjoy.”