Chris Terzich, with our Incident Management Team in Minnesota, noted my post from last October, "How Do You Prepare For Crime?" In it, I wrote:

I could use a little help. My neighborhood is being infiltrated by criminals, and I honestly don't know how to "prepare" for crime ... I want to have the right pieces in place to prevent it from happening, or to lessen the impact on my property and my peace of mind ...

How do you prepare for crime? What does the Preparedness Kit consist of?

Chris dropped me a line with some advice that sounds like the surest bet—people getting together to protect the neighborhood. To have each other's back, so to speak.

"Hi Charles," Chris wrote:

"Locks, maybe alarms and a good habit of using them are important, but the most effective, if not most efficient, way to prevent crime is to know your neighbors. National Night Out  looks to accomplish that. It seems odd that a little grillin' and chattin'  will do anything meaningful to reduce crime, but it can. After eight years in our neighborhood, I know my neighbors and they know me. They may not be home all the time, but if I leave my garage door open, or someone comes to my house when I am out of town, I can expect a call.

"It takes time, and one National Night Out may not change a whole lot, but it is a good start."

Well, that sounds pretty good to me. Grillin' and chattin'  itself is motivation enough to get to know the neighbors, even the odd ones. If it adds to the "insurance" we all need against harsh reality, so much the better. An added note—the neighborhood organized a meeting with police shortly after the original post. The cops said pretty much what Chris said. Strong neighborhoods are the surest bet to discourage crime.

Yesterday I got the propane tank refilled. Today I stocked up on some burgers and chicken and emailed the neighbors whose potato salad recipe  has a sterling reputation. They're coming by in a couple days after work, and we're going to have few laughs and start looking out for each other's security.

And start gettin' the word out!