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Date: 7/26/2023
EAST LONGMEADOW — Each year in August, police departments and other first responders around the country host a community fair. National Night Out, as the event has come to be called, allows emergency service personnel to meet the public under better than emergency circumstances.
This year’s East Longmeadow National Night Out is slated for Aug. 1 on the grounds of East Longmeadow High School. Hours are 5 to 8 p.m.
“It’s been running for a long time,” said Don Maki, East Longmeadow Cable Access Television director, who helps organize the event each year. He cited an initiative begun by the Jimmy Carter administration that encouraged people to take part in nighttime community events to discourage crime as the spiritual predecessor to National Night Out.
Locally, Maki said that former Police Chief Douglas Mellis expanded National Night Out to include civic organizations in the early 2000s. Despite spearheading the annual fair for several years, Maki said, “It’s really the Police Department’s event.”
Police Chief Mark Williams said, “We invite our bordering police departments to participate. Hampden and Longmeadow often send representatives, as well as the Hampden County Sheriff’s Office and Massachusetts State Police. This year, we’ve invited the Greenfield Police and their comfort dog, and we may also have comfort dogs from other police agencies, as well. We’re also hoping for a demonstration from the Longmeadow Police K9.” In the past, there have been flyovers from local air force bases and the event has had a state police helicopter land on the baseball field.
New at the event this year, a live version of “Stories from the View,” the Pleasant View Senior Center podcast will take place at National Night Out and streamed to the ELCAT’s YouTube channel, elcat01028. “We plan to go live just before 6 p.m. and broadcast for about an hour or so,” said Maki.
“Stories from the View,” producer and co-host Eric Elmendorf will host the podcast, with guest hosts Police Chief Mark Williams, Town Manager Tom Christensen and “2023 [Fourth of July] parade marshal and stranger-to-nobody, Rich Freccero,” Maki said.
During the coronavirus pandemic, Maki said the organizers were not sure if the event, which attracts more than 1,000 people each year, could go on with the COVID-19 restrictions in place. However, the outdoor event went off without a hitch. “We haven’t missed a year,” Maki said.
There are approximately 30 vendors signed up for the event so far, but Maki said interested parties can call East Longmeadow Cable Access to register as vendors. This year there are a handful of new vendors, but unlike other community events in east Longmeadow, where people might find commercial vendors, the focus of National Night Out is on civic organizations.
“It’s just a place for people to come to share information about their groups, their organizations, their businesses,” Maki said, “people who provide a community-oriented service.” Everything is free, from the food stalls to the children’s activities, such as the perennial favorite rock climbing wall.
“I would like to think it’s had an impact,” Maki said, reflecting on the event. “It’s become very popular.” He noted that there have been years in which 2,500 people have come to the event. “It’s an all-volunteer effort. It’s a great thing. It’s absolutely my favorite town event,” Maki said, adding that children can run around and be safe because there are so many police officers in attendance. “How can you not have a good time?”