That more than 100 people would pull themselves away from their precious free time on a Saturday night to march through Suffolk in support of neighborhood unity and National Night Out is no small event.

Nor is it a small achievement on the part of the active West End Neighborhood Association, which organized last weekend’s event.

It offered area residents the opportunity to get to know one another, which in itself will go a long way toward deterring crime there. It’s much more difficult to ignore crime when it is happening to someone you know.

And that’s what it takes for neighborhoods like West End to triumph over crime – every citizen watching out for his or neighbor and quickly reporting any suspicious activity to employees.

Fortunately, there are many civic leagues in Suffolk like the West End Neighborhood Association that are proactively improving safety in their community, as well as improving their communities in general, which should be a source of great pride for those people.

As we’ve stated before, in order to revitalize neighborhoods, city assistance is critical. However, all the paved streets, underground utilities, traffic circles and new lampposts in the world will not guarantee success. While they can help get the ball rollin, the most crucial element is residents taking pride in their homes and their neighborhood. That’s happening in many parts of Suffolk.