Orland Park Police Host National Night Out This Tuesday

ORLAND PARK, IL --- Join the Orland Park Police Department this Tuesday, Aug. 7, for the village’s annual National Night Out celebration at the Orland Park Village Center, 14700 S. Ravinia Avenue. Orland Park's National Night Out festivities are FREE and will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. Attendees will be able to meet members of Orland Park's bike patrol unit, traffic and motor cycle units, DARE and school resource officers as well as other first responders.

“The first Tuesday in August has been National Night Out in Orland Park for a long time," said Trustee Pat Gira, chair of the village’s public safety committee. "Families enjoy coming to the Village Center to meet the police officers and other emergency personnel and to see all of the equipment and displays."

New this year is a bike rodeo offering bike and helmet safety checks and a bicycle agility course. Parents are encouraged to bring their children’s bikes to the village center for the rodeo and register bicycles with the police department for free.

"National Night Out is a great way for kids to talk to police officers, in a relaxed comfortable atmosphere unlike an emergency setting," Orland Park Police Chief Tim McCarthy said. "We enjoy seeing everyone come back each year to see all that's happening with the police department."

Orland Park businesses will host booths with giveaways, coupons and safety related information. Pro-Shred of Orland Park will return to the Village Center, offering free shredding for residents with each limited to 100 pounds of documents. Residents are encouraged to shred no longer needed personal documents with their names, addresses and personal information to prevent identity theft.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency is also scheduled to being its helicopter, and, the Orland Fire Protection District will demonstrate rescue techniques showing how they extricate people from vehicles after crashes. Food will be provided by Joey’s Hot Dogs of Orland Park.

Questions about Orland Park’s National Night Out may be directed to Sgt. Wayne Lee at the department’s non-emergency number, 708-349-4111.

For more than 25 years the Orland Park Police Department has been participating in the nationwide National Night Out. The public safety event was created in 1984 by the National Association of Town Watch, a nationwide group that promotes community based crime prevention activities.

Here's the lineup for Tuesday's National Night Out activities: