The Chilliwack Crime Prevention Society is preparing to host the first annual Chilliwack Crime Prevention Fair on Saturday, Nov. 3.
The first of its kind in Chilliwack, the event coincides with the British Columbia Crime Prevention Association’s Crime Prevention Week, which is from Nov. 1 through until the 7th.
Held on a Saturday so “it’s easy for residents” to attend, Michelle Wulff says the event will showcase the different local services and resources that can help improve a person’s safety.
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“It’s a completely family-friendly event,” explained Wulff, who’s the office manager for the Chilliwack Crime Prevention Society.
Children will receive passports they can have stamped at the information booths, and there will also be activities, games, and hot dogs, chips, and pop available by donation.
“We’re a not-for-profit society,” said Wulff, “so the donations will be put back into the programs we offer,” such as Crime Free Multi Housing, Block Watch, Speed Watch, RCMP Victim Services, and Restorative Justice, who will all have an information table present at the Fair.
There will also be information tables for the Chilliwack and First Nations RCMP detachments, ICBC, Safer City, the fire department, Crime Stoppers, the Senior Resource Centre, Fraser Valley Brain Injury, the Salvation Army and more.
The main purpose of the Fair is education, said Wulff. “It’s about crime prevention strategies, target hardening, personal and business safety, home and personal safety, as well as the community’s safety (as a whole).”
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But the Fair isn’t just about creating safety, says Wulff, it’s also about maintaining an area’s safety.
“Look at our Block Watch program,” she said. “It’s great seeing neighbours getting to know each other. Person-to-person interaction is so important (when it comes to) engaging with the community itself, and getting to know the (people within it).
Attendees may also learn “to be cognoscente and aware of (their) surroundings because people get to complacent these days. It’s not like the ’70s anymore,” said Wulff.
“So come on down and see what we have to offer” on November 3, added the office manager. “We’ll have something for everybody.”
@SarahGawdin
Sarah.Gawdin@theprogress.com
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