Barbara Lawlor, Nederland. On the first Tuesday in August, the  4th, towns all over the country will simultaneously  celebrate National Night Out, a community-police awareness event.

Known as America’s Night Out against Crime, the annual celebration was started in 1984 by the National Association of Town Watch, a non-profit crime management organization. Today more than 6,500 crime-, drug- and violence-prevention organizations join in a night of becoming acquainted with local police departments and their law enforcement officers.

The nationwide party was begun by Matt A. Peskin, executive director of the NATW, who says, “It’s a wonderful opportunity for communities nationwide to promote police-community partnerships, crime prevention, and neighborhood camaraderie. National Night Out represents the kind of spirit, energy and determination that is helping to make many neighborhoods safer.”

In the 2010 National Night Out, 37 million people from over 15,000 communities participated in the event with cookouts, parades, exhibits, rallies, and conversations with local police officers.

This year, Nederland will be a part of the national party. Organized by NPD officer Jessica Steele, the event will take place at Chipeta Park from 5-9 p.m. She says that NPD Chief Paul Carrill will be grilling bratwurst and hot dogs while guests will be able to examine patrol cars, fire engines, and a medical helicopter.

Boulder County Sheriff’s Office deputies will put on a canine demonstration, including Colorado Forensics cadaver dogs. The Nederland Public Works Department will have their equipment on display, and Rocky Mountain Raptors will bring their birds of prey. The demonstrations and exhibits will all be activities that are fun for families.

Although Officer Steele has been with the Nederland department for about a year, she and other newer officers will have the opportunity to socialize with the residents they protect and serve. Steele says they could also use donations and potluck dishes to add extra flavor to the picnic. She is looking into having live music added to the festivities.

A Boulder native and a 1989 graduate from Fairview High School, Steele developed an interest in criminal justice when she went on a ride-along with a BCSO deputy and experienced a different way of looking at the world. She was a member of a softball team from the time she was nine-years old until she was 26, coaching with the Boulder Valley School District Softball Association.

Steele also worked for her family’s shipping, packaging, and mailing business in Boulder. But her interest in law enforcement had never diminished, and after much training, she was hired by Boulder County Dispatch Center. “There were usually six or seven people on a shift and you had to work through the hysteria of a traumatic situation and learn to ask questions to get the information you needed.”

She was on dispatch duty during the riots at CU, the huge windstorm at the reservoir, and a drive-by shooting. Steele says she learned to stay on the line with someone who was scared, to keep them calm until officers arrived to help.

During her time in dispatch, she became more convinced that she wanted to be a police officer; she wanted to be the one arriving at the scene to help people. She took a three-month leave of absence to go through the police academy. After becoming certified, she went back to work for dispatch while applying for work with police departments.

It didn’t take long for her to be hired as a patrol officer for the Louisville Police Department, where she worked for nine years. Steele went from being a patrol officer to a school resource officer and then became a detective, learning the initial investigation process and follow-up, and then writing court orders.

After becoming an experienced detective, Steel moved to the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office until 2012, when went to work in her parents’ business and returned to school to become a graphic designer.

“I had always been good friends with Jake Smith, who worked for the Nederland Police Department, and when he told me they needed another officer, I decided to apply. I knew Nederland and I liked it, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to get back into law enforcement.”

Steele was interviewed by former chief Jim Matheney, who hired her for weekends. She discovered she liked the family aspect of the town, which was definitely different from working in Louisville. She is now a full-time officer with NPD.

She says chief Carrill had done a National Night Out event before and wanted to organize one for Nederland. He asked her to head it up. “We are working to build a community relationship with law enforcement. We are asking everyone to put their lights on at home to acknowledge the community’s efforts to keep crime down. We are looking forward to getting together with the community and having a good time,” says Steele.

Anyone wanting to donate to the event can contact Steele at 303-258-3250.