Neighborhood Watch Committee

Neighborhood Watch (NW) is an organized group of citizens devoted to preventing crime and vandalism within a neighborhood. The Orlando Police Department’s Neighborhood Watch Unit conducts neighborhood training sessions to ensure Neighborhood Watch members are able to effectively identify suspicious activity and always report suspicious activity to 911.

City of Orlando Neighborhood Watch Coordinator, Lauri Brooks, [email protected]

Orlando Police Department Liason, Officer Karen Long, 407-246-2489, [email protected]

Southern Oaks has 15 Neighborhood Watch “Block Captains”.

The Orlando Police Department does not train its NW members to become vigilantes. Members are taught and reminded of four basic principles:

Neighborhood Watch members serve solely as the extra “eyes and ears” of law enforcement.
Neighborhood Watch members should report their observations of suspicious activities to law enforcement by calling 911.
Never try to take action on those observations.
Only trained law enforcement should take action.

The Objectives of Neighborhood Watch

To prevent crime by improving security, increasing vigilance, and creating and maintaining a caring community in an effort to reduce the opportunities for crime.
To assist the police in detecting crime by promoting effective two-way communication and the prompt reporting of suspicious and criminal activity.
To reduce undue fear of crime by providing accurate information about crime risks, and by promoting a sense of security and community spirit, particularly amongst the more vulnerable members of the community.
To enhance the police/community partnership by providing effective communication through systems such as the Neighborhood Watch Block Captain Program. The Neighborhood Watch Unit communicates with Block Captains via e-mail, fax, phone or mail of local crime trends which they may then disseminate to their Neighborhood Watch members.

Organizing and Maintaining

The defined Neighborhood Watch area must have at least 40% participation.
Two training meetings: at the first meeting, you will learn the dynamics of Neighborhood Watch; the second meeting is about residential security.
Creation of a communication/telephone chain.
The Watch must be able to maintain an accurate list of members’ names, addresses, and telephone numbers.
The Watch must be able to activate the communication/telephone chain and reach all members within a designated time period.
The Neighborhood Watch group is required to hold two meetings a year, which must be scheduled through your Neighborhood Watch ambassador. Participation in National Night Out will count as one of the required meetings.

Neighborhood Watch + 911 = Safer Neighborhoods in Orlando!

Link to City of Orlando Neighborhood Watch Site

The following table shows the name of the Southern Oaks Neighborhood Watch Chair Person and his 15 Block Captains:

Chair	Rye Merriam	[email protected]	407-855-4729
Block Captain Buckwood	Adam Eisen	[email protected]	407-808-6967
Block Captain Buckwood	Susan Howard	[email protected]	407-273-1292
Block Captain Campbell St	Dee Dee Williams	[email protected]	407-859-5861
Block Captain Edgecliffe	Wes Powell	[email protected]	407-851-9694
Block Captain Montcalm	Bob Woodbery	[email protected]	407-538-2438
Block Captain Montcalm	Norm Abramson	[email protected]	407-851-6602
Block Captain Montcalm	Weston Thomas	[email protected]	407-325-4288
Block Captain Northglenn	Kristi Camera	[email protected]	407-222-2602
Block Captain Ridgecrest	Linda Miller	[email protected]	407-859-4184
Block Captain Sweetbriar	Dina Duchene	[email protected]	407-760-6471
Block Captain Sweetbriar	Hank Gerken	[email protected]	321-352-7377
Block Captain Sweetbriar	J J Alexander	[email protected]	407-538-1011
Block Captain Wald	Keith Tagman	[email protected]	321-287-9637
Block Captain Wald	Paul Dalton	[email protected]	407-608-0355
Block Captain Wald	Jim Rodriguez	[email protected]	407-826-5109