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Mid-County Neighborhood Initiative
National Night Out 2005, North Gate Park
On August 2nd, 2005, North Gate Park was the scene of our second National Night Out Against Crime.
Efforts by both Parks staffers and volunteers has greatly increased visibility near the playground. It's a lot easier to see nearby streets from parts of the park where there was previously a sense of isolation or concealment. Now the park is much more open and has a more airy feeling.
Quite a crowd gathered by six o'clock, our commencement hour. Perhaps 300 people came by, at least a hundred stayed for the whole event.
Once again, the ceremonies commenced with the presentation of colors and pledge of allegiance, led by Boy Scout Troop 495's color guard. We have Video if you want to download it.
Dozens of representatives from State and County agencies were there with their tables of informational handouts and correspondence sign-up sheets.
Scheduled performers included the Wheaton Baptist Church "Alpha Omega Steppers". We have video available for download:
A variety of gifts from our sponsors were raffled off to lucky recipients. Also, lots of bottled water, and assorted snacks and sodas contributed by our sponsors were given away.
Midway through the event, we had some public speaking by a variety of local officials, including our State Delegates Henry B Heller, Adrienne A. Mandel, and Carol S. Petzold, as well as State Senator Leonard H. Teitelbaum. Also speaking were our County Council district representative, Marilyn J. Praisner, and other representatives from the County Council. US Representative Chris Van Hollen sent a representative to present our efforts with a nice certificate of appreciation. We consistently heard the message that crime in Aspen Hill can only decline through the persistent involvement of the residents, and their active participation, with various agencies including the police, in the creation of their own security and safety.
Our theme for this event, and for the year until the next event, is "Crimefighting is everyone's responsibility. See it and report it!"
One centerpiece of the event was the dedication of a summer youth project organized by Kathy Paunil of GRAB. A concrete patio was installed between the playground, inset with circular plaques of various designs which were handmade by the youth project participants, supervised by artist Sylvia Benitez, with Amanda Paunil and Christine Simms assisting. The participants were:
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Home Depot set up a crafts and construction "workshop" and entertained and educated a lot of young people about basics of woodworking, building small birdhouses among other things. Michael's Craft Stores also had a large display teaching crafts. During the festivities, a magician from Barry's Magic Shop (Wheaton) circulated, entertaining with sleight of hand. Clowns were on hand to entertain youngsters.
The dance group "Embajadores del Folklore Boliviano" performed the "Morenada". You can see Video. As you watch the video, keep in mind that it was very hot and humid, and that the men's costumes weigh about a hundred pounds.
At 8:00, we concluded the event, of course with more raffles and speeches. Clean-up was rapidly accomplished, partly due to the efforts of the crowd to put their trash into trashcans, and partly due to the diligence of the volunteers.
We hope to do this again next year! Hopefully next year the camcorder won't malfunction, and we'll be able to offer more audio and video, especially sound-bites from the various officials and representatives.
And again we'd like to thank our many sponsors! We couldn't have done it without you, and with your help again next year, we'll do it again!