BRIDGEPORT — Area residents of all ages flocked to Perkins Field on Tuesday evening for a free event hosted by the Bridgeport Police Department.

Tuesday’s get-together was one part of a larger national event called ​​National Night Out, which has the goal of bringing the community together and allowing police the opportunity to show residents that they play an active role in community inclusion.

Bridgeport PD has participated in the annual event since 2019, but this year marks its 42nd year nationally, with the first official event held nationwide in 1984.

Bridgeport Assistant Police Chief Darby Copeland said he wants residents to understand that the police don’t only arrest people.

“The average person’s interaction with police officers are traffic stops. If they get a ticket, police are the bad guys, so we just wanted an opportunity to have positive interactions,” Copeland said.

He added that the event is an opportunity for local law enforcement to connect with community members, especially children, and to develop relationships with them. He said that when his department hosts community activities, it lets the youth know that they can trust the police and that police officers are their friends.

Although the Bridgeport PD hosted the event, the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office, Brookside Volunteer Fire Department and Bridgeport Fire Department members were also in attendance to meet community members.

Copeland said the free event would not be possible without help from local businesses and organizations volunteering their time and resources.

“We count heavily on all of our community partners. Our local pizza shops donated the pizza United Dairy donated all of our drinks. We have snow cones and facepainting. Kids from the Bridgeport High School band opened us up with the national anthem and the Bridgeport fight song. Bill’s towing generously donates all of the inflatables for the event,” Copeland said. “There’s also a big, long line of free school supplies. Everything here is free for everybody in the community, and it just gives us an opportunity to give a little bit back to the community and let them know that we’re here to partner with them and keep Bridgeport a safer place to live and work.”

Belmont County NAACP, Bridgeport Fraternal Order Police Lodge 211, Bridgeport Thin Blue Line FOP Lodge 100 and Pizza Milano all donated a plethora of school supplies to be distributed to the children in attendance.

Copeland added that the event was originally the brainchild of Bridgeport Police Chief John Bumba. Bumba said that he saw the event taking place nationally and believed it would be great to do in Bridgeport.

He added that he realized that his department doesn’t always have the best contact with the people of the community and thought the event would help.

“We need to get more involved with them personally,” Bumba said. “It was just to have more interaction with the people and the younger people.”

In addition to the multiple activities, Belmont County Sheriff’s Office Detective Brad Mackey suited up in a padded suit and performed a K-9 demonstration on the football field while attendees sat in the Perkins Field stands to wait for a HealthNet medical helicopter to land on the field, ending the evening.

The city of Wheeling also got in on the action, with the Wheeling Police Department hosting its own National Night Out activities at the Wheeling Park Ice Rink.