Sunday event kicks off National Night Out in Columbia

The Columbia Police Department is having a party Sunday, and everyone is invited.

The ninth annual National Night Out Kickoff is being held at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center beginning at 3 p.m.

The kickoff is an event designed to get folks involved with National Night Out, held on the first Tuesday in August. National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make neighborhoods safer, better places to live.

“Our goal is to get everyone excited about National Night Out,” said Lt. Ron Felder, with the Columbia Police Department.

“Right now, with things that are going on throughout the United States … we are trying to work and bridge gaps with our citizens.”

The National Night Out Kickoff is a time for community members to mingle and enjoy fellowship, Felder said. It is a community-wide event held to kick-off individual neighborhood National Night Out events this week that focus on safety and crime, drug and violence prevention in the city.

The free, 3-hour event is for folks of all ages. There will be bingo for adults and bounce houses for kids. The Columbia Parks and Recreation Department will be there with games, and police officers will have safety demonstrations. There will be free giveaways, including 150 tickets to Columbia Fireflies’ games that will be raffled.

Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin will speak, and there will be food and other activities.

The community liaisons, in collaboration with the City of Columbia's Police Department and Parks and Recreation Department, host the National Night Out Kickoff.

Neighborhood associations will sponsor activities on National Night Out Tuesday.

The Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center is at 1101 Lincoln St.