Ever wanted to take a picture with a Blue Angel? This month's Gallery Night is your chance

In Pensacola, every day is a good day to celebrate the Blue Angels, but this Friday will be an extra special opportunity because the U.S. Navy Blue Angels will be on the streets of downtown Pensacola for a special "Celebrate Blue Angels" Gallery Night event.

The evening will have an array of activities from 5 to 9 p.m., including a highly anticipated meet and greet from 6 to 8 p.m. with about a dozen active Blue Angels.

The pilots will be available to chat with visitors, sign autographs and snap photos. The opportunity will provide a small, up-close experience with the Blue Angels before the busy Homecoming Air Show this November.

Jacqueline Tarver, executive director of Gallery Night Pensacola, said the idea for the theme came from the Gallery Night board's desire to find a way to highlight the pilots.

The event was rolled over from a 2021 collaboration between Gallery Night Pensacola, presented by Publix, and the Blue Angels Foundation to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Blue Angels. The event last year was ultimately canceled due to the spike in COVID-19 numbers.

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The evening will also feature other Blue Angels-themed attractions, such as artwork by National Naval Aviation Museum volunteer flight line photographer Kate Bodden, a musical performance by the Blue Anchor Belles military spouse trio and even the opportunity to participate in a flight simulation, the "Blue Angel Cockpit Experience," made possible by the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation.

"Aviation is an art form in of itself," Tarver said. "To be able to share in a similar experience and know what it's like for our pilots that we love so much to be up there …that kind of gives the community and their fans a little bit more to appreciate them."

The Blue Anchor Belles will be performing on Garden Street near Vinyl Music Hall, while the other Blue Angel activities will take place near the intersection of West Romana and South Palafox streets.

In addition to the night's themed events, the event will feature the debut of a half dozen new vendors and a new food truck.

Also in the Blue Angels section of the street, super fans are encouraged to try to answer a riddle to win one of six free copies of "Blue Angels Decades: Volume One (1946-1955)" written by Blue Angels historian Mat "Irish" Garretson.

The riddle is as follows: "What magazine did the team first see themselves named as the Blue Angels?"

The first six people to answer the question correctly will win a standard edition valued at $50.

Aside from the activities, Tarver said Gallery Night is an opportunity to build community in Pensacola. She encourages locals and visitors to come early and stay long.

"Joining a community is just one step in building a community, so come on out and spend some time with us,” Tarver said.

Tarver also noted to keep an eye on the rest of the year's rotating Gallery Night themes, such as "Fright Night" on Oct. 21, "Throwback/Decades" on Nov. 18 and "Ugly Sweater Day" Dec. 16.

More updates and information can be found on the Gallery Night website, gallerynightpensacola.org, and the Gallery Night Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Celebrate Blue Angels at Friday's Gallery Night in downtown Pensacola