EDISON – National Night Out in Edison was filled with fun, food and McGruff the Crime Dog.
The department held its annual event at Papaianni Park on Aug. 2.
Community members enjoyed interacting with members of the Edison Police Department, Edison Fire Department, members of the emergency medical services and were allowed to climb in and out of department vehicles, trucks.
The event offered free food and non-alcoholic beverages; McGruff the Crime Dog; Paw Patrol characters; a dunk tank; a trackless train; jugglers; a New Jersey State Police helicopter flyover; a mock car crash with extrication; and a free outdoor movie “Paw Patrol.”
National Night Out was introduced nationally in 1984 and is an annual community building campaign that was created to make communities safer and build trust between communities and their police departments, according to the National Association of Town Watch.
This is the 39th year of the campaign. Neighborhoods across the nation host block parties, festivals, parades, cookouts and other various community events with safety demonstrations, seminars, youth events, visits from emergency personnel and exhibits, according to its website.
The National Association of Town Watch sponsors the annual nationwide event that is also celebrated in U.S. territories and on military bases worldwide with a goal to establish stronger relationships and camaraderie between officers and the communities they serve.