Dear Icon viewers:

The Bluffton Police Department, in conjunction with the Pandora Police Department, is planning on holding their 1st annual National Night Out celebration on Tuesday August 5, 2014. The Bluffton, Beaverdam, and Pandora Fire and EMS Departments have also been invited to participate in this event. The Bluffton, Pandora, and Beaverdam communities are all invited to attend.

Annually, over 15,000 communities across the United States join forces and celebrate National Night Out. A nation-wide attendance of 37 million people from all 50 states, U.S. Territories, Canadian cities and military bases world-wide will come together in an effort to promote a Police Community Partnership through crime, drug, and violence awareness and prevention and neighborhood unity. National Night Out is celebrated each year on the first Tuesday of August.

Our 1st Annual National Night Out Celebration will be held on Tuesday, August 5, 2014 from 6 p.m.-9 p.m. at the Bluffton Community Swimming Pool. We are currently in the planning stages for this event and are attempting to see if there is any business interest in donating to help us put this together and make it a success. We are planning to offer free admission to the pool and would like to offer some kind of free “picnic” meal to all in attendance. The current thinking is a meal consisting of a hotdog, chips, and drink.

To make this happen we are looking for monetary and volunteer donations. The monies raised will go toward purchasing any food items needed (unless they are donated) and advertisement along with purchasing official National Night Out and other safety handouts for the children and others in attendance. Volunteers would be needed for preparing the hotdogs and putting the meals together and handing them out. We are also planning to have activities for the children and a Touch A Truck area with local police, fire, and EMS vehicles on display.

If you are able to assist us in putting this together and making it a success, please contact Sgt. Matt Oglesbee at the Bluffton Police Department 419-358-2961 ext. 110 or [email protected].

Checks can be made payable to Village of Bluffton and put National Night Out on the Memo Line. Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to hearing back from you.

Sgt. Matt Oglesbee and the Bluffton Police Department