Only neighbors can make neighborhoods safe. To help your neighborhood be a safe place, be a good neighbor and participate in the resources listed below.

• Neighborhood Watch: If your neighborhood has a Neighborhood Watch program, know who your Block Captain is and his/her phone number. Note any vehicles, individuals or activities in your neighborhood that seem questionable based on your experience. Call your Block Captain or the police to report such activity. If your neighborhood does not have the program, call the police for more information about starting one. If your neighborhood has Neighborhood Watch signs posted and you do not know who your Block Captain is, check with the police. Some organizations lose effectiveness over time as people leave and the program becomes inactive. If there is not an active program, you should still report suspicious persons or activities to the police. You have the right to ask the police not to use your name or specific address on the police radio, if that is a concern for you.
  
  

• Community Emergency Response Team (CERT): This is a free training program of most local Fire Depts. teaching practical skills for being helpful to neighbors in times of emergency (e.g., Hurricane Isabel). The program also seeks to have teams of people in neighborhoods who have had the training and can work together to maximize help when it is needed. For more information or to enroll in the training, contact your local Fire Department CERT Coordinator. Hampton, York County and James City County operate the training. Williamsburg will start it in the fall of 2004. Newport News and Poquoson do not offer CERT at this time.

• Citizen Police Academy: Free training in the realities of police work and how citizens can recognize crime and work with the police to protect neighborhoods. Academies offered in Newport News, Hampton and James City County. Separate Academy training for senior citizens in Newport News and for youth in Hampton. Call the Police Dept. for more information.
  
  

• Homebound Registration: If any of your neighbors are homebound, encourage them to register with the local Sheriff’s Office for telephone reassurance calling so that an officer can visit the home if there is no answer. This is a safe and dependable way to combat emergencies. Also, homebound persons or persons with serious mobility problems should be encouraged to register with the local Office of Emergency Management, which will have needed mobility and medical information for follow-up with registrants after a disaster such as hurricane Isabel. Contact the City Manager or County Administrator’s office in the jurisdiction for contact information.