TERRY — Instead of asking residents to come to one central location, the Town of Terry and Hinds County Sheriff’s Office took National Night Out directly into neighborhoods Thursday, making about 15 stops throughout the community.
Terry Police Chief Anthony Moore said the traveling format is designed to strengthen relationships between residents and the public servants who serve them.
“We’ve had 14, 15 stops that we’ve made, and the whole idea is to have a good relationship with our citizens and let them know the importance of police and law enforcement as a whole in a great community operation,” Moore said.
The event marked Terry’s third year participating in National Night Out. Moore said residents have responded positively to seeing a caravan of police vehicles, fire trucks and other public service vehicles arrive in their neighborhoods.
“They love it,” he said. “I think it’s very important for us to come to the citizens.”
The stops included gatherings organized in part by neighborhood block captains, with law enforcement officers and other local officials spending time talking with residents. Some stops lasted just a few minutes, while others were longer depending on the size of the gathering.
Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones joined the event along with representatives from other agencies and local government departments. He said National Night Out provides an opportunity to show residents that public safety is a community-wide effort.
“It shows the community and lets the community know that they are a part of the day-to-day operations of law enforcement,” Jones said.
The caravan included law enforcement, fire and medical personnel, public works officials and elected leaders.
“All of these components come together as it relates to public safety,” Jones said. “We’re just here to show a united front, along with the Terry Police Department, to let the people know that we are here to serve them.”
Jones said bringing the event directly to neighborhoods creates a different kind of connection between residents and public safety officials.
“There’s always a different touch when you can go to the community rather than having a centralized location and having them come to you,” he said.
Moore said the event also highlights the role of public servants beyond police officers.
“It’s not all about the police,” he said. “It’s about a community effort and our elected officials and everybody that works here in the county, too.”
National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign focused on strengthening partnerships between law enforcement and residents and encouraging neighborhood involvement.
While the national event is typically observed on the first Tuesday in August, Terry held its celebration Thursday and used its mobile format to reach residents where they live and gather.
Moore said the town plans to continue taking National Night Out into the community.
“We just love doing this, and we want to continue doing this,” he said.
