Crime Watch chapter has fun getting results

Programs that revolve around youths have made Lakewood Estates a model for turning things around.

By ANDREW MEACHAM

© St. Petersburg Times, published April 30, 2000

ST. PETERSBURG -- Teens in Lakewood Estates have been seen partying and playing games on a weekly basis. Don't call the cops -- they're already there.

In recent years, Lakewood Estates Crime Watch might have become the largest and most efficient such organization in the city. Crime is down, good times are up. Young people and volunteers drive much of the activity. A community police officer wraps a flexible schedule around their needs.

Since 1996, a handful of youths on the Teen Council has grown to 30, and the focus of Crime Watch has shifted to keep them involved. In weekly meetings, Officer Richard Grimberg or one of the volunteers leads classes or other activities to confront issues facing young people. Topics may include drugs or gang resistance or responsibility. Activities might include pizza or pool parties, camping trips, or Disney World.

That's quite a shift from four years ago, when this community of about 4,000 just north of 54th Avenue S was plagued by vandalism and a rash of robberies.

A Crime Watch chapter and a companion group for young people were established simultaneously. For the new community police officer, Lakewood's robbery problem was a piece of cake. Grimberg was coming off 12 years as a beat cop on some of St. Petersburg's toughest streets.

"I just got tired of getting spat upon, beat up and thrown around," Grimberg says, only half in jest. "So I went into community policing. What a difference," he adds.

Crime Watch president Joanne Willey describes Grimberg as a "good guy" willing to work long hours and respond to any call within a few minutes. He'll even sit over a water tank in a T-shirt and cutoffs at the annual carnival, inviting teenagers to throw softballs in a "dunk-a-cop" gimmick.

Around 90 people staff the Crime Watch patrol as coordinators or block captains. "The word is out that we do the patrol," says Willey. "People don't want to come into our neighborhood."

Crime dropped about 10 percent in Lakewood last year, Grimberg says, consistent with a citywide drop of nearly 8 percent.

Play Saturday traces lives and times of lifelong friends

Love Letters, a Reader's Theatre production performed by Trudy Powell and Bernard Cornelius, will run Saturday only, 7 p.m., at St. Luke's Methodist Church, 4444 Fifth Ave. N.

The popular play by A.R. Gurney lasts about 90 minutes and traces the relationship of a pair of childhood friends who correspond with each other throughout their lives.

Powell and Cornelius are professional actors who have performed widely, including in New York and London. They are donating their services to benefit the Central Oak Park Neighborhood Association. Tickets are $5 for adults, $2 for children 12 and under.

"It's a very well-written play with two interesting characters that are challenging to performers," Powell says. "It's funny and it's sad. It's a wonderful journey for performers and audience to take together."

'Webb's City, The Musical' has play date in Snell Isle

Members of the Snell Isle Property Owners Association are in for a treat. Their meeting Thursday at the St. Petersburg Women's Club, 40 Snell Isle Blvd., 7 p.m., will feature scenes from Webb's City, The Musical. Written and directed by Bill Leavengood, with lyrics by Lee Ahlin, Webb's City celebrates one of St. Petersburg's classic landmarks. Refreshments served from Harvey's 4th Street Bar and Grill.

Color Me Human Family Fun Festival set for Saturday at Lakeview Park

Color Me Human's Family Fun Festival, held Saturday at Lakeview Park, 20th Street and 26th Avenue S, starts at 10 a.m. with a volleyball tournament featuring "cops vs. firefighters"among other pairings. Performers include singer-songwriter Lisa Noe, a capella singer Jeannie Blu, and the Imani Dancers.

It's all part of the Fifth Annual Color Me Human Week, May 4-10, a series of events designed to promote "oneness of humanity," says program coordinator Shelby Jiggetts-Tivony. The week kicks off Thursday, 7 p.m., with a concert at the Palladium Theatre, 253 Fifth Ave. N. "One World Cafe -- a concert to feed the children and nourish the soul," features jazz musician Fred Johnson, the Crescendo Womyn's Chorus, rap group 3BOK, and Native American performer Kenneth Red Hawk. Color Me Human is a grant-funded, non-profit corporation founded in 1996.

City Council available for elbow rubbing Wednesday

The Council of Neighborhood Associations and the City Council are hosting a Town Meeting Wednesday, 7 p.m., at the Sunshine Center, 330 Fifth St. N. The topic, "Meet your City Council," tops the agenda for CONA's first Town Meeting this year. This event is open to the public.

BAHAMA SHORES: Spring party, Saturday, 4:30 p.m. at waterfront park.

BIG BAYOU: Monday, 7 p.m. Trinity United Methodist Church, 2401 Fifth St. S. Open forum. EUCLID-ST. PAUL: Thursday, 7:30 p.m. St. Paul's Catholic Church cafeteria, 1800 12th St. N. Speaker: Mayor David Fischer. Yard sale Saturday.

HISTORIC KENWOOD: Thursday, 7:30 p.m. Albright United Methodist Church, 2750 Fifth Ave. N. Open forum.

NORTH DOWNTOWN: Thursday, 7 p.m. social, 7:30 meeting. Sunshine Center, 330 Fifth St. N. Speaker: Traffic and transportation director Angelo Rao.

SNELL ISLE: Thursday, 7 p.m., St. Petersburg Women's Club, 40 Snell Isle Blvd. Special presentation: scenes from Webb's City, The Musical.

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