Locals got to meet cops of all shapes, sizes, and species at the First Precinct’s National Night Out event on Aug. 2 at the South Street Seaport.
BY COLIN MIXSON
Officers with the NYPD’s First Precinct treated Downtown kids to an evening of carnival games and cotton candy at the South Street Seaport on Aug. 2 as part of its National Night Out celebration, an outreach event tailored to build relationships between police officers and the community they serve.
If the opinions of Downtown moms are anything to go by, the fun and games sure did the trick.
“I think it makes them see more approachable, more human, and not as intimidating,” said Sienam Lulla, a Financial District resident and mom of two growing boys. “It shows they’re protecting us, and it’s okay to go and talk to them.”
Little Ahulani Gonzalez left the First Precinct’s National Night Out event with lots of prizes.
The First Precinct’s event, sponsored this year by Seaport developer Howard Hughes Corp., featured a slew of challenging diversions, including a tic-tac-toe ball game, a beanbag toss, and mini golf.
Winners were awarded coupons for prizes, which could be exchanged for a variety of amusing knickknacks, as another mom reported.
“My daughter had a Rubik’s cube, an emoji plush doll, and a bag full of stamps and bracelets and things,” said Erendira Herrera, an auxiliary cop with the precinct who brought her 7-year-old daughter Ahulani Gonzalez to the event.
Carnival games aside, kids got to meet the cops — and their dogs too — in addition to exploring the insides of an FBI cruiser, which Lulla described as a “once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Altogether, it was an old-fashion community event and a great way to spend an evening, according to Lulla.
“It was so funny. They had these cool games it was very retro,” she said.
Det. Rick Lee — a.k.a. “Hipster Cop” — joined locals at the First Precinct’s National Night Out event. Lee was dubbed Hipster Cop during his tenure as liasion between the precinct and members of Occupy Wall Street, largely for ill-defined fashion reasons.
