Mt. Morris’ first National Night Out event draws a crowd

MT. MORRIS – Mt. Morris’ inaugural National Night Out drew community members to the village’s downtown to meet with law enforcement and other first responders.

“This is the first hour, and we’ve had more people than we probably even thought we’d have the whole night,” Mt. Morris Police Chief Michael Cicchetti said a little after 6 p.m. “So I’d say so far, it’s a success.”

Mt. Morris’ National Night Out event ran from 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 6, near the Mt. Morris College campus in the village’s downtown.

NNO was established in 1984 by the National Association of Town Watch as an annual community-building campaign aimed at promoting police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie, according to NATW.org.

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Mt. Morris police officer Cassie Rogers prepares to pick up Logan LeFevre, 2, of Mt. Morris, on Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024, during the village's first National Night Out. (Alexa Zoellner/Shaw Media)

In 2024, about 38 million people in 17,000 communities across the country, U.S. territories and worldwide military bases participated, NATW.org shows. Communities typically host the event the first Tuesday of August, although there are a few exceptions, according to the website.

“This is the very first time we’re doing it,” Village President Phil Labash said. “I’m really thrilled with the turnout and really the amount of effort that the chief and the police department [and] the village employees have put into everything. They’ve done just a wonderful job.”

Representatives from the Mt. Morris Police Department, Mt. Morris Fire Protection District, Shining Star Children’s Advocacy Center, Mt. Morris street and water departments and food vendors participated in the event.

Cicchetti said he spent the last year compiling resources for Mt. Morris’ first NNO after participating in Oregon’s 2023 event.

“We hope to continue to do this every year and get bigger and bigger, with more demonstrations and more vendors and that kind of thing,” Cicchetti said.