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Township announces first National Night Out
(by Maggie Fazeli Fard - June 11, 2008)
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National Night Out
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Date - Tuesday, Aug. 5
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Time - 5 to 9 p.m. followed by a film screening at 9:15 p.m.
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Location -
River
Vale
Town Hall and Library parking lot, Amphitheater – 406 River Vale Road
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| For more information, call Town Hall at 201-664-2346. |
Fighting crime with funky Dixieland may sound rather unconventional, but this summer the
Township of
River Vale will become one of more than 12,000 communities to take a stand against organized crime and drug use by throwing a town-wide party.
“This is going to be a lot of fun,” said Township Administrator Bob Gallione, who along with Police Chief Aaron Back and Municipal Alliance Chairperson JoAnn Hirsch, is spearheading River Vale’s first attempt at a National Night Out.
National Night Out, also known as ’s Night Out Against Crime, began in 1984 as a simple concept aimed at uniting entire communities in the fight against neighborhood crime: leave your lights on.
That year, 400 communities in 23 states brought 2.5 million Americans together through front porch vigils. The event, held on the first Tuesday of each August, has grown steadily and last year boasted much more than just a couple of million porch lights left on.
In 2007, 35.4 million people in more than 11,000 communities in all 50 states, territories, Canadian cities and military bases across the globe recognized the 24th annual National Night Out with festivals, parades, block parties, cookouts, neighborhood walk, safety fairs and rallies.
Not one to sit back and let everyone else have all the fun, Gallione is excited to offer a full night of activities – including a performance by the aforementioned Dixieland band. Short of turning the public library’s parking lot into a full-blown honky tonk, however, the hot jazz will be rounded off with a performance from a rock band, as well as crime prevention activities, of course.
While planning is still in its preliminary stages, Gallione anticipates involvement from local parent-teacher associations, the River Vale Police Department and Volunteer Ambulance Corps, and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, which will offer demonstrations with a member of its K-9 squad.
Although River Vale luckily doesn’t deal with the same crime issues as large cities, noted Gallione, it is never a waste of time to teach people how to protect themselves. To that end, advice on Internet safety and free document shredding will be available.
“There’s never too much attention to safety no matter where you live,” said Gallione.
Local merchants have been invited to set up tables and rides will be available for children. Following the safety-, music- and general fun-related functions, said Gallione, the township will screen a youth-friendly film. All in all, he said, National Night Out will be “five hours of constant activity.”
For the time being, no major food service is planned – though the Jewish Home Assisted Living has agreed to loan out its popcorn-making machine to the township for the evening – and Gallione welcomes people to bring their own picnic dinners.
And not to lose focus of the premise of the evening, the township will encourage residents to display their camaraderie by leaving their lights on.
“The more lighting you have in your home, the safer you are,” said Gallione. “Public service will like that, too.”
For more information about River Vale’s National Night Out on Aug. 5, call Town Hall at 201-664-2346. For general information about National Night Out 2008, visit www.nationaltownwatch.org/nno.
Maggie Fazeli Fard's e-mail address is fazelifard@northjersey.com.
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