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Participation in National Night Out has become an annual tradition for staff at Fox Chase Cancer Center and Temple University Hospital – Jeanes Campus. The local Fox Chase event, held this year on August 13 in the parking lot of Fox Chase Elementary School, brought together neighbors for a community bike ride, refreshments, giveaways, information about state and local resources, and an opportunity to meet with local police and emergency personnel. The event was hosted by the Office of State Senator Jimmy Dillon, in collaboration with the Fox Chase Town Watch.
“Many local businesses and community organizations participate every year, and our community outreach team was on hand to talk with our neighbors about the clinical care and preventive services that Temple Health provides right here in Fox Chase,” said Barbara Buford, Community Outreach Coordinator, TUH – Jeanes Campus.
“It was great to see our local elected officials as well as so many members of our community come out to engage with each other and enjoy this event, which brings so much positive energy to our neighborhood,” added Julianna Maita, MPH, Project Manager, Office of Community Outreach, Fox Chase Cancer Center.
National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live. The first National Night Out event took place in 1984 and involved 2.5 million neighbors across 400 communities in 23 states. It has since grown to include tens of millions of neighbors in thousands of communities from all 50 states, U.S. territories, and military bases worldwide.
Its founder, Matt Peskin, introduced the effort through an already established network of law enforcement agencies, neighborhood watch groups, civic groups, and volunteers across the nation. He conceived of the idea for National Night Out after spending several years volunteering for the Lower Merion Community Watch program, in conjunction with the Lower Merion Police Department right here in the Philadelphia area.