Neighborhood re-certification program recognized
SUN CITY – In Sun City, Neighborhood watch recently helped monitor a resident’s home while he was away on an extended vacation. A utility problem in the home was resolved by neighbors.
In Sun City, Neighborhood Watch volunteers stream communication back and forth to and from the Huntley Police Department and local neighborhoods.
In Sun City, Neighborhood Watch tries to keep residents informed about personal, grassroots matters affecting individuals, as well as entire neighborhoods.
In Sun City, Neighborhood Watch isn’t only about patrolling streets at night; it’s a combined effort to promote harmony and goodwill among neighbors. It is broadening the meaning of “neighborly,” and developing a consistent culture of “neighborliness.”
In Sun City, Neighborhood Watch has developed a pioneering re-certification program that included creative ways to develop and maintain a detailed “calling tree” communication program. It has won an award from the National Association of Town Watch, becoming a national model for more than 16,000 Neighborhood Watch organizations nationwide. The local NW has come a long way since its inception in 2002 as a “trucks patrolling the streets” activity.
(Left to Right:) Board Members Ken Andersen, Marilyn Berendt, and Bob Gienko show the National Award given by the National Association of Town Watch to Sun City’s Neighborhood Watch/Neighbors Helping Neighbors program. (Chris La Pelusa I Sun Day Photo)
The re-certification effort was led by board members Ken Andersen and Bob Gienko (along with Jim Belmont) of Sun City’s Neighborhood Watch/Neighbors Helping Neighbors program, and Marilynn Berendt, NW coordinator in Neighborhood 10. She initiated the idea of submitting Sun City’s neighborhood re-certification program to NATW, and she and Gienko spearheaded the development and submission of documents to NATW that eventually led to national recognition.
“What a year our NW/NHN has had,” Andersen said. “We pioneered a program where there was none for NATW, developed an effective re-certification program for our neighborhoods’ calling trees, and won a national award. You have to build Neighborhood Watch programs from the bottom up, from residents to block captains to coordinators, and you have to hook it up with the police department. We are indebted to hundreds of residents, block captains, and coordinators for their support this past year. And we couldn’t have done it without the creative leadership of Marilynn and Bob, who made it happen.”
“When you suggest a project to Ken [Andersen], you own it,” Berendt said. “That’s how I got involved.”
The award was submitted as part of NATW’s Project 365 program, which provides local NW programs one year to develop and implement a program that improves Neighborhood Watch. Currently, 30 of Sun City’s 41 neighborhoods are “certified” with updated calling trees and communication systems. Each Sun City neighborhood has three elected representatives, who serve on the Neighborhood Advisory Council. One of these reps is also identified as a Neighborhood Watch Coordinator.
“We’ve always believed that Neighborhood Watch is more than patrolling streets looking for suspicious activity; it’s being neighborly, and more and more neighbors [are] being neighborly,” Gienko said.
In 2011, Sun City’s NW leaders began a collaborative project with the Huntley Police Department to have each of the 41 neighborhoods “certified” and recognized as a NW neighborhood. One of the core elements was the submission of a detailed “calling tree” that identified the names and phone numbers (and emails, if available) for each coordinator, block captain, and their assigned residents. As of May 1, 2013, there were 30 Sun City neighborhoods certified.
“Our goal now is to get all 41 of our neighborhoods certified,” Andersen said.
Gienko, a retired Chicago police officer whose hobby is photography, took pictures of NW’s National Night Out softball game and fire/police department recognition at Eakin Field last summer and also at the golf cart parade in June, where NW/NHN entered a decorated golf cart. These events were part of a major publicity campaign in Sun City and the surrounding area.
“It is imperative that the contact information contained in the calling trees is current and accurate for the communication of important messages regarding the safety and information of our residents,” Berendt said. “There have been multiple robberies and break-ins in the past few years, which are communicated from the Huntley PD to the NW coordinators. They, in turn, are responsible for communicating this information to their own residents.”
This re-certification program was the first of its kind that NATW had seen.
“Now we have a program to keep calling tree and communication information as accurate as possible on a yearly basis,” Berendt said. “When a neighborhood gets re-certified, the police department will issue them signs identifying them as official Neighborhood Watch neighborhoods.”
