Situated in front of a Benton County Sheriff’s Office vehicle at Philomath City Park, Deputy Aaron Gevatosky sees a consistent stream of community members stopping by to get a look at his K-9 partner, Manny.
Some initially hesitate, especially young children, but that quickly melts into excitement. For Gevatosky, a 17-year BCSO veteran, moments like those represent something vital that often gets lost in the daily grind of law enforcement.
“There’s no reason to be afraid to approach us and that’s why I think these events right here are great,” Gevatosky said during Tuesday’s National Night Out celebration. “Because they can come and see us outside of what you think we’re doing.”
Manny, certified just three months ago, represents a fresh start for Gevatosky, who spent eight years working with his previous K-9 partner, Brutus, attending countless similar gatherings throughout Benton County.
National Night Out, held annually across communities nationwide, serves a purpose that extends far beyond the free stickers and friendly conversations. The event creates informal settings where residents can interact with police and sheriff’s deputies outside the typical enforcement context.
Officer Jim Weikel, who has been with Philomath Police for three years since leaving the Benton County Sheriff’s Office, understands firsthand how past experiences can shape public perception of law enforcement. He’s seen how certain family dynamics can influence children’s views of police.
“If you’re a knucklehead and the kids see daddy or mommy always getting arrested, then what do they think the police are? That’s unfortunately the perception they have,” Weikel explained. “But at stuff like this, they get to meet us and hang out and chitchat and see that we’re normal folks just like everybody else.”
This year’s event featured enhanced interactive elements, thanks to the creativity of Katie Miller, an administrative specialist with the Philomath office. Miller developed a Junior Detective Investigation activity with clues scattered across various tables, transforming passive observation into active engagement.
“She’s trying to make it so it’s more interactive and getting people involved instead of walking around and getting a free sticker and going home,” Weikel said. “I applaud her for that.”
For Sgt. Brandon Thurman, whose law enforcement career with Philomath Police spans two decades with a brief interlude at the Linn County Sheriff’s Office, National Night Out addresses a fundamental challenge that officers face during regular duties.
“People are often too scared to come up and talk to us out on the streets when we’re out on patrol,” Thurman explained. “Just because when we’re out there, they may not know that it’s safe to come out and talk to us — they’re not sure what we’re doing where if we’re parked, we may be waiting for a suspect or something. So people are always hesitant.”
The approachability fostered at events like National Night Out creates lasting benefits that extend well beyond the evening’s festivities. The personal connections can transform routine police work throughout the year.
“This definitely helps our day-to-day operations just in the fact that we’re meeting these community members and they know who we are and they know what we’re about,” Thurman said. “They’re going to have more faith in us when we are called for a service, and they know who we are.”
One persistent challenge Thurman encounters involves residents who witness suspicious activity but hesitate to contact police.
“They’re worried that they’re going to feel that it’s not valid or they’re wasting our time,” Thurman said. “There’s no bad call so we encourage everybody that if you see anything suspicious or something that doesn’t look normal, follow your gut instinct and call us. If we show up and it’s nothing, then it’s nothing. We’d rather know than not know.”
For Gevatosky, community events like National Night Out also serve an educational purpose, helping residents understand the complexity and variety of modern law enforcement work. Through his participation in the annual Citizens Academy, he’s witnessed firsthand how public understanding can shift when people learn about the diverse responsibilities officers shoulder.
“I do the Citizens Academy every year and some people come into that having no idea what it is that we actually do,” Gevatosky said. “They come out of it like, ‘Wow, I never thought you guys did all that stuff — you’ve got to wear so many different hats when you go to calls’ whether it’s a mental health call or an armed robbery. We’re doing different jobs in those different situations.”
Even during such community-focused events, the reality of police work never completely fades. Thurman approaches National Night Out with genuine enthusiasm for connecting with residents, but his extensive training and experience keep him alert to potential problems.
“This is a community event for the public to meet us but on my way here, I was actually in my mind thinking, ‘OK, what if somebody came in and wanted to cause a scene? How do we handle that?’ Those are things that we still have to think about,” he said. “We’re here for the community, we’re here to approach but we’ve always got to be ready to think about what could happen.”
Although National Night Out across the country focuses primarily on police-community partnerships, several other agencies also participate annually in the Philomath event. Philomath Fire and Rescue, for example, had a fun, challenging course to be conquered complete with the spraying of a fire hose. And various community partners were on hand to spread the word about their particular organizations while interacting with the public.
