Residents Unite Together to Celebrate National Night Out
On August 6th, PSCDC teamed up with local police and fire departments and city officials to celebrate the 35th annual National Night Out (NNO) this year. This year, Monterey Pines in Richmond, Willow Glen in Sacramento, Lakeside in San Leandro, and many communities across the nation received a visit from their community police and fire departments.
National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that builds neighborhood camaraderie and develops a community partnership with residents and first responders. The evening event is an effort to encourage residents to employ crime prevention techniques and to take back communities from crime and violence by promoting neighborhood involvement and participation. Monterey Pines, Willow Glen, and Lakeside enjoyed the night in their own unique ways.
Lakeside residents enjoyed their evening with the San Leandro police and the Alameda county fire department who shared their knowledge of safety with the residents and 52 other communities in one evening. The entire community was thrilled to have these men and women in uniform coming over. To 10-year-old Hadil, it was "a fun learning experience, a good party, with delicious food." To Ms. Leah, a volunteer at the Lakeside community, couldn't agree more. "I think it was the biggest event we had here and I liked how the police officers showed us how to wear the police vests."
Willow Glen residents focused more on strengthening community relationships as neighbors gathered in the community room to share some excellent food from their country of origin and meet their neighbors. With such a diverse community at Willow Glen, the potluck had a little bit of everything. Chicken and vegetable Biryani, samosas, tikki, garbanzo bean salad, Afghani sweet rice, mac & cheese, and watermelon with cake for dessert were served to all the residents in attendance. Afterwards, some fun games and prizes were planned for the youth. Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Musical Chairs, and a spoon/marble race kept the evening entertaining. As the final event of the evening, all of the children gathered together for everyone to have a crack or two at the piñata supplied by the community's maintenance man, Sergio. Like last year, NNO was also a huge success at Willow Glen.
Monterey Pines residents similarly focused on community building and this year, NNO brought out over 200 residents to participate! A jumper for kids, a music DJ, face painting, and lots of food were all planned by the PSCDC resident services coordinators and WINN management staff which kept the party going throughout the evening. One main attraction however, was the children's bike raffle. The East Shore Neighborhood Council graciously donated children's bikes to our residents and the children were incredibly excited in winning new bikes. The evening truly brought the community together.
National Night Out has become a well-anticipated event for our residents that grow bigger every year. PSCDC would like to thank all police officers, firefighters, and city officials who not only risk their lives for community safety but also giving back to the communities they serve.
To learn more about National Night Out and the impact it has had on communities across the nation, click here.
