Orange County Celebrates National Night Out!
By: Orange County Communications Department
We were pleased to see so many members of the community come out to visit with our first responders earlier this month for National Night Out at Booster Park and Lake of the Woods. At its heart, the event is part of a national community - building campaign that promotes police - community partnerships, but it also supports connections with other first responders. With that in mind, the event is organized annually by the Orange County Sheriff ’ s Office, featuring many other local agencies. This year, representatives were onsite from Orange County Emergency Communications, County of Orange Fire & EMS, the Town of Orange Police Department, the Town of Gordonsville Police Department, Virginia State Police, Central Virginia Regional Jail, Orange County TRIAD, and Orange County Victim Witness.
According to the National Association of Town Watch (NATW), the campaign ’ s founding organization, “ National Night Out was introduced in August 1984 through an already established network of law enforcement agencies, neighborhood watch groups, civic groups, state and regional crime prevention associations and volunteers across the nation. The first annual National Night Out involved 2.5 million neighbors across 400 communities in 23 states. ” Across the United States, “ Neighborhoods host block parties, festivals, parades, cookouts and various other community events with safety demonstrations, seminars, youth events, visits from emergency personnel, exhibits and much, much more. ” In Orange County, the event certainly exemplified the spirt of the campaign, with free hot dogs and snacks for attendees, exhibit booths from public safety agencies, K9 demonstrations, and more. “ I would like to thank those who attended National Night Out, ” said Orange County Sheriff Mark Amos. I think it ’ s important for our citizens to learn what all our first responders do, and what services we have to offer. ”
Page 17 | August 2023
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