National Night Out 2013

Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs, at podium, welcomes residents to National Night Out.

 The crowd filled the newly refurbished City Hall plaza.

 Music, a dance contest, food and entertainment were part of the event.

 
 Peter Briggs, president of the Plainfield Area NAACP, was registering voters.

 The new Plainfield Queen City Community Emergency Response Team sought members to take training and be ready to serve the city in disasters.

Coordinator Abenaa Bey said the team was receiving certificates at the event to mark completion of 20 hours of training. CERT is part of the Citizen Corps Program.

 Plainfield Youth Organized for Unity offered face painting at their table.

 Plaintalker liked the pink Jr. Fire Chief helmet. The Fire Division has a female firefighter, why not a chief someday? And her helmet can be any color she wants.

Public Works Supervisor John Louise kept those hot dogs coming.

It was a night to meet old friends and make new ones.

 "David's Shoes" founder Elaine Lane began collecting shoes of young people lost to violence after her own son became a victim. She now travels to schools, churches and other places to "reach out to children and teens and encourage them to honor life by making decisions rather than living on impulse."

Each pair of sneakers or shoes in this display has a story attached about the person who wore them. There is also a scholarship program connected to the project.

Lane hopes to collect 3,792 pairs of shoes to reflect the number of children under the age of 19 who were killed the year her son was murdered.

To learn more about the annual National Night Out event, click here.

--Bernice