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Castle Square National Night Out 2017

by Michele D.  Maniscalco
Wednesday Aug 9, 2017

Accolades flew in every direction at the Tuesday, August 1 Castle Square Tenants Organization's (CSTO) National Night Out as Mayor Martin J. Walsh, Boston Police Department (BPD) commissioner William Evans, BPD superintendent William Gross, BPD D-4 captain Wayne Lanchester and CSTO president Ann Moy and executive director Deborah Backus bestowed honors for community service and contributions to neighborhood safety and harmony. Approximately 800 guests of all ages filled the Castle Square plaza at 484 Tremont Street, enjoying amusements, food, information tables, live entertainment and exhibits such as the Jabberwock Reptiles and New England Aquarium. Guests munched on hot dogs, hamburgers and veggie burgers, the last a new addition to the menu this year.

Ann Moy, president of CSTO, honored Mayor Walsh for his "commitment to diversity in the city of Boston." Moy thanked Evans for his "unwavering commitment to the safety of Boston's neighborhoods." Community service officer Javier Pagan of BPD D-4 saluted Blackstone Community Center (BCC), presenting an award to BCC's Keith Houston for the center's violence prevention program, which seeks to build positive relationships between youth and police officers through sports such as the One Hood basketball league, a partnership with IBA and BPD. BPD community service officer Mayan Tamang to his former colleague, Boston Center for Youth and Families (BCYF) street worker Dennis Avila for his efforts in fighting youth crime and violence. Lanchester presented the Morville House senior community with the 2017 Crime Watch Group of the Year Award for patrolling Symphony Park, reporting homeless people drinking, sleeping on benches, urinating in public and using drugs. A group of elders accompanied by D-4 community service officer Bernadette McCarthy, proudly wore bright blue Senior Strong T shirts as they accepted the award.

The presentations were followed by performances by the South End Dynamite youth dance troupe, the Castle Square Tai Chi Fan Dance group and hip-hop dancers the Floor Lords, while around the plaza, children shot hoops, played on inflatable slides and bounce houses and posed for pictures with Mayor Walsh and with McGruff the crime-watch dog. Sergeant Freeman and officers Litto, Slyne and McCarthy of D-4 circulated among the crowd and a returning favorite, former D-4 community service officer Jorge Dias, attended off-duty with his young son, Jack, in tow.