The first Tuesday in August is one of my very favorite days of the year. Its the day that my neighborhood and tons of other neighborhoods in Moorhead get together, meet and enjoy each other. I remember our first one. Sam, now 19, was a baby, and wasn’t a fan of the heat so he and I spent most of the time indoors while Ron and then 2 year old Lyndi, decorated a wagon for the bike parade, played with water balloons, and helped eat all of the fabulous grilled food and potluck. We’ve been involved in organizing many years of Night to Unite parties. It has been the event that has made us the close knit neighborhood that we are.

Our Moorhead Police Department is very instrumental in encouraging the block parties. They have kits that neighborhoods can pick up, they have ideas on their newsletter and website of activities, they organize ‘surprise guests’ like our canine units, Dare cars, Firefighters with their trucks to come and be part of the block parties. This will be my first year that I won’t be spending the evening at my neighborhood party, because I will be all over Moorhead stopping in at yours. J If your neighborhood hasn’t started this tradition, I hope you will consider being the neighbor who decides to start one. It can be as easy as an ice cream social, or a potluck, with a ‘bring your own chair’ suggestion. The idea is that neighbors that know each other have safer neighborhoods. For more information, contact the Community Policing Coordinator at 218-299-5143.