Cheers erupted outside Evanston Police Department headquarters on Tuesday, Aug. 4, each time a challenger hit the dunk tank target and sent Chief Schenita Stewart plunging into the water.

"I thought you liked me!" Stewart called out from the tank, still in uniform, as hundreds of residents lined up for their turn at the National Night Out block party at 1454 Elmwood Ave.

The free event, which ran from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., drew families and neighbors for food, music, kids' activities, giveaways and demonstrations by EPD's K9, bicycle and drone units. Officer Jeremy Nieman showed off police dog Zidan. Officer Nate Basner, lead instructor for the bicycle unit, ran a bike demo. Officer Chris Tortorello flew a drone overhead.

Stewart credited Sgt. Tosha Wilson and Sgt. Enjoli Daley with organizing the evening, telling the Evanston RoundTable they had done "an incredible job" putting it together.

For Daley, the block party was personal. She told ABC7 Chicago that officers are "in the business of people," and that having the community at EPD headquarters felt special and significant.

Wilson, who is also co-owner of The Laundry Café in Evanston and founder of Boosting Black Business, said the connections forged at events like this outlast the evening itself. She told ABC7 that a strong relationship between a police department and its community "is an automatic win."

Resident Thomani Klamm brought her kids and called the evening a quintessential Evanston summer block party. She said the familiarity matters when her children encounter officers in other settings, because kids who recognize a friendly face are more likely to respond.

City Manager Luke Stowe also attended. National Night Out is an annual nationwide campaign, held the first Tuesday of every August since 1984, in which law enforcement agencies and neighborhoods gather to strengthen community ties. The City of Evanston encouraged residents to turn on their porch lights that evening as a symbol of unity.

Ice cream followed a grilled dinner as community organizations staffed booths sharing information and giveaways along Elmwood Avenue.