New Territory Residential Community Association

NATIONAL NIGHT OUT 2009

New Territory’s National Night Out was a fun event! Residents gathered at thirty-five block and neighborhood parties where people re-connected and many made new friends. Children ran around with glow-in-the-dark bracelets as adults were given safety pamphlets and shared contact information in case of an emergency. SugarLand Fire Department, Station 6, firefighters and Fort Bend ISD’s K-9 unit visited many parties. Precinct 4 Constable Troy Nehls and his deputies were out in full force! Safety Committee members visited fifteen parties and passed out limited edition T-shirts and bottled water. The party hosts did a fantastic job!

The New Territory Public Safety Committee would like to thank our four wonderful and very generous sponsors: Kids R Kids, Mike Tate 99, Premier Dental and Carmelo’s Burritos ‘N Tacos. With their support, we were able to promote our community’s event, print out T-shirts with safety information on the back and add items to the party host gift bags!

We received “special” discounts from Bee Unique Embroidery and Sign Designs of Rosenberg. Nisha’s Beauty Salon and Oscar’s Barber Shop also kindly contributed.

New Territory merchants who provided gift certificates or vouchers were: Ruthie’s Mexicana, McDonald’s, Book Nook, Pepperoni’s, Country Club Nails and Smoothie King. Others added items to the recycle-able party host gift bags donated by Randall’s: Metscript Pharmacy, Parcel Plus, Chase Bank, Sugar Land Family Physicians (Oak Bend Hospital), Edward Jones, CVS, Sasu Sushi Bar & Grill, J’s Café and Papa John’s.

If you happen to visit one of these merchants, please, please, thank them for their support of our community!

In July, twenty-four women, from teens to seniors, participated in a R.A.D. (Rape Aggression Defense) Texas course at The Club. A few women from outside NewTerritory also attended. The multi-day course involved classroom lectures and hands-on techniques. Students came away with a manual and training to defend oneself against attack. Instructors Jim & Sandra Baylor and their assistants did an excellent job of preparing the women mentally and physically.

One participant said the class gave her a boost of confidence and direction. Another told of how, years ago, she was coming home from work into a secure gated apartment complex when a man with a gun tried to push her into her apartment. It was divine intervention, she said, when the front door that normally opens easily became stuck and wouldn’t open. She started screaming and a neighbor came out and the man ran away. Now, she is more alert to her surroundings and when her gut level feeling tells her that something is not right, she will leave an area.

The Baylors will be returning to SugarLand in January to conduct an advanced R.A.D. Texas course and some of the women are already looking forward to having more options to fight back! For information, you may call 713-408-9960 or log onto www.radtexas.com.

Hurricane season is here! For tips to prepare for it and other situations, please go to the Fort Bend Office of Emergency Management at www.fbcoem.org. To view Houston's Regional Disaster Preparedness Video click here. There is also a limited number of disaster preparedness DVDs at the NTRCA office.

The Polly Klaas website has a free Child Safety Kit to help you teach safety to children of all ages. You can click here to order your kit.

At www.McGruff.org there are kid friendly tips on home safety, community safety, vandalism, bullying and many more topics.

For teens & tweens, www.NetSmartz.org has online safety tips. The web has opened up the world to us. Along with other potential dangers, children often don't realize that actions they take online now can be found later and may influence how they are perceived by future employers or the community. Learn how to help your children make good choices online.

Summer is a time of freedom for school age children! They can be anywhere and everywhere. Please practice safety around cars. You can go to www.kidsandcars.org. for statistics and other information.

SOME SAFETY TIPS
This week alone has brought a huge uptick in criminal activity. Some things we can do to protect our families and property:

	While driving through the community observe your surroundings for suspicious activities
	While driving home, check the rearview mirror occasionally to be sure no one is following you. If that is the case, make several turns to see if they also turn. If so, don't go home and drive to the nearest well-lit busy area and call the police
	Keep your cell phone nearby, even when working in the yard
	A home alarm system is good, a monitored system is better. Put your alarm on entry mode alert so you can hear a beep whenever an outside or garage entry door opens, even when the alarm is off.
	If going on vacation consider requesting a vacation watch, setting a light timer and asking neighbors to keep an eye out for strangers around your home.
	Remove valuables from inside your vehicles BEFORE you arrive at your destination as thieves can see when you lean down to put an item under the seat. Covering items with a shirt still gives thieves an incentive to break in.