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It used to be taken for granted that you knew all your neighbors, whether or not you liked them, and you looked out for each other. Used to be.
Now, people can live in a neighborhood for years and never know the family that lives two doors down. Too busy, too private, too transient, too uninterested - whatever the reason, the word "neighbor" today usually means where someone lives instead of what kind of person someone is.
One Warsaw family is trying to bring that feeling of community back to their neighborhood. Allyn and Vicky Decker, of North Union Street, recently organized the Madison Area Neighborhood Watch to encourage people who live in their area of town to become neighborly again.
The Deckers are adamant that their program doesn't involve patrols and is not a vigilante group. It's just neighbors watching out for neighbors.
"It's just keeping our eyes and ears open," said Allyn, 35, chairman of the communication department at Grace College. "People need to know it's OK to watch out for other people."
Watching out for others could mean mowing someone's lawn if they're sick or in the hospital; letting city authorities know if the condition of rental housing deteriorates; checking on an elderly neighbor from time to time; or reporting suspicious behavior or cars to the police.
"In neighborhoods that have this kind of program, there is a 75 percent decrease in crime, and the compliance (with housing ordinances) is 85 percent," said Sgt. Rod Thomas of the Warsaw Police Department.
Thomas has been working closely with the Deckers on the project and applauds their efforts.
"This is the pilot program that we are taking very seriously," he said.
The watch group has had two meetings, both at Madison Elementary. Thomas and Warsaw building inspector Pam Kennedy have attended and explained laws and ordinances to the group.
The meetings also are a good place for people to meet their neighbors and to learn about crime prevention, personal safety, city ordinances, how to respond to emergencies, even fire safety.
At the group's first meeting, their neighbors were "cautiously enthusiastic," the Deckers said.
"Some people were worried: 'What's going to be expected of me?' " Vicky said. "The time is done for sitting back and hoping things get better."
The attitude of the group is to be proactive, not reactive, Allyn said. "There's an especially urgent need because of the school - we want kids to feel safe walking to and from school."
Thomas said last summer, while the Bicycle Bandit was still free, people organized into neighborhood groups as a reaction. Most of those groups don't exist anymore, he said.
"Last summer, those groups waited until a serious problem came up. Instead, this group wants to prepare," he said.
The program does give area residents an organized way to get things done, whether it's reporting a crime or checking on city housing ordinances. Thomas is encouraging the group to set up block captains and telephone trees for getting information out.
Group members are given bright orange signs to put in their windows to show that they're members of a neighborhood watch.
The Deckers said some residents may object to others knowing personal information about them, but that information is necessary if the program is going to work.
"We need data," Allyn said. "We need to know who's living in what house, if they want people to check in on them or not."
It's also helpful to know if anyone has special needs, what cars belong to what houses, and how many people live in each house. That way, if a family is on vacation, other neighbors will know if something suspicious is going on at the house.
"It really does come down to trust. If people aren't willing at the base level to trust someone, then this program isn't going to work," Allyn said.
The next meeting for the Madison Area Neighborhood Watch is scheduled for noon July 19 at Madison School. To encourage people to participate, Owen's supermarket owner Joe Prout has agreed to donate two gift certificates for a drawing.
People in other neighborhoods who are interested in setting up similar groups should contact Sgt. Rod Thomas at the Warsaw Police Department, 372-9511.
