MID-HUDSON – National Night Out – an annual networking campaign that promotes police and community partnerships nationwide – was held Tuesday night at various municipalities across the Hudson Valley.
A combination of 12 cities, towns and villages took part in festivities that included live music, games, children’s activities and police demonstrations. The City of Newburgh held its celebration on Broadway with a special twist and added bonus for city residents. Fireworks postponed last month due to weather lit up the sky along its waterfront and served as a perfect ending to a fun-filled evening.
In the Town of Wallkill, more than a thousand commemorative t-shirts were handed out in the event’s first hour – not to mention nearly 5,000 hamburgers and hot dogs awaiting the palates of hungry guests. The town also raffled off a handful of mountain bikes and had other giveaways for local youth in attendance.
Police Chief Robert Hertman said the annual celebration has and will always be about bringing the community together and looking out for one another.
“This is where the police and community come together on an annual basis to tell the bad actors in the community that we are not going to tolerate crime,” Hertman said. “We have great sponsorships and partnerships with many in the community. There are private entities that help sponsor this event. There are non-profits here from different segments of government, including federal. It’s a great event. The weather is wonderful. Raining every day up until today and now it’s 80 degrees and sunny. It’s perfect weather for tonight’s event.”
“I was out here greeting everyone that came in earlier. I saw a lot of familiar faces. We see people that come back year after year,” Hertman said while smiling. “Those relationships are with people that are going to help us do our job. Policing is not something we can do by ourselves. We’re not an occupying Army. We’re citizens just like the community.”
State Senator James Skoufis, who was able to secure $10,000 for the event through his office, dropped by toward the end of the night and congratulated Wallkill on a well-attended event. “This is not my money. This is your money,” Skoufis said. “My job is to bring back your tax dollars for functions like this that are important to the community. Thank you for being wonderful partners with the police.”
Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler and members of his team were also on hand at different locations sharing crime prevention tips and information on emergency preparedness. According to him, National Night Out is about building a stronger bond between police and the community it serves.
“National Night Out epitomizes the philosophy behind my community prosecution initiatives, which advocate for police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie in order to make our community safer, ” Hoovler said in a statement.
In addition to the City of Newburgh and Town of Wallkill, events were held in the City of Middletown, City of Port Jervis, Town of Mount Hope, Town of Newburgh, Town of New Windsor, Town of Goshen, Town of Warwick, Village of Highland Falls, Village of Montgomery, and Village of Walden.
Comments