Columbus, Ind. – December 2, 2009 - First Financial Bank, N.A. and the City of Columbus today announced a new partnership for the 2010 Ethnic Expo. First Financial will serve as the major corporate sponsor for the Expo, an event that celebrates the diversity of the Columbus community and showcases ethnic foods, traditions and entertainment from cultures around the world.

“The Ethnic Expo celebrates everything the city of Columbus represents—a strong diverse community, rich traditions and civic pride,” said Claude Davis, President and CEO of First Financial Bank. “This event belongs to the people of Columbus and we’re proud to support it in the coming year.”

As Ethnic Expo’s title sponsor, First Financial will donate $25,000 to the city of Columbus. Mayor Fred L. Armstrong and his staff will allocate this donation and others to pay for entertainment, fireworks, staff overtime pay and other major expenses.

“Without the support of organizations like First Financial Bank, this event would not be possible,” said Mayor Armstrong. “We are still in need of additional community support but with this new First Financial partnership we are well on our way to making this year’s Expo our best yet. We look forward to collaborating with First associates for new and fresh event ideas in 2010.”

The 2010 Expo will feature many of the signature programs that have made the event such a success in the past. New activities and features are also in the works. As Mayor Fred L. Armstrong explains, “The International Food Booths and Bazaar as well as the parade will continue but we also want to incorporate more kid-friendly activities this year.”

To learn more about Ethnic Expo or engage in the planning process for 2010, please contact Ali Crimmins, Special Projects Coordinator at 812-376-2520 or acrimmins@columbus.in.gov.

About Ethnic Expo
The Expo, now in its 26th year, attracts more than 35,000 people to the city of Columbus for the two-day festival each autumn. The event is open to the general public and there is no admission fee. The contributions of passionate volunteers and local benefactors enable Ethnic Expo to thrive. Members of the community drive Ethnic Expo programming with an eye toward engaging a wide spectrum of cultural groups and organizations. The Ethnic Expo brings together civic-minded residents, service organizations, church groups, not-for-profit organizations, benefactors from the local business community and other volunteers.

About First Financial
First Financial Bank, headquartered in Hamilton, Ohio, was founded in 1863 and operates under the eighth oldest national bank charter. With assets of $7.3 billion, First Financial operates 131 banking centers in its primary service area of Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and Michigan. The company’s wealth-management line of business, known as the Wealth Resource Group, has $2.0 billion in assets under management in investments, traditional trusts, private banking and insurance. Additional information is available at www.bankatfirst.com.