BLOCK PARTY BRINGS NEIGHBORS TOGETHER

People just don't "neighbor" like they used to, said Lavina Cargle. But that changed at least for a little while as Cargle and some of her neighbors met in front of the Livingway Foursquare Church, 1224 Bloomfield Road, Sunday for a block party.

Cargle, 1307 Cousin, said this was the first block party she had attended at Livingway. Despite the heat, which kept many of her neighbors in the comfort of their air-conditioned homes, Cargle said she thought the block party would bring her community closer together.

Mike Woelk, Livingway pastor, said this was the third block party his church has sponsored over the past year. This is the first since the neighborhood was hit especially hard late last year by burglars that preyed on elderly residents.

Sixteen burglaries were reported in that neighborhood between May and December last year.

Woelk, whose home was one of those burglarized, said the crimes were just one of many things that have brought his neighborhood closer together.

"We did a lot of communication with our neighbors just to encourage them and talk to them about things they could do," Woelk said. "Most of them by now know their neighbors, they've got their numbers on their automatic redial."

Woelk said the recent decision by Schnucks to pull out of its midtown store has also placed a burden on some of his neighbors. He said there is a high number of elderly residents in the neighborhood, many of whom he would be bringing a plate of barbecue to later that evening.

Woelk said the party's were also a chance for his racially and culturally diverse neighbors to mingle.

"We're focusing on this neighborhood," Woelk said of his church. "Our goal is to have an integrated neighborhood that reflects the social and racial balance -- old and young, black and white."

He said attendance at the block party was hampered by a hot afternoon. There were three groups of residents that turned out during the heat of the day: the kids who were playing in a lawn sprinkler in the middle of a blocked-off Bloomfield, those who came to listen to Jerry Ford's Combo band while fanning themselves beneath shade trees and those who decided to work over the flames of barbecue grills.

Stafford Moore, who lives a few blocks down from the church, said he got roped in to cooking. He didn't complain too much about the chore though, saying it was a way for him to get involved in the party.

"I'm all for community involvement," Moore said. "We've got to get people back together, trusting one another."

Terrance Lane's mother lives a few doors down from the church on Bloomfield. He said he spent some time cooking but was happiest just watching the kids play.

"It's nice to see everyone get together," Lane said. "Everybody on the block talks to one another; they're not prejudiced or anything.

"All the kids on the block play together like they were raised together."