OCALA, FL (352today.com) – It was an evening of bringing the community together, National Night Out, saw the partnerships between the community and law enforcement, engaging in a fun, positive and proactive manner.
The Ocala Police Department and members of the community gathered Aug. 5 at the E.D. Croskey Recreation Center and the adjacent Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Complex, in an environment revealing a wealth of living resources and the depth of the diversity of the neighborhoods that make up the City of Ocala and Marion County.
“I think it’s great bringing the whole community together,” said City of Ocala Mayor Ben Marciano. “It’s all aspects of our community and bringing our law enforcement out. Sometimes kids might have a bad perception of officers, and what’s great about this is they get to meet our officers and see that they care, see our police chief and how much he cares.”
The event itself helps to build and cross bridges within the community, strengthen relationships, providing law enforcement with the opportunity to create solid bonds and trust, said Ocala Police Department Chief Mike Balken.
“This is our big annual event, our opportunity to get out, mingle with the community and shake some hands, get to know some strangers,” said Balken. “It’s like I said in my welcome speech, we’re not just trying to push public safety, we want to see unity from one neighbor to another, from the congregation to the church leaders, and certainly the community.to the neighborhoods and public officials. We can’t do our job properly, if these people don’t agree to be policed. We can’t be effective. We can’t make quality arrests. We can’t improve the conditions in the neighborhood, unless we have these people on board.”