Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

The Franklin Police Department and Southampton County Sheriff’s Office are each holding events Tuesday, Aug. 2, with the goal of bringing their respective communities together and fostering unity in the effort to make those communities even better places to live.

The occasion of these events is National Night Out 2022.

As officials noted at natw.org, “National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live.”

Franklin police will be hosting their NNO event from 6-9 p.m. at Armory Drive Recreational Park, which is located at 910 Armory Drive in Franklin.

“We want folks (to attend) who are concerned about the community and the city of Franklin, who want to come out and work on building partnerships and relationships with police and other government actors that will be there, to make Franklin a better community,” FPD Chief Steve Patterson said.

He explained what people who attend can expect in terms of the event’s offerings and activities.

“You’ll have interaction with your public safety partners, from police, fire, state police, sheriff’s office,” he said. “You’ll get to meet your Power and Light, Public Works, Franklin Fire and Rescue, Hunterdale Volunteer Fire Department. We’re going to have Social Services, Parks and Rec.”

He said the swimming pool will be open, there will be bounce houses, and hot dogs will be served.

He also noted that Franklin City Public Schools will be assisting in orchestrating the event.

“So pretty much all your little government actors here in the city of Franklin are getting together and putting on a ‘let’s take a bite out of crime’ kind of party,” he said.

The Southampton sheriff’s office will be hosting its NNO event from 6-9 p.m. at the Franklin-Southampton County Fairgrounds, which are located at 25374 New Market Road in Courtland.

Southampton County Sheriff Josh A. Wyche Sr. said everyone is invited to the event, and once there, they will be able to enjoy “lots of food, music, fun, inflatables for the kids, a K-9 demonstration, Top Fuel motorcycles, the Mechanical Bull Pulling Tractor, and the Billy Graham Mobile Command Unit on display, just to name a few (things).”

Wyche encouraged people to follow the Southampton County Sheriff’s Office’s Facebook page to see a complete list of all participants and all updates.

Both Wyche and Patterson spoke to what they hope will be accomplished in their communities through their NNO events.

“What I hope is we’ll get people from the community who want to begin civic leagues and maybe crime watches within their communities to help us make Franklin a better community, solve some crime and, more importantly, prevent some crime,” Patterson said.

Wyche said, “We, the Southampton County Sheriff’s Office Family, hope to accomplish bringing the community and the police together for the betterment of Southampton County and the city of Franklin as a whole. We want the citizens to feel secure with knowing that their local police are here for them. We are here to protect and serve them. We are here to work with our citizens to make our community as awesome as the people that live in it. Together we can accomplish much.”