OCTOBER 4, 2013 • VOL. 70 • NO. 35• NAVY.MIL/LOCAL/GUANTANAMO • FACEBOOK.COM/NSGuantanamoBay
NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA • PSC 1005 BOX 25 • FPO, AE 09593 • 011-5399-4090
Security Forces Host National Night Out
A young child participates in activities during National Night Out, Oct. 1. National Night Out is a program that promotes involvement in crime prevention activities, police-community partnerships, neighborhood camaraderie and sends a message to criminals letting them know that neighborhoods are organized and fighting back. MCC(SW/AW) Keith Bryska Gazette Editor
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aval Security Forces Guantanamo Bay host “National Night Out” at the base Lyceum, Oct.1. National Night Out began in 1984 as an effort to promote involvement in crime prevention activities, police-community partnerships, neighborhood camaraderie and send a message to criminals letting them know that neighborhoods are organized and fighting back. The event had several activities to include a rock wall, bounce house, and displays from numerous departments and tenant commands on base including Joint Task Force Guantanamo Bay Troopers, Marine Corps Security Force Company Marines, Fleet and Family Support. According to Event Coordinator Master-At-Arms First Class Edgardo Figueroa is important to hold this event in GTMO because the first responders want to bring public awareness to the GTMO community about their capabilities to assist them in any emergency. They want to show them that it’s not just about reminding people of speed limits, wearing safety belts, wearing helmets, not drinking and driving or that what they are doing is unsafe or against regulations. “As Security, our job is only half complete without the support of all the other elements like fire and medical. Our
military is a microcosm of our society. Obviously major crimes may not be prevalent at GTMO, but we do have other issues that we address daily with the population. National Night Out is an opportunity for us to bring our crime prevention and drug prevention programs to the forefront and give the community an opportunity to interact with us in a casual manner,” said Figueroa. “As we saw at National Night Out, it was not only first responders there, we had all the other entities that support the GTMO mission one way or another like Fleet and Family Support Center and the fire department to name a few. Bringing out the support along with the first responders is what National Night Out is all about.” There was also a performance by Security’s Military Working Dog Handlers that featured detection training and apprehension techniques. Master-At-Arms First Class John Nitti says they enjoy the opportunity to show the community what they can offer. “All handlers have a strong passion for what they do and being able to show the community how important our job is makes it enjoyable for us,” said Nitti. “Being able to engage both the kids and the community makes us proud.” Cont. on Pg 3