It might not have the “cool factor” of Peanut Fest, and it lacks the pizzazz of the perennially misnamed Suffolk Holiday Parade, but National Night Out is still one of the best things going in Peanut City, USA.

The Aug. 6 event — put on nationally by the National Association of Town Watch — encourages residents to lock their doors, turn on their outside lights and spend the evening getting to know their neighbors. It is meant to present a united front against crime.

City officials and prospective community participants gathered earlier this week for the kickoff celebration, where they learned about this year’s theme and grabbed boxes of goodies intended to jumpstart the planning process for their individual events.

And “jumpstart” turns out to be the perfect way to describe what officials sought to accomplish with Tuesday’s event, as this year’s theme for National Night Out is “Jump On It.”

Organizers are encouraging participants to jump onto the bandwagon for the event, and they’re suggesting that communities set up jump rope and jumping jack competitions this year, along with the cookouts, parades, bounce houses for children and more that are normally part of the festivities.

Last year, about 60 neighborhoods and businesses and thousands of residents in communities all around the city participated in the event. About 30 people showed up Tuesday to register their communities to be a part of the fun. More are expected to do so as the event draws near.

Suffolk has participated in the nationwide event for several years and has placed in the top five in its population group for seven years straight, as judged by a national committee that reviews a video and notebook of materials about the event. Community pride is on the line this year, as organizers hope for a bigger turnout and even more elaborate celebrations than ever.

The point of National Night Out is to help citizens understand that the best way to fight crime is to prevent it, and one of the best ways to prevent crime is to ensure that residents of a community are invested in doing what they can to make it safer and to show criminals that they aren’t welcome and won’t be protected there.

“We want to get everybody involved,” Pughsville Civic League President Wayne White said Tuesday. There’s still time for you to get your neighborhood involved, too. To learn how you can do so, visit www.suffolknno.org.