Local & State Headlines

National night out ‘valuable’ to community

• National Night Out is a going away party for crime, organizers say.

J.D. Sumner

ALBANY — Hundreds braved near triple-digit temperatures Tuesday afternoon to voice their displeasure with the criminal element and to meet the officers who deal with it on a daily basis.

Local National Night Out activities began at Target on Dawson Road at 2 p.m. with music, fun and informational activities geared toward getting the public involved with the officers who fight crime.

“It’s been a good turnout, for the heat anyways,” Dougherty County Chief Don Cheek said as he wiped sweat from his forehead. “Next year we’re doing it in February,” he quipped.

A part of a larger, global movement encompassing more than 35 million participants, the National Night Out program was started nearly 25 years ago. Locally, it involves most public safety agencies from both the Albany and Dougherty County governments.

The Target “carnival” featured cool ways to beat the scorching heat by allowing the public to get a little wet with a dunking-booth type activity that used water balloons to douse its victims and to munch on snow cones and other cool treats while moving from booth to booth.

After the events at Target, the activities were scheduled to move to locations throughout the city and county where area neighborhood watch groups had joined with police to celebrate in what organizers described as a going away party for crime.

“This is something we hope will help strengthen the relationship between the officers and the public,” Albany Police Department spokesperson Phyllis Banks said. “These types of meets-and-greets are very valuable to us.”

Demetrick Lowe, whose son, Kameron, was one of the lucky few to get doused by a water balloon, said that he’s concerned about crime.

“No I haven’t had anything happen to me, but I think this stuff is a good idea,” he said.

National Night Out is hosted in communities throughout the U.S., Canada and military bases around the world, according to the organization’s Web site.

More Headlines>>