Creve Coeur celebrates Night Out

Residents in neighborhoods across Creve Coeur mingled with police and fire fighters Tuesday evening in honor of National Night Out, a drug free crime prevention event.

Many residents looked forward to Tuesday night. McGruff the Crime Dog and members from the city's Police Department, Fire Protection District and other partner organizations arrived at several neighborhoods throughout the evening.

"This is really a big event for our street," resident Marty Wafford said. "We come every year and have a great time. Kids love it and it's fun because something new always shows up."

City leaders a few years ago decided to move Creve Coeur's neighborhood parties earlier a few weeks than the annual national event, to avoid the hotter and more humid weather in the mid to late summer. For the past several years in Creve Coeur, the event has been held on the third Tuesday in June.

The local Night Out is a partnership with corporations and other public facilities, Creve Coeur Police Officer Doug Manninger said.

"We just go around to the community and let them know we're out there," Manninger said. "It's a chance to connect with the community."