HANW Holds Block Party

Four months in the making, the "Inaugural Block Party" of the Hillside Area Neighborhood Watch appeared to be a success by any standard. Great food, great company and lots of fun added up to a signal event that the group hopes to replicate in years to come.

HANW began with the goal of helping neighbors look out for each other after a string of crimes in the neighborhood. It has since evolved into a social network that also can raise awareness when pets go missing or neighbors need alerts to unusual circumstances.

For me, the invitation to attend as a guest meant reacquainting myself with people I had met over 25 years of reporting on Plainfield, first for a weekly, then a daily and now a blog. The diversity of the crowd and their camaraderie to me represented what Plainfield is all about at its best.

Bounteous tables of food were all up and down Evergreen Avenue, which was closed from Woodland Avenue to the intersection of Virginia Avenue. Neighbors shared all their specialties, including Doug Keating's jambalaya.

Children could create scary pumpkin collages, enjoy face-painting, ride in motorized cars, toss balls or take a turn at skateboarding.

Here's the do-it-yourself candy apple confection table. Smear on caramel and add mini M&Ms or more.

Prospect Avenue neighbors Mark O'Donnell, Annie McWilliams, Darlene McWilliams and James E. McGreevey pose for a picture.

At about 4:30 p.m., a city fire engine arrived, to the delight of youngsters. Organizers also thanked the Plainfield Public Works Division for a pre-party street cleaning.

Here are two happy partygoers at the sign-in tent. The group serves about 300 families in a broad swath of the city's Second Ward. Recent activities include a plant exchange and compilation of a mailing list for quick neighborhood communication in case of criminal activity. The group aims to present a unified voice to city authorities when concerns arise, to share adoption of charitable causes, to create a directory of local service providers and most of all, to foster the "warm community friendship" that Keating and others value as Plainfielders.

"Together there is no doubt we can malke our streets safer for ourselves, our children, and our neighbors," Keating wrote in a brochure distributed at the block party. "Let us all make this neighborhood a place where our kids can play, where we feel secure, and where we all feel as if someone is watching out for us together."

Amen.

--Bernice Paglia