National Night Out Event Just One Week Away

National Night Out will be held a week from tonight across the world.

Police invite neighborhoods across Gloucester Township to join in celebrating this worldwide anti-crime, anti-drug event.

From 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. next Tuesday, residents are encouraged to turn on their porch lights, lock their doors and head outside to join with neighbors and police participating in the 28th annual National Night Out.

The annual National Association of Town Watch event is designed to:

• Heighten crime- and drug-prevention awareness;
• Generate support for, and participation in, local anti-crime efforts;
• Strengthen neighborhood spirit and police-community partnerships;
• Send a message to criminals letting them know neighborhoods are organized and fighting back.

At the local kickoff meeting last month, Police Chief W. Harry Earle told Patch National Night Out symbolizes the important role his department feels citizens can play in helping police keep the community safe.

"The information that the public has given us has been great," Earle said. "We've opened up an opportunity for them to communicate with us in new ways.”

Neighborhood groups throughout the township are planning a variety of activities for the fast-approaching National Night Out, which is supported by the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance and Target Corp.

For more information on Gloucester Township's National Night Out event, contact Sgt. Brendan Barton or Cpl. Sean Grannan, of the police department's Community Relations Bureau, at 856-225-4011 or at communityrelations@gtpolice.com.