That day, Munster will be joining hundreds of other communities around the United States in holding activities which promote positive police and community partnerships as well as safety for our town’s residents. Due to the current health situation, we will not be holding a centralized event this year but have planned the following activities which we hope that our residents will participate in and enjoy with their families.
Please read through our planned activities for October 6th:
POLICE PARADES THROUGH OUR NEIGHBORHOODS - From 4:00PM until approximately 6:30PM, our police department will be running several simultaneous mini-parades through our town’s neighborhoods. The parades will include police cars, Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS) vehicles, and safety mascots such as Nat the Knight, Daren the Lion, and McGruff the Crime Dog. Residents are encouraged to waive from their front yards, and volunteers (wearing masks and gloves) will be tossing out National Night Out giveaway items to children in the neighborhoods. Police officers will also be randomly passing out some gift certificates for local restaurants to families as door prizes.
FAMILY PICNICS - Residents are encouraged to have picnics with their individual families that afternoon in between 4:00PM and 6:00PM while waiting for one of the parades to drive by. Several days before the NNO date, our department will post a Safety Guide for Families which residents will be encouraged to download and share with their family members during the picnic to promote safety.
DISPLAY YOUR BLUE LIGHTS - On October 6th, residents and businesses are encouraged to display blue lights on your front porch or property to show your support for police and community partnerships.
POST POSITIVE PHOTOS TO SOCIAL MEDIA - Residents and businesses are encouraged to post photos to social media which display positive interaction with the Munster Police Department over the years during community events. Please be sure to include #munsternightout with your post.
CANNED FOOD DRIVE - An important part of our event each year involves helping others in need. From 8:00AM to 2:00PM that day, we will be collecting canned foods in the station lobby which will be transported afterwards to a local food pantry.
For more information about our National Night Out activities this year, please contact the Munster Police Department’s Community Policing Unit at 219-836-6639.