EmPOWERment, Inc. and the Chapel Hill Police Department would like to thank everyone who came out on a warm, lovely August evening to walk through Northside on Neighborhood Night Out. Hundreds of neighbors and visitors of all ages — from babies to community elders — joined the festivities, celebrated the neighborhood’s lower crime rates and honored the memory of activist Mary Norwood Jones.
The walkers enjoyed each other’s company as they symbolically took neighborhood streets back from crime. Incidents of theft and violent crime in Northside fell 15 percent last year, according to police statistics.
We would like to thank our marshalls, district attorney Jim Woodall and neighborhood advocate Jane Farrar, as well as Mayor Kevin Foy, council members Sally Greene and Jim Ward, school board member Annetta Streater, school superintendent Neil Pedersen, state senator Ellie Kinnaird and other community leaders who took part. Other generous supporters helped in many ways to make this wonderful evening possible.
Joni Jones-Callahan spoke about the contributions her mother, Mary Norwood Jones, made to the community, and additional members of the Jones family were on hand as six grants in Mrs. Jones’ honor were awarded to recent graduates of Chapel Hill-Carrboro schools. The Chapel Hill Fire, Police and Parks and Rec departments, the neighborhood associations of Northside, Pine Knolls, Lloyd Street and Carr Court, and the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership co-sponsored the celebration.
Thank you to everyone who contributed and participated. We invite you — and the entire community — to join us again next year.
Delores Bailey
Executive Director,
EmPOWERment, Inc.
Brian Curran
Chief, Chapel Hill Police