Community Comes Together for National Night Out

By Journalist Dr. Ms. Jones

NEWBURGH – Broadway came alive with music, food, fellowship and community spirit on Tuesday, August 4th, as residents, city leaders, law enforcement, churches, schools and community organizations gathered for the City of Newburgh’s annual National Night Out celebration.

Held along Broadway between Johnston and Liberty Streets, the free event transformed one of the city’s busiest corridors into a community block party. Families walked from table to table enjoying snow cones, ice cream, food, music, giveaways, activities and even free haircuts while discovering resources available throughout Newburgh and Orange County.

National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign designed to strengthen relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve while promoting safer, more connected neighborhoods. Launched nationally in 1984, the event has grown from neighbors simply turning on their porch lights and gathering outside their homes into celebrations involving millions of residents across the United States. National Night Out is traditionally observed on the first Tuesday in August.

In Newburgh, the celebration provided an opportunity for residents to meet those who serve their community in a relaxed environment while local organizations shared information about education, housing, violence prevention, youth programs and other services.
For Maritza Wilson, Event Coordinator for National Night Out who works as a Bilingual Clerk for the City of Newburgh. bringing the Newburgh celebration together was especially meaningful this year because she was on medical leave.

“While I was on medical leave, I was able to put many things in place ahead of time, but it truly took a team effort to bring everything together,” said Wilson, who gave special thanks to Planning and Development Director Alexandra Church for stepping in to help ensure everything was ready and also credited the numerous community-based and faith-based organizations that participated. “Thank you to all of our community-based and faith-based vendors for your continued partnership and commitment to serving our community. Your presence and support help make this event special year after year. I am grateful to be part of a community that continues to come together and make a difference.”

That spirit was evident throughout Broadway. Newburgh Enlarged City School District Board of Education and Armory Board Member Phil Howard comes every year.

“This is awesome. I look forward to this event every year. It gives us an opportunity to really celebrate our community, celebrate our kids, celebrate what’s good in the City of Newburgh.” said Howard who loves children, adults, and community organizations interacting in a positive environment representing the best of the city. “I just wish we could have National Night Out every day of the year. At least have that same energy. I think it’s important.”

Howard also highlighted the new branch of the Newburgh Free Library, which recently opened at the Newburgh Armory Unity Center. The Newburgh Enlarged City School District’s Family and Community Engagement (FACE) Team used the event to connect families with several upcoming educational and recreational opportunities.

“It’s always great to be in the community with the people that we are actually advocating for and the people that we are trying to support,” said NECSD Director of Family and Community Engagement Pamela Peterson who promoted Friday Night Lights, a student-created program designed to provide high school students with a welcoming and safe environment to socialize and have fun, the Jumpstart Jamboree for families of young learners, Hoops for Life, and the district’s longtime back-to-school event, which provides backpacks, school supplies, and access to community organizations. “We’re trying to support so that [our] children can walk across Academy Field…Every Goldback, every day.”

Public safety and violence prevention remained central themes of the evening. SNUG, which stands for GUNS backwards, had a booth at the event.

“We work to reduce gun violence by mediating conflicts, working with the highest-risk individuals to prevent somebody else from being shot,” said Ali George, Senior Outreach Worker and Hospital Responder with SNUG, who explained that the outreach workers’ backgrounds help them connect with individuals who may be difficult for traditional organizations to reach. “A lot of us are retired from the street.”

SNUG distributed educational materials. They also promoted their upcoming Braids & Fades event, scheduled for September 1st from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 245 Liberty Street. The back-to-school initiative will provide children with free haircuts and braiding. National Night Out also connected residents with services extending beyond violence prevention. HONOR Shelter Manager Takira Chandon shared information about the organization’s homeless shelters for adults and families, runaway and homeless youth services, outreach in Orange, Ulster and Dutchess counties, housing programs and its Middletown food pantry.

“We just made 50 years,” Chandon said of HONOR as she stressed that participating in National Night Out helps organizations reach people who may not otherwise know assistance exists. “It’s very important to get in touch with the community and make sure that they know that the resources are available.”

Faith-based organizations were also visible throughout the celebration. The Cathedral at the House distributed free hamburgers to attendees.

“This is an amazing event for the City of Newburgh residents,” said Elder Ada Freeman. “It allows us the opportunity to meet and to talk with those that we may not see often, and the fact that we can walk around, get some free food from the vendors—it’s a wonderful thing.”
City Councilman and Life Restoration Church Pastor R.D. McLymore saw the evening as another demonstration of Newburgh’s ability to unite.

“It’s good to see the unity. It’s good to see the strength of our community. Everybody coming together and just vibing—that’s what it’s about. Good energy, and you see the smiles on the people’s faces and on the children as well,” McLymore said as he emphasized National Night Out’s anti-violence mission. “We stand against crime. It’s something to see our community, the City of Newburgh, coming together as one.”

McLymore said Life Restoration Church recently held an anti-violence community day and continues its outreach by providing senior dinner nights and visiting senior housing complexes.

Dressed in their signature red and white, members of the Mid-Hudson Valley Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. continued their tradition of participating in the event and registered residents to vote.

“This is an excellent community event, which is what Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, is all about—serving the community, helping each other,” said Chapter President Stefanie Barrett.

Democratic State Senate Candidate Lisa Kaul also walked Broadway, shaking hands, speaking with residents and taking photographs.

“What’s beautiful about Newburgh is you have people from all over the world here. It’s a beautiful microcosm of what this country is, what the Hudson Valley is,” Kaul said as she thanked law enforcement and participating community organizations for creating an opportunity for residents and those who serve them to interact.

Music provided the soundtrack for the celebration as DJ Erick Santana kept the crowd entertained, distributed beads as prizes, and gave community members opportunities to shout out their businesses and share information.

“This is the best place to be,” Santana said. “I used to DJ in New York City. I switched it to be here today. I’m from this area. This is my hometown, so I want to be part of this National Night Out for Newburgh.”

Even a trip to the barber chair was free. The Lion’s Den Newburgh Owner Robert Espinosa and Barber Fred Smith provided complimentary haircuts during the celebration. From free hamburgers, snow cones and ice cream to haircuts, music, youth activities, educational information, and connections to vital services, nearly every corner of the celebration offered something to residents at no charge.

For several hours, Broadway became more than a major city street. It became a meeting place where children played, neighbors talked, organizations served, and residents connected with the people working on their behalf. In a city represented by different generations, cultures, organizations and neighborhoods, National Night Out offered a simple but powerful message: building a safer community does not happen through one organization or one evening. It begins by bringing people together—and in Newburgh, they showed up.

Journalist Ms. Jones