Honking as he passed by, Savvas Fotiadis and his young passenger carefully drove a mini fire engine around the crowd at the Newton Police’s National Night Out event on Aug. 5, in West Newton.
Donning a red fez, Fotiadis and other members of the Worcester County Shriners Club gave rides to eager children in the tiny replica vehicles as part of the gathering’s activities.
“National Night Out (NNO) is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie,” according to the organization’s website.
Newton held its first National Night Out in 2019, according to Lt. Amanda Henrickson. Although she did not have an estimate for how many people attended this year, she said, “We ran out of almost everything.”
Hot dogs, burgers, and pizza slices were available – all for free. The hungry crowd also could chow down on Blue Ribbon Barbecue’s pulled-pork and chicken sliders as well as cotton candy, popcorn, and three Cabot’s Ice Cream flavors (among other goodies), also without charge.
With free eats in hand, people listened to an aptly named band for a police event – White Collar Crime – while getting up-close looks at various emergency vehicles, including police motorcycles and cars, a firetruck with its ladder extended, and an ambulance. They also observed police drones hovering high above the festivities.
Kids who were not having their faces painted or who finished jumping in the bouncy house could also hang out with Pablo and Mack. Like two laid-back celebrities, the two horses munched on their hay while getting plenty of pats. As members of Right Stride Equine Therapy, the ponies were accustomed to attention from humans.
“It brings a lot of joy to everyone” to see the horses, said Right Stride owner Allyssa Dean, whose family members work in Newton’s Fire Department and Dispatch.
The only attraction missing from the Night Out this year was the popular dunk tank. In years past, various members of the Newton Police Department would gamely climb in as crowd members tried their luck by throwing a ball to hit a lever that would plunge them into water.
When asked why it was missing, Henrickson said, “We don’t have too many volunteers for the dunk tank, but our chief has said he will do it! Maybe we will bring it back by popular demand next year.”
