PENSACOLA, Fla. - April 2, 2008 - Gulf Power Company wants to get the party started. Their $10,000 donation is the first to Celebrate Pensacola, the not-for-profit organization putting together the city’s 450th birthday party that starts next year.

In 1559 Spanish explorer Don Tristan de Luna sailed into Pensacola Bay and started the New World’s first settlement. That was 15 years before St. Augustine and 48 years before the pilgrims landed in New England. Since that time, Pensacola has been ruled by the Spanish, French, British, the Confederate States and the United States.

The city will begin to celebrate its 450th birthday next year, but plans are to keep the party going until 2014 when the area will mark the 100th anniversary of Naval Aviation in Pensacola.

“Pensacola has more history than any other city in America, and that’s something we need to celebrate,” John Hutchinson, Gulf Power’s General Manager of Public Affairs, said. “Gulf Power has been a part of that history for 82 years and we’re proud of our diverse history.”

Coy Irvin, Chairman of the Celebrate Pensacola Executive Committee, said the support from Gulf Power is essential to the success of the commemoration.

“We’re very pleased to have Gulf Power as our first major sponsor,” Irvin said. “Their support will ensure that it’s a celebration for the entire community. Pensacola has such a rich and diverse heritage, and a community leader like Gulf Power coming forward means we’re off to a great start.”

Tentative plans for the celebration include a number of festivals, a visit by old sailing ships, and a proposed visit to Pensacola by the King of Spain.

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For more information on the 450th Celebration, contact the Pensacola Bay Area Convention & Visitors Bureau at 434-1234 or go to www.visitpensacola.com.