SALEM -- Oregon turns 150 on Saturday, February 14, and the big event will also kick off an eight-month celebration stretching across the entire state.

Families can take part in the opening party during Family Day at the Capitol, scheduled for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the State Capitol in Salem. The even will include tours along with speeches from Governor Ted Kulongoski, Senate President Peter Courtney and Speaker of the House David Hunt.

Plus, the six-tiered birthday cake will be large enough to feed some 3,000 people and musical entertainment will include performances from Radio Disney and others.

The party will also include blacksmithing and wagon wheel demonstrations, historic building tours, gift bags for the first 500 children, pictures with the Gold Pioneer, candle making, square dancing, and Oregon geological and historical exhibits.

Later that same day, there will be an Oregon Ball in Salem and a Sesquicentennial Soiree in Portland.

The Oregon Ball will celebrate Oregon’s rich history from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. at the Salem Convention Center. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased through www.ornga.org

The Sesquicentennial Soiree will open at 8 p.m. and go until midnight in the Treasury Ballroom in Portland. Tickets are $50 each and available at ticketsoregon.com

The celebration of Oregon’s 150th birthday begins Feb. 14, 2009, and will last through September 2009. It was designed by the state as an opportunity to honor Oregon’s rich history as well as its natural beauty, progression of urban and rural communities, diverse economy, and original thinking.

The governor created Oregon 150, a nonprofit organization, and its mission is to inspire people across the state to remember, experience and celebrate Oregon.

Some of the special components of the Oregon 150 sesquicentennial include Oregon Stories, Take Care of Oregon, Travel Oregon, Youth Legacy Project, Oregon! Oregon, and the Dreamer’s Blog.

Oregon Stories is a chance for Oregonians to put their memories in writing about historical sites, family history and more. Then, the stories will be featured on kgw.com, as well as the Oregon 150 Web site, for others to share and enjoy.

Take Care of Oregon Days is a project designed to help clean up the state. The goal is to have 500 projects and 20,000 volunteers improve the quality of life for everyone throughout the month of May.

Travel Oregon encourages people to travel 150 miles or more over the next year by car, bike or even river raft and then they’ll be eligible for prizes. Oregon has more scenic byways and tour routes than any other state and even locals need to get out and enjoy them more.

The Youth Legacy Project involves Oregon youth in three ways. One, in the creation of five Youth Legacy Parks. Two, in participating in K-12 and Higher Education's sesquicentennial activities and curricula, and three, in having high school students craft a vision for Oregon in 2059, the bicentennial year.

The musical, Oregon! Oregon! will be performed throughout the state from August to September 2009 and features Pink Martini, a Portland-based group of entertainers that now has a huge following across the globe. Pink Martini grew from four musicians to its current twelve, and has gone on to perform its multilingual repertoire on concert stages and with symphony orchestras throughout Europe, Asia, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon, Canada and the United States.

The Imagine Oregon is an interactive tool for Oregonians to share their dreams on what Oregon’s future will look like. It’s an open forum where everyone’s expression is welcome.