national night out
Police get acquainted with communities they serve
Munster police will be out with fireworks and a helicopter landing Tuesday evening, while Valparaiso police are creating a caravan from neighborhood to neighborhood in their squad cars.
Their hope is that the people in the communities they serve will come out with them.
“We just hope to see as many people out as possible,” said Lt. Dawn Westerfield, spokeswoman for Gary police.
Police departments across Lake and Porter counties are hosting free events Tuesday as part of the annual National Night Out, in which law enforcement agencies across the country hold community gatherings to bring officers and the residents they serve together in a casual setting.
“National Night Out is the one night nationwide that we all set aside to bring police officers and the community together in the hopes of violence reduction,” Westerfield said.
This year, Gary is holding its department’s event at a new venue, the recently refurbished James Reed Park, located at 14th Avenue and Pennsylvania Street. Officers welcome people to join them for K-9 demonstrations, music and a DJ, giveaways and games, Westerfield said.
Rather than only seeing police when there’s an emergency or a crisis, Westerfield said National Night Out is an opportunity for children to “learn that officers don’t just show up when something bad is going on.”
“We really care about the community,” Westerfield said. “We care about the violence happening here and we want to see it reduced any way possible.”
National Night Out also gives people a chance to see the people behind the badge, said Lt. Steve Kellogg, spokesman for Hammond police. Officers are “just regular people with regular lives outside of being police,” he said.
“We’re trying to build those relationships and establish some new ones with kids who haven’t come out and met us before and even adults who haven’t,” Kellogg said.
From 5 to 8 p.m., Hammond officers will be out at Aquatic Play Center at Wolf Lake, located at 2100 Calumet Ave.
“It’s so important today to stay in touch with the community because so much is said through social media and video cameras and so much is lost in that medium somehow,” Kellogg said.
Plus, it’s a chance for people to get out and have fun, said Officer James Ghrist, who runs the National Night Out event for Munster police.
“There’s just a lot of cool things, and we hope that people come out and have a good time that night and have fun and learn something at the same time,” Ghrist said.
Munster’s event will be from 5 to 9 p.m. at Munster Community Pool, 8837 Calumet Ave., with more than 70 booths set up by area businesses and organizations.
“We just try to build on it every year and make it bigger and better and make it more fun for everybody,” Ghrist said.
This year, Munster police will have a SWAT exhibit, police cars and firetrucks for people to view, a Fallen Officers Blood Drive and free swimming for Munster residents, Ghrist said. The evening will end with fireworks sponsored by Krazy Kaplan.
While most departments in the area are holding events in public spaces, Valparaiso police do something a little different, said Sgt. Michael Grennes, spokesman for the department.
Valparaiso police ask for people to plan events in their neighborhoods and officers travel together, visiting each neighborhood, Grennes said. Some have had cookouts or ice cream socials in years past, he said.
“It’s kind of a neat way to do it,” Grennes said.
This way, people get a chance to meet neighbors they might not have otherwise, and it allows police to go to areas they might not see often in their daily patrols, Grennes said.
It’s an opportunity for police and community members to build relationships, face to face, Kellogg said.
“We’ll be an open book to anybody that wants to come out and ask questions,” Kellogg said.
Other area National Night Out events include:
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