Orangetown Police Organize Night Out

Orangetown will take part in the 28th Annual National Night Out Against Crime from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday in Veteran's Memorial Park.

The national event is designed to build relationships between law enforcement and local communities and work to prevent crime and drug use.

"Ever since the beginning of my career, I've been a big crime prevention guy," said Orangetown Police Chief Kevin Nulty. "This is about involvement, community policing and reaching out to youth."

The Orangetown Police Department organizes the local event with the support of the New York National Guard Counterdrug Task Force. Orangetown Police Detective Frank Buhler also plays a large role in the event.

"There is a drug prevention component to it," Nulty said. "It is another effort to get police officers out there and meet different segments of the population. It allows them to ask questions and show a commitment to crime prevention.

"One interaction with somebody can change your life. It can change who you want to be. The kids get to see good role models and maybe that can spark their interest."

The Orangetown National Night out is a "SK8 Nite," with a temporary skate park set up in Veterans Memorial Park.

"We find ourselves always focusing on basketball and things like that," Nulty said. "Why not an alternative activity like skating? A lot of kids like to skate, so the first year we made it a skate night. Here is a healthy activity. Kids can skate and do healthy things."

There has been some discussion of building a permanent skate park in Orangetown, so the interest in the activity is there.

"It's a great night out," said Orangetown Councilman Tom Diviny. "We had the skaters in (to a meeting) recently. It gives them a night they can stey out. they do a really good job with it.

"When I was growing up, it was a lot different. The pressures on kids are different. The more we give kids to do, the less time they have to get into trouble. I think it's a great idea. I'm glad the town participates in it."

There will also be a rock climbing wall among the activities for kids and a fireworks show at 9 p.m. Volunteers from Orangetown's fire departments and ambulance corps will take part, as will the highway department. There will be a child safety seat station where seats can be checked or installed and the Rockland County Sheriffs Department will demonstrate the "Seat Belt Convincer" and offer enrollment into the CARE program for children.

"I'm amazed how many people show," Nulty said. "With the fireworks at the end, we probably get 1,000 people. Some come just for the fireworks. We try to get things to draw people into coming and look at what we have."