Organizers: Carson City's 2018 National Night Out attendance matched last year's event

Despite smoke-filled skies from regional wildfires, the 2018 Carson City National Night Out held Tuesday night at Mills Park generated a crowd of several thousand and likely matched last year's record crowd, organizers said.

"We had thousands. What I'm being told it was the biggest one yet. I would say we were at least equal to last year. People kept coming in waves throughout the night," said DARE Officer and National Night Out coordinator Lisa Davis.

The 2017 National Night Out event at Mills Park drew around 12,000 people, said Davis, adding this year's event seemed to have a lot of new faces and brought new families.

See a video produced by Carson City below or click here.

"Everyone was worried about the smoke. Up until the final minutes we were inundated with calls from citizens wondering if it was going to happen. The sheriff told us the event was still a go. And sure enough the smoke, that day, was not nearly as bad as the day before and it really seemed to have lifted or parted ways for us. There was something holding the thick of the smoke back for Carson City."

Planning is underway for the 2019 event, said Davis.

"We have already got agencies and sponsors who have already committed," she said.

Also noteworthy, Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong and Davis sent out a warm thank you to Chris Sieben, with RCM Realty Group, during the event. RCM Realty Group presented Davis with a check for $9,800 raised at a recent golf tournament at Toiyabe Golf Club in support of local youth programs like DARE, Stellar Squad, Cops & Kids and National Night Out.

"Some of these businesses are new partners. RCM Realty Group is an example of new partners in action," said Davis, noting the theme of Carson City's National Night Out is Partnership in Action.

More than 140 agencies participated, bringing equipment such as two helicopters, police cruisers and motorcycles, Carson City Fire Department trucks, mounted horses, fire engines, Search and Rescue Jeeps.

In celebration and recognition of the educational opportunities and benefits from National Night Out, Mayor Bob Crowell proclaimed August 2018 as Law Enforcement and Public Safety Crime Prevention Month.

The Carson City National Night Out was hosted by the Carson City Sheriff's Office. It generates the funds annually to pay for the event through its own funds, Justice Assistance Grant and donations it receives from businesses.

The following is a letter to citizens from the Carson City Sheriff's Office

Sheriff Furlong and the Staff of the Carson City Sheriff’s Office would like to thank all of the public agencies, support organizations, and the sponsors of National Night Out for an epic success this year. National Night Out drew in more organizations than ever before and provided the community, both young and adult, with an exceptional opportunity to speak directly to their individual needs and interests, as well as “giving crime a boot” here in Carson. This year’s attendance had a diverse variety of individuals, including infants as young as weeks old and even brought in visitors from China who happened to be passing through our community.

National Night Out unites Carson City’s residents and visitors to create strong collaborative ties to strengthen the security of our businesses, homes, and families. This event gives our partners the chance to represent their organizations and share meaningful information about their operations. In addition, National Night Out increases the exposure of community services that are otherwise overlooked or not widely recognized. Examples of these agencies surrounded Mills Park, such as the Department of Wildlife, Nevada Department of Corrections, our neighboring county law enforcement agencies, and courts. Each organization reached out with their best to answer questions, make suggestions, provide referrals and receive feedback. At the center of festivities, AT&T presented a “virtual reality” booth, encouraging all including the Sheriff to pledge not to text and drive.

National Night Out in Carson City has been recognized for 15 consecutive years as one of the top across the nation, and we expect this year may well move us into the top 3 ranking. Regardless of the awards, we believe our community involvement in crime related issues has improved tremendously which is an accomplishment achieved by all. This calendar year, the Sheriff’s Office and District Attorney’s Office have witnessed a sharp reduction in our most violent crime, and with the help of the community, we intend to see this drop even more.

Again, Sheriff Kenny Furlong and Fire Chief Sean Slamon would like to thank you all for attending and joining in on all of the efforts to make our community the best it can possibly be.

Among the other 2018 National Night Out sponsors were: Grocery Outlet, RCM Realty Group, Toiyabe Golf Course, SW Gas Corporation, Dan Kimm Rock It Productions, DBA, Sunspot Tanning, Kadee Mason American Family Insurance, Elks & Emblem Club, Liz’s Biz, Dave’s Supplies, Monarch Direct, Carson Now, Tom Noble Construction, Cal Neva Towing and Child & Family Counseling.