Viewfinder: Norcross' National Night Out

Despite the overcast Tuesday night, more than four hundred people attended Norcross' first annual National Night Out.

The event, dubbed "America's Night Out Against Crime," brought in members from every aspect of the community. Local residents, city officials, police officers, nonprofits, businesses and more came out to take part in the kids' activities, prizes, booths, police demos, and food and drinks.

"After all these months of planning, I am excited about the turnout," said Arlene Beckles, the head organizer for the NNO event and president of the . "Partnering with the different organizations from our list of sponsors, the city, the police department and the farmers market, we had a good crowd out here for our first event. I'm really looking forward to something bigger and better next year."

Norcross police were heavily involved in the event, too. A K9 demonstration was presented with the department's current dog, Bravo, and they also explained the importance of the city's neighborhood watch effort, Police and Citizens Together.

"Our goal was to inform the community on the PACT program, and try to get people aware and excited about PACT," said Norcross Police Officer Jennifer Garner, who's been pushing for a National Night Out in Norcross for a few years. "We had some positive feedback from that, and we just look forward to seeing what it could produce."

Another big part of Norcross' NNO was announcing the winner of Project 365, which went to the in Norcross. For a full year, the organization and its kids will get help in maintaining a PACT; beautifying the organization; and have a quarterly neighborhood cleanup campaign through Breathe-Green Gwinnett.