• March 5, 2010

Mazda and "Visit Florida," the state's official tourism marketing corporation, are extending a partnership launched in December with a promotion around the Grand Prix of Miami on March 6. At the Homestead/Miami Raceway, actor and racer Patrick Dempsey's racing Mazda RX-8 will have the Visit Florida "'Share a Little Sunshine" campaign logo.

Racers competing in the Star Mazda Championship Presented by Goodyear this month in Sebring, Fla. will compete for a new award, called the "Visit Florida" Cup.

The tourism organization says the aim of the "Share a Little Sunshine" effort is to boost Florida's economy with tourism, accounting for one million Florida jobs and about a fifth of the state's economy, per the organization.

The campaign includes a prize package to be given away each quarter to someone who sent an invitation through ShareaLittleSunshine.org. The packages include such prizes as a Florida vacation or a Mazda Miata. --Karl Greenberg