By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
joanne@wktv.org

“It is basically our Super Bowl,” said Wyoming Officer Jenni Eby as she described National Night Out, which will take place Tuesday, Aug. 3.

“It is a nice opportunity for us to be able to focus on the people and the connection between the police and the community,” Eby said.

 

Always the first Tuesday in August, National Night Out is a nationwide event that encourages residents to turn their porch lights on and come out and meet their neighbors. With last year’s pandemic, the event was cancelled.

“We are excited about seeing people especially since it has been more than a year,” Eby said.

 

A change for this year’s Wyoming event will be that the city will host two main sites, Grand Rapids First, 2100 44th St. SW, and Grace Christian University, 1011 Alden St. SW. Both locations will be open from 5 to 7 p.m.

“Our community service officers work very closely with the neighborhood associations over the years and this is something they wanted to try on a trial basis this year.” said Wyoming Department of Public Safety Chief Kim Koster during a recent council meeting. “They wanted to be able to bring all of our resources together and to have two big parties where people can come and enjoy all the services.

“Sometimes, say our K9 unit, they don’t have the time to make it to all 15 parties, so there are people who don’t get to see the K9 unit or get to see the motorcycle unit.”

By hosting the two larger events, it is the hope that these parties will have “a bigger splash,” allowing the Public Safety Department to have a greater reach and connect with more residents, Koster said.

Neighborhoods can still host individual events, she said, adding that if they reach out to the department, officers will see what they can do to have someone from the department stop by.

 

Eby said that the department’s resources will be split between the two locations.

“There will be K9s at both locations, as well motorcycles and other vehicles,” she said. “The tactical truck will be splitting its time between the two locations as there is only one.”

Basically, residents attending either location, GR First or Grace Christian University, will be able to see all that the Wyoming Department of Public Safety has available.

 

Eby said there will be tables at both locations providing information on a variety of safety programs, such as:

Smart 911: With landlines, it was easy to determine where a call was being made. Cell phones make it much harder to know the location of the emergency. Through Smart 911, residents can create a free, secure profile that dispatch operators can call up to help police and rescue personal get to a person faster.

OK2SAY: This is a student safety program that operates similar to Silent Observer in that students are able to confidentially report tips on potential harm or criminal activities.

Stop the Bleed: A program that teaches people how to help those who are severely bleeding while waiting for first responders.