By ROBIN SHANNON and DAVID VITRANO

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – Whether it was a large community gathering or a small neighborhood block party, River Parishes residents were out in full force Tuesday night mingling with neighbors and chatting with law enforcement officials as part of the 27th annual National Night out Against Crime.

One of the small neighborhood events took place in the 500 block of Melrose Drive in LaPlace, where Emile and Blake Yokum hold their annual Night Out party.

“We started participating in 2005 as a way to get to know others in the neighborhood,” Emilie Yokum said. “And it has gotten bigger and bigger every year.”

Yokum’s husband Blake, who grew up in the neighborhood, said things have changed and neighbors in the area don’t associate as often as they used to. He said the party has been a great way to create new bonds.

“We all look out for each other and pay attention to what is going on, but there is never as much socializing,” Blake Yokum said. “This gathering has been less about combating crime and more about enjoying time with neighbors we don’t see every day. Our neighborhood has had a handful of minor issues in the past, but nothing serious.”

Meanwhile, on the other side of LaPlace in the Woodland Quarters neighborhood, a crowd of more than 100 gathered under a canopy tent and around large industrial fans for a Night Out party sponsored by Rising Star Baptist Church.

Rev. Donald August, Rising Star Church pastor, said the tight-knit church community regularly sponsors a party as a way to strengthen bonds between neighbors. He also said the gathering serves as an ideal way to get children involved in community events in the neighborhood.

Toward the lake, another high-profile party was taking place. Sponsored by School Board member Matthew Ory in cooperation with Ascension of Our Lord Catholic School, the event featured jambalaya and a visit from the St. John Fire Department. This party was more geared for the children than some of the other events, with neighborhood youngsters happily bouncing on a spacewalk and some of their older siblings tossing a football around on the adjacent lot. Ory said there was also a school supply giveaway at the event, held on the grounds of AOL’s preschool.

Although fewer events took place in St. James Parish, those that did had no less spirit than their St. John counterparts.

In Gramercy, Claude “Big Chief” Wiggins Sr. hosted a gathering at his residence.

“We did it last year,” he said. “They’re getting bigger and bigger every year.”

He also was clear that this was no ordinary party.

Said Wiggins, “We’re going to save the neighborhood. That’s what this is all about.”