Lexington County, SC (Paul Kirby) – Next Tuesday, August 6th is considered the official National Night Out for many law enforcement agencies. Although departments don’t have to use this date to hold various community functions, many across the nation and Lexington County do.
National Night Out is a night celebrated across the country. During these events, the community is encouraged to interact with their local law enforcement agencies to build a partnership between the two. For many children, this may be their first opportunity to meet law enforcement officers up close and in a personal way. Officers use it as an opportunity to make that meeting positive so that children will be comfortable with them, and the children will realize that police are their friends, not the enemy.
Across Lexington County, there will be a number of opportunities to enjoy National Night Out celebrations. Some may be large events with rides, games, food, drinks, prizes, and lots of free giveaways. Others may just be a group of neighbors that are involved in the local Crime Watch organization grilling hot dogs or burgers and enjoying the company of the officers that most often work their area.
This is a partial list of National Night Out celebrations that are scheduled for next week in Lexington County:
Gaston: The Gaston area National Night Out will be held at the Gaston Civic Center at 131 North Carlisle Street, Gaston. It is scheduled for Tuesday, August 6th from 6-9 p.m. There will be free food, games, cold drinks, and lots of opportunities to interact with the area’s police officers and sheriff’s deputies.
Irmo: The Irmo Police Department’s National Night Out will be held at the Irmo Town Park at 7507 Eastview Drive, Irmo. It is scheduled for Tuesday, August 6th from 5:30-9 p.m. There will be free food from area businesses like snoballs, sandwiches, pizza, and more. You can also enjoy free cold drinks, games, and giveaways. There will be many opportunities to interact with the area’s police officers and sheriff’s deputies.
Lexington: The all Town of Lexington’s National Night Out event will be held on Tuesday, August 6th at the Lexington Square Park. This is located at 205 East Main Street in Lexington. The event will begin at 5:30 p.m. and end at 8:30 p.m. New for this year’s event, the David Ruffin Experience and Friends will be performing a musical concert beginning at 7:00 p.m. There will be tributes to The Temptations with David Ruffin, and Gladys Knight with Rose Marie Moore. There will also be old and new school country music with Presley Aaron, local recording artist Christou DaKeeng with MC Sly-B and Dr. E on the music and microphone. Come enjoy tons of fun, food, drinks, snoballs, and giveaways sponsored by a host of local businesses in partnership with the local police.
Batesburg-Leesville: The Batesburg-Leesville Police Department has their event scheduled for Wednesday, August 7th from 6-8 p.m. That will be followed by a family movie night from 8-10 p.m. This event will be held at 227 Highland Avenue behind the Sr. Citizens’ Center. There will be active demonstrations provided by both the police and fire departments and there will be fun things to do like a bounce house and other games. During the National Night Out there will be free food and drink. Afterward, Disney’s Zootopia will show and concessions will be available for purchase from the Dream Catchers.
Pelion: The Pelion Police Department will hold their National Night out on Tuesday, August 6th. It will begin at 6 and continue through 8:00 p.m. It is being held in the parking lot of Shumpert's IGA at 861 Pine Street, Pelion, SC. There will be several DJ's, food, drinks, and more. All of it's free.
If you’d like your event added to this list, please e-mail the information to thelexingtonledger@gmail.com.
