For residents of the Parkview community, there are plenty of good reasons to call this slice of DeKalb County home. There's the proximity to downtown and the commercial districts of nearby Kirkwood and East Atlanta. There's also the 17-acre DeKalb Memorial Park off Wilkinson Drive, where sports courts, a playground, community building and picnic area are part of the attraction. But Hattie Williams, who has lived near the park for 45 years, remembers a time when it was a less than desirable place to visit.
"In the late 1980s, there was so much crime, drugs and prostitution," said Williams, 72. "But we thought if we could get the police department involved, we could change that."
Williams, a former MARTA bus driver, was sidelined by an injury in 1987. With a bit of time on her hands, she was looking for ways to make the neighborhood better when she found the Parkview Community Civic Club. She's held a leadership role in the group since the early 1990s.
"I didn't want to just sit around," she said. "I wanted to get involved in something. I thought this group would be good. We do lots of things: cleanups, planting trees, keeping up flower gardens, making sure streets are clean, putting out newsletters so neighbors know what's going on."
Through the club, Williams and other members recruited the help of the DeKalb County sheriff, police and a commissioner to get the area cleaned up and help residents learn ways to watch out for each other.
"They were very supportive," said Williams. "There's been a great improvement. Our community is now much safer."
For the last 14 years, the club has sponsored the local National Night Out gathering. The countrywide event fosters better relationships between neighbors and stronger connections to law enforcement to reduce crime. The project was created by the National Association of Town Watch, which is marking the 29th anniversary of NNO this year.
On Tuesday, the Parkview club's National Night Out will kick off at 7 p.m. with a parade and a party that brings neighbors together for food, fun and fellowship. Participants will share hot dogs and burgers, meet members of the local fire and police departments and listen to music. Kids will be treated to face-painting, clowns and gift of school supplies.
"It's a big night that we start planning for in March," said Williams. "We have 300 in our community, but when we have this event we usually have far more than that show up. But that's okay - the reason we do it is to let people know that we are connected. They know they're welcome to join us, and we're here for them, not just for security."
For information about the National Night Out program to to www.natw.org.
Your community
Each Saturday, we shine a spotlight on a local neighborhood, city or community. To suggest a place for us to visit, e-mail H.M. Cauley at hm_cauley@yahoo.com or call 404-514-6162.
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