ST. PETERSBURG -- A band made music, teens played beach volleyball, and small children got to sit on a motorcycle.

These were the scenes in North Shore Park Tuesday night for National Night Out, whose purpose is to raise community as much as it is to share crime-prevention tools.

The spectacular beauty of the downtown shorefront is not exactly Ground Zero for fighting dastardly crime. But the annual event's laid-back setting underscored its purpose: to bring like-minded people together with the common goal of keeping neighborhoods safe.

National Night Out marked its 28th year Tuesday. It is a night where Americans are urged to turn on their porch lights and take the old-fashioned step of talking to their neighbors and sharing an interest about what goes in their communities.

It's a unique but effective way to organize groups to fight neighborhood crime.

St. Petersburg Police also see the event has a public relations tool. Police made stops at North Shore Park and similar events around the city, from motorcycle cops to the Police Chief. Other sites were Westminster Shores/Bahama Shores, Bartlett Park, Kenwood and Holiday Park.

The gathering at North Shore Park earned dividends almost immediately for St. Petersburg Police Maj. Dede Carron.

She met a citizen who happened to have a tip about a burglary.

"Just tonight a citizen flagged me down about a burglary that occured in my area," Carron said. "He didn't know what this event was. He told me he was just driving around and he saw me in the parking lot while he was petting a dog. He saw me and said, 'I have the need to tell you something (about a burglary).'

"We're following up on it right now. That's kind of unheard of. But it's these people who help us solve the crimes and encourage their neighbors and friends to reach out to us and help build the partnership. I love it."

Carron is a big advocate of National Night Out and how it helps build bridges between citizens and police.

"The people around here are so good, so wonderful," Carron said. "It gives the community a chance to meet the officers and have neighbor's children to play with the officers but it also gives citizens a chance to thank the police for everything they do." 

Barbara Heck echoed Carron's beliefs. The president of the Snell Isle Neighborhood Association, Heck is convinced the National Night Out is vital for a healthy, safe and vibrant community.

"This is where I grew up," Heck said. "It's fun to get together and this is a way to understand what the police department does for us and show support for the police department. It's fabulous. We are one big family and people need to remember that.