• Carson City dispatcher Jen Davis speaks with children at Tuesday's event.
    Carson City dispatcher Jen Davis speaks with children at Tuesday’s event.
  • DARE officer Lisa Davis and Sheriff Ken Furlong. Photo by Cathleen Allison, Nevada Photo Source
    DARE officer Lisa Davis and Sheriff Ken Furlong. Photo by Cathleen Allison, Nevada Photo Source
  • Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada staffer Daniel Dilegame gets his face painted by Chelsea Phillips.
    Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada staffer Daniel Dilegame gets his face painted by Chelsea Phillips.
  • Adrianne Key of Carson City Juvenile Probation explains drug paraphernalia found in the community.
    Adrianne Key of Carson City Juvenile Probation explains drug paraphernalia found in the community.
  • Mason Van Sickle, 11, of Carson City takes aim at a fire prevention game.
    Mason Van Sickle, 11, of Carson City takes aim at a fire prevention game.
  • Carson City dispatcher Catheryne Sainz explains to children about calling 911.
    Carson City dispatcher Catheryne Sainz explains to children about calling 911.
  • An information booth set up by the Carson City Sheriff's Office Special Enforcement Team.
    An information booth set up by the Carson City Sheriff’s Office Special Enforcement Team.
  • Lani McKinley of the Carson City Sheriff's Office shares a hotdog with Harmony Lawton, 3, of Carson City.
    Lani McKinley of the Carson City Sheriff’s Office shares a hotdog with Harmony Lawton, 3, of Carson City.
  • Elks Lodge #2177 cooks up hotdogs for thousand of attendees Tuesday.
    Elks Lodge #2177 cooks up hotdogs for thousand of attendees Tuesday.
  • The Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada arrived with a Bounce House.
    The Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada arrived with a Bounce House.
  • Twins Dakota and Easton Lott, ages 8, inside a search and rescue aircraft.
    Twins Dakota and Easton Lott, ages 8, inside a search and rescue aircraft.
  • Matt Medeiros watches as Mary Frayo, left, and Jazmin Estes, go through the compass course. Photo by Cathleen Allison
    Matt Medeiros watches as Mary Frayo, left, and Jazmin Estes, go through the compass course. Photo by Cathleen Allison

Carson City neighbors by the thousands gathered Tuesday evening at Mills Park for the 11th annual National Night Out.

The themes for the evening were community and neighborhood partnership and outreach. Judging by attendance, it was one of the largest gatherings thus far for the annual summer event, hosted by the Carson City Sheriff’s Office.

“The turnout is one of the biggest I’ve seen,” said DARE officer Lisa Davis, a coordinator of the event. “It says a lot about our citizens who have come together for a cause we all want: A safe and healthy community.”

The event highlights efforts made to address crime, drugs, and violence and as well as to tout a number of new community initiatives. Among them, the Forensic Assessment Services Triage Team was promoted at the event. The referral system was developed by a group of professionals after studying the number of people arrested who had issues involving mental health, substance abuse or both.

Mayor Robert Crowell issued a Proclamation on August 1, that states, “the implementation of the Forensic Assessment Services Triage Team to address mental health and substance abuse issues by taking away the shame and stigma experienced by families, and encourage citizens to seek assistance.”

Sheriff Ken Furlong explained the Team is designed to address crime “by going to the root of the problem.”

While many families and individuals do not seek help because of an unfortunate stigma attached to mental health and substance abuse problems, Furlong stressed earlier this week that “we have to get past the shame and embarrassment and get the people help. We are beginning to see positive results from this referral system that was developed by a group of concerned professionals who saw the need and are doing something about it.”

Also on hand at the event was the Nevada Highway Patrol. This year, NHP opened a substation inside the Carson City Sheriff’s Office as way to address crime by strengthening partnerships and citizen access to law enforcement services. Traffic safety efforts are also being made through the declaration of the “Zero Fatalities/Zero Excuses” initiative for Highway 50. This involves Carson City, Lyon and Churchill County as well as NHP.

Partners at Tuesday’s event included military recruiters, Adult Probation and Parole, BLM, NDF, the Carson City Fire Dept., the Courts, Patrol Traffic Enforcement, D.A.R.E., and Partnership Carson City.

Carson City Sheriff’s Office has earned national recognition for the events for the past eleven years, including being ranked 6th in the nation in their population category for Outstanding Citizen Participation.

Carson City supporters for National Night Out include Target, Grocery Outlet, Carson City Downtown Business Assn., Northern Nevada Coin, Kemp’s Fun Jumpers, American Family Insurance, Carson Now, Valley Towing, Lakeside Properties, Dave’s Supplies, Dan Kimm Rock It Productions, Cal Neva Towing, Elks Lodge #2177, Benson’s Feed, East to West Embroidery, Liz’s Biz, Bartosz Construction, Casino Fandango, Carson City Plaza, Empire Ranch Golf Course, Carson Station Hotel and Casino, Harcourt, Economy Speed Press and Jamba Juice.
National Night Out is a sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch (N.A.T.W.).