Chelan County Sheriff, deputies host National Night Out

CASHMERE– The blare of sirens. The flashing of red and white lights. The uniform. 

These symbols of law enforcement cause various reactions among the public. Often, people live in a headline world concerning the police. Reactions and stereotypes can dominate. Yet while no entity is beyond reproach, officers local and nationwide want to remind the people they serve that everyone is on the same side. 

“We’re trying to get out there so hopefully people can see us in hopefully a non-threatening environment,” said Nigel Hunter, Sheriff’s Deputy for Chelan County. “In our view it makes us do the job better because we actually really want to see a positive outcome as opposed to just being mercenaries hired to come in and serve a public that may or may not connect with them.”

Hunter was one of several law enforcement members present for a local celebration of National Night Out, on August 2 at Cashmere Riverside Park. Held across all 50 states, U.S. territories military bases worldwide on the first Tuesday of August, National Night Out is a large-scale effort to build relationships between law enforcement and citizens. The movement was founded in August of 1984 by a police officer in the western suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Locally, the COVID-19 pandemic has canceled the gathering but it’s back on this year and other communities in the area hosted the events. National Night Out activities include demonstrations, cookouts, youth events and more, all aimed to break down the wall between the two parties. 

“There used to be old-school beat cops walking around seeing people and that’s kind of gone by the wayside,” Hunter said. “Especially in this area with vehicles and being so rural and spread out, so this is a good opportunity for us to be present, get all the toys out, let everybody see where the taxpayer dollars are going, what we utilize them for, engage with people and just give them an update on stuff.”

At the Riverside Park event, barbecue smoke wafted through the crowd as country music blared on a sunny summer’s evening while participants enjoyed shaved ice.

Many officers connected with people whom they’ve known for years. Hunter estimated that about 80 percent of his department lives in Chelan County while the rest live in Douglas County. He feels this is an important factor in serving the area. 

“That’s what’s great about being in a community like this that’s small, is you’ve got people that live in these areas, and they’re recognized pretty easily,” Hunter said.  

Adam Musgrove is the Chief of Patrol for Chelan County Sheriff's Office. He acknowledged that across the U.S., anti-police sentiment and public hostility has grown especially in recent years . Yet largely in North Central Washington, he and his officers have a different experience.

“We feel very supported by our community out here,” he said. “And I know that not everybody feels that around, so we’re very lucky to live in the community that we do and it’s our opportunity to give back and kind of show you what it’s like to work in our profession.”

Besides real-life police officers to talk to, the public had a chance to see many of the vehicles of the trade. Included among those was a bulky SWAT Team MRAP (mine-resistant ambush protection) vehicle that kids found particularly fascinating. Other sights included a K-9-unit, fire truck and patrol cars from Cashmere, a helicopter and a Zodiac boat. Also at Riverside Park were members from Ballard Ambulance who Musgrove described as our “first responder family.” 

The event had a relaxed feel to it, especially toward the end as officers played a game of catch with the kids. Local sponsors donated many items to be raffled off for the children. 

In previous years, the local National Night Out for Chelan County was held primarily in Wenatchee. This summer, Cashmere hosted the event to give a smaller town the chance to mingle with law enforcement. Musgrove floated the possibility of other more intimate communities like Leavenworth or Chelan as potential locations in the coming years. Wherever the National Night Out goes, he hopes that people understand that the police exist for them. 

“It’s our opportunity to relate to the community and just show them that there’s more to us than just showing up to bad scenes and what not,” Musgrove said. “My favorite part of my job is meeting the community. It’s the part of the job that we don’t get to see a lot of on their good days, so we get to get out here and communicate on a good day where everybody’s happy and smiling, that’s probably the best part of our job.”