Skokie and Morton Grove, among many other suburbs, held National Night Out events Aug. 2 to welcome residents and families. National Night Out, organized by the National Association of Town Watch and held by many police departments across the country, is designed to allow police and residents to meet each other in a relaxed, community-oriented setting.
The Skokie and Morton Grove events were held outdoors: Skokie’s at Oakton Park and Morton Grove’s outside Harrer Park. Both featured games and activities for children, bounce houses, food, giveaways, demonstrations and information. Everything was free to residents.
Skokie police gave away 100 backpacks for children who’ll be returning to school in a couple of weeks, said Skokie Police Sgt. John Oakley.
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“We’re also trying to get people to sign up for notifications on their phones of things like severe weather, evacuation orders, or major police incidents,” he said. “For example, we had a couple bad accidents, and had to close roads for several hours. If there’s a major police incident, the notifications can tell people to stay out of the area.”
The village’s fire departments also participated. In Morton Grove, children could climb aboard a fire truck as a firefighter pointed out various features; in Skokie, a firefighter helped children shoot real water at a pretend fire.
Morton Grove Police Chief Mike Simo took a microphone at the Morton Grove event to welcome attendees and kick off a raffle, which featured giveaways of several bicycles.
An Illinois National Guard unit from General Jones Armory on Chicago’s South Side brought an M-777 howitzer to the Skokie event, with Guardsmen allowing people to snap selfies in front of it.
