Auburn celebrates 42nd annual National Night Out

Published 1:24 pm Wednesday, August 5, 2026

National Night Out (NNO) returned to Auburn for its 42nd year on Aug. 4. It is an annual nationwide campaign that aims to bring communities together and raise awareness around crime and drug prevention.

More than 38 million people across the country participated in NNO across over 17,000 communities this year. The National Association of Town Watch sponsors the event.

The City of Auburn chooses to bring the event to the community but individual resident coordinators in neighborhoods, businesses and apartment complexes host block parties for their smaller communities, according to the City of Auburn’s website.

Block parties during NNO had many different elements to them. From ice cream socials to potlucks, the goal of the event is to bring community members together.

Jonathan Glover, a spokesperson for the City of Auburn explained the importance of the event.

“National Night Out is an incredibly important event not only for the City of Auburn and its police department, but in communities across the United States,” he said. “It’s the one night of the year where our civic duties and responsibilities travel to dozens of neighborhoods throughout the city.”

The Auburn Police Department (APD), Valley Fire Regional Authority (VFRA) and more visited several of the block parties across the city.

“In addition to over 40 staff [who ventured] out to 33 neighborhoods on Tuesday (Aug. 4), our Rec N Roll recreation van [was] also out and about in a neighborhood, ready to provide free recreation to kids of all ages,” Glover said.

Dick’s Drive-In had a pop-up food truck to serve community members throughout the evening. There were also stations for miniature golf, axe throwing and video games.

A total of 126 cities in Washington alone participated in NNO this year, according to the NNO website.

“It’s important for [the] government to meet folks where they are, whenever possible, and National Night Out is a fantastic opportunity to have that dream fully realized,” Glover said.