Seafood — including fresh fried shrimp, fried fish and grilled salmon — was the order of the day as the NIH Police celebrated its third annual Police Day Out on Aug. 5 with a Louisiana-style cookout in front of Bldg. 1.

The NIH event is scheduled to coincide with "National Night Out," a crime and drug-abuse prevention event sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch. This year was the 20th anniversary of the national event.

Serving up the seafood lunches at "Day Out" are NIH Police employees (from r) Norbert Dimaculangan, Chezelle George, Kennice Mason, and Karen Heflin.

Last year, more than 33 million people from 9,850 communities in all 50 states, U.S. territories, Canadian cities and military bases worldwide participated in the largest National Night Out ever, according to the event's web site, which says the campaign "is designed to heighten crime and drug prevention awareness; generate support for and participation in local anti-crime programs; strengthen neighborhood spirit and police-community partnerships; and send a message to criminals...that neighborhoods are organized and fighting back."

Although occurring several hours earlier than the national event, NIH's observance attracted quite a few campus denizens. Of course, the large turnout may have had something to do with the menu: As usual, the food-line portion of the event stretched from the Bldg. 1 parking lot to Center Drive during the lunchtime hours. All proceeds benefit charity.

Also on hand were several representatives from other local, state and federal agencies including the United States Marshal's Office and K-9 units from the Park Police, the Smithsonian Institution and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The day got under way with K-9 demonstrations and presentation of newly certified K-9 officers, tours of the Mobile Command Unit and other crime prevention and detection displays.

Ofc. Tawania McKinzy with K-9 Cody was among several officers who completed K-9 certification.

NIH Police Chief Al Hinton (r) and Deputy Chief Robert Fuller (c) chat with a colleague.

Family Affair: NIH Police's Jody Luke, commander of off-site facilities, wife Tammy, an NCI program specialist, and son Bradley take time out for a quick photo.

Maj. Billy Alford joins the Lukes as they resume their customary places staffing the fish fry, which produced 150 lbs. of fresh Louisiana shrimp and 100 lbs. of fish. The Lukes have helped the NIH Police host charity cookouts for the last 9 years.