Office of Community Safety is Hosting Open House Event May 11

The Prince William County Office of Community Safety is hosting an open house event called "Fostering a Safe PWC Together” on Saturday, May 11, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Dr. A.J. Ferlazzo Building, 15941 Donald Curtis Drive in Woodbridge.  The goal is to provide residents with the opportunity to learn more about the Office of Community Safety (OCS), other county agencies and community partners that collaborate together to create safer neighborhoods for everyone. 

The OCS is committed to working collaboratively with residents, community-based organizations, businesses and government to foster a thriving and secure community through prevention and intervention. The open house is an excellent example of this collaboration and offers an opportunity to unite the community with a shared mission of an even safer community. 

"This is an opportunity for us to bring the community together to see how various organizations and individuals function around community safety, what resources are available and bring those services directly to residents right in their community," said Director of Community Safety Wesley Dawson. 

The upcoming open house will showcase essential resources in the community safety ecosystem. Topics may include, but are not limited to, health, housing, workforce and job training, youth services, food security, recreation, education, the environment and legal support. The resources at the open house can include services provided by county government agencies, as well as non-profit, faith-based, community-based and charitable organizations. 

The open house will also serve as an opportunity for residents to learn how they can volunteer to become active in the community. One such opportunity includes the Community Safety Advisory Committee, which will work collaboratively to help shape the future direction and priorities of community safety initiatives. 

The committee, which will begin meeting this summer, will concentrate on all areas that affect community safety and wellbeing, to include youth empowerment, homelessness, mental health, substance misuse, as well as environmental, traffic safety, community healing, and violence prevention work.  

"The committee is the community’s opportunity to help inform the strategic goals for the Office of Community Safety and to help build a resident-informed infrastructure to support these goals," said Dawson. "We want to bring together a range of voices from across the community. Everyone plays a vital role in building a community where safety is interwoven into our daily lives."  

Those interested in participating in the Community Safety Advisory Committee should complete the interest form, which will go live on Wednesday, May 1, 2024.  Since a limited number of slots are available, those who would like to be involved but can't join the committee can participate in a working group focusing on specific initiatives or tasks, including community clean-ups and listening sessions.  

More information about the Office of Community Safety open house and the Community Safety Advisory Committee can be found at pwcva.gov/ocs.