Fighting Crime Through Spring Rock Fun

Despite heavy rains in the morning and a high humidity that evening, the Western Springs police department saw good turnout for their 4th annual National Night Out Against Crime in Spring Rock Park on Aug. 3.

The high humidity was offset by the lure of free hot dogs, chips and soda, two inflatable jump houses, deejays, a dunk tank, pitching station, a raffle to benefit the Special Olympics, and ID kits from the IL Child Identification Program (IL CHIP). 

Overall, the most popular activity was "belly bumpers," a game hosted by the Recreation Center of Western Springs who were there to show support for and help out the Police Department. Luke, 9, Matt, 12, and John Berger, 6, with Colin Bonaccorsi, 6, all said their favorite part of "Night Out" was rolling and bouncing in the multicolored, doughnut-shaped tubes.

For Lucas, 6, and Hagan Flanagan, 4, their favorite part was petting Lyca, a German Shepherd from the Cook Country Sheriff's Police.

Her handler said Lyca is not only a frequent visitor to Western Springs, but a part-time member of the force.

"She goes round to help out all the local municipalities in the area," he said. Later in the evening Lyca was scheduled to do a demonstration of her work on the force.

Another favorite of the night was the open squad car parked at the event. Residents of Western Springs could get inside and investigate it for themselves. For Jack Hudetz, 8, that was his favorite part of the night.

For Hudetz's mom, the night had a deeper importance than just fun with hot dogs and police cars. Of Night Out Against Crime she said, "I like it; it's a little variety and it has a theme of safety and against crime. I like that."

That feeling was echoed by other residents of Western Springs. Another resident called it "a nice community outreach" by the Police Department.  

Police cadet Tom Mitrosz, from Western Springs, enjoyed the Night Out Against Crime for the same reasons expressed by the residents of the town.

"It's a good feeling to get integrated into the population. This way you get an extra set of hands to help out in the community," he said speaking of the relationship between the police and residents.

On the other side of the park was a table for IL CHIP. This program, run by the Masons of Illinois and hosted by the local lodge of Western Springs, was being offered free to parents. In about 10 minutes parents can complete an ID package for each child that is designed to assist authorities in finding or identifying children in the event of a disappearance.  The kit includes a DNA sample, video and voice recordings and fingerprints.

 National Night Out Against Crime is a nationwide effort to heighten crime and drug prevention awareness and to enhance police and community participation and support. Over 15,000 communities from all 50 states participated in National Night Out Against Crime in 2009.