National Night Out (NNO) is a designated evening when communities across America come together to take a stand against crime. This annual community-building initiative promotes neighborhood camaraderie and community-police partnerships to help make our neighborhoods safer, better places to live. To celebrate this event, residents of Champaign are asked to join Americans across the country by turning on their porch lights to turn off crime, and spending the evening outdoors with their neighbors.
This year, four Champaign neighborhoods received a Neighborhood Small Grant and staff support from the City’s Neighborhood Services Department to help fund and implement their Neighborhood based NNO block party celebrations. They are as follows:
- Beardsley Park- hosted a Neighborhood Connection/block party event at Beardsley Park that included food music, and representation from Champaign Police officers sharing safety information.
- Garden Hills- hosted a Neighborhood Carnival/block party at Garden Hills Elementary that included safety information carnival games, the mobile science museum, superheroes Iron Man and Batman, and representatives from the sheriff’s office and Champaign Police Department.
- Countrybrook Apartments- hosted a Neighborhood Connection/block party event at the clubhouse/community room their event included music, youth activities & games,
- Draper-Healey- hosted a NNO Neighborhood Connection/block party event from 6:00 – 8:00 pm that included food, music, and public safety information provided by Champaign Police Dept.
A community-wide NNO celebration was also be held on August 4 from 5-7 PM at Douglass Park. Visitors were treated to food, music by artist Mike Ingram and Brandon T. Washington, safety and neighborhood resource information was provided by Neighborhood Services Department, Champaign Fire, and Champaign Police,
Also as part of the evening’s events, the Champaign County Community Coalition, a local partnership which embodies fostering community-police relationships, received the National Night Out Proclamation for their efforts in promoting crime prevention, safety and wellness education and resources, and positive youth engagement opportunities.
