By Martha Jacob –
For the last 33 years, American communities have be holding ‘National Night Out Events’ to help bring neighborhoods together with the men and women who protect them.
This year, the Village of Ripley Police Department joined in the tradition and held it’s own ‘Night Out at the Park,’ on Friday, August 12.
Retiring Ripley Police Chief Harvey Bowman, along with Officer Josh Miller organized the event.
“This event had a great turnout and the kids all had a blast with all the games and prizes we were able to offer through donations from businesses and individuals throughout the community,” Chief Bowman said. “We had so much support in planning and making the event happen that it felt as though the community was just as excited as we were to make it happen.”
He continued, “We greatly appreciate everything that was donated to the Ripley Police Department and are lucky to have businesses and individuals that care about our community as much as we do.”
The Maysville Movie Theatre donated popcorn, oil and butter, Pepsi supplied the department with beverages for the kids. The Ripley Life Squad brought a popcorn machine to the event and also allowed the kids to go through the life squad vehicle and ask questions to the EMTs.
The Aberdeen Dollar General Store donated almost all the prizes that were given away throughout the event.
“After the movie was shown JC’s Pizza donated water also brought in pizza’s for the kids,” Bowman said. “We also had several individuals that volunteered to run the games and make sure that everything went smoothly as we planned out or events.
“Our department feels as though this was a veery successful event where we were able to connect with the community and especially our youth. We are already planning our event for next year and would love to see this annual event grow throughout the upcoming years. Thanks to everyone who brought their kids out to the event.”