The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
If thereâ??s one thing the Mounties donâ??t have enough of, itâ??s eyes. Thatâ??s why Denare Beach residents have established a Neighbourhood Watch program. â??So far I canâ??t gauge if itâ??s (had an impact), but I think anything that would involve the community and engage the community is something positive,â?ù said Jean Champagne, a village councillor and committee member with the program. The program was formed in April, weeks after a community forum discussed ongoing concerns over vandalism, break-ins and other crimes. From the forum a committee was struck to examine potential solutions, including the Neighbourhood Watch program. Champagne said the goal is for residents to be cognizant of what is happening in their neighbourhoods and to report anything suspicious to the RCMP. Unlike Citizens on Patrol, another well-known crime-prevention program, Neighbourhood Watch does not involve organized vehicle or foot patrols. â??Itâ??s simply (about) neighbours watching neighboursâ?? property,â?ù said Champagne. It is hoped the program will foster a greater sense of community, returning to a time when more people knew their neighbours and parents knew where their kids were playing. â??Iâ??m surprised a lot of people donâ??t know their neighbours,â?ù Champagne said. Neighbourhood Watch currently has six volunteers who are each assigned to monitor areas of up to about 20 homes. Together with committee members they have roughly one-third of Denare Beach covered, so Champagne hopes more volunteers will step up. â??We hope to cover the entire community,â?ù he said. â??We donâ??t want it to be something that takes quite a bit of your time.â?ù To promote the program, the village will have an insert in each residentâ??s water bill. It will explain what Neighbourhood Watch is and who to contact to get involved. Champagne is hopeful that as more seasonal residents return to Denare Beach this summer, additional volunteers will quickly become available. Volunteers will be informed of the programâ??s ground rules. For one, they are not to try investigating crimes on their own. Neighbourhood Watch may be particularly valuable to Denare Beach given its distance from the Creighton RCMP detachment that serves the village. Some Denare Beachers have said the RCMP sometimes depart the village after responding to a call only to turn around moments later because of a second incident. In addition to being a committee member, Champagne chairs village councilâ??s Protection Committee, whose mandate involves crime and safety issues.
