Guinness Pops NJ Bubble-Blowing Record Try

An attempt to break the Guinness World Record for most people simultaneously blowing bubbles in multiple locations has burst.

But the effort still raised more than $18,000 for autism research.

Isabelle Mosca, the Ventnor, N.J. woman who organized the attempt in April, said the London-based Guinness organization rejected thousands of claims from participants who didn’t follow the strict documentation guidelines.

Mosca, whose 11-year-old son is autistic, said her effort had more than 37,000 people participating around the world -- about 3,000 more than needed to break the record. But many didn’t include names and signatures and others were handed in too late to count.

She said Guinness credited them with 33,250 participants. That's short of the 34,529 that set the record at 198 locations in England in 2007.

“The rest were not signed correctly or were not handed in before the end of the school year,” she said. “Some were handed in with a total count, and no names or signatures, which cancels them out. We lost over four thousand names from four schools alone. We will not let this happen again! Next year, if the response this year is any indication, we will definitely set a new record worldwide.”

Mosca chose blowing bubbles because the activity seems to soothe and captivate many children living with autism, including her son. She said the effort, which she organized on Facebook, “renewed my faith in others.”

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“School children, housekeeping staffs, senior citizens, bank employees, insurance agents, teachers, casino workers, Department Of Transportation crews, police fire, and government employees all blew bubbles and gave their time and money,” she said. “We have raised over $18,000 and it keeps coming in.”

Anyone who wants to learn more about autism or wants to help the cause should check out FACES Autism Support Network.

Guinness representatives didn’t immediately return an AP e-mail message seeking comment Friday.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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