SIDE STREETS: Woman spends 33 years watching her neighborhood

A steady rain, punctuated by frequent downpours, couldn't dampen Charlotte and Ken Mock's enthusiasm Tuesday night.

"We stay pretty close," Charlotte said of the nine families on Pastime Place. "I always encourage neighbors to talk to each other when there's a problem. We might have a rub going on, but we'll get it taken care of.""I went up and hollered: 'Can I help you?' and he dropped a bag and ran," she said. "There were tools in his bag."Another time, Ken saw an intruder while walking the dog and scared him off. Turns out the stranger was a look-out for a burglar in the neighbor's house."I always go and meet the new neighbors," she said. "It's really important to get them on board and feeling comfortable."Please follow me on Twitter and Friend me on Facebook"It encourages neighbors to get to know each other" Charlotte said. "By getting to know each other, you can help each other. It makes you more aware."That raised awareness has paid off several times over the years for the cul de sac."We've had a few situations like that," she said.Between cloudbursts, they dried their chairs and lit a fire in their pit and called their friends on Pastime Place in Village Seven to share dessert, sing happy birthday to a neighbor and observe National Night Out.Charlotte nurses the relationship by welcoming new families whether they are new owners or folks moving into rental properties on the street. She bakes cookies and takes a map identifying all the neighbors.One time, she and Ken spotted a man walk up to a neighbor's window.Why work so hard, I asked Charlotte, to protect the neighborhood?Bringing neighbors together makes it easier to solve issues that crop up.The Mocks are big believers in the Neighborhood Watch program. How big? Charlotte, 69, has been block captain since 1978!"We feel we averted at least a couple burglaries," she said.That's 33 years of building "phone trees" and introducing new neighbors to the group and hosting meetings at least three times a year and, most importantly, keeping an eye on the area.There are more reasons the Mocks stay active in Neighborhood Watch, which counts about 700 similar groups in Colorado Springs and El Paso County.-(See photos of the happy, soggy bunch on my blog.)"After we moved in, we heard about Neighborhood Watch," Charlotte said. "It sounded like a good idea so we formed our group.""This is the way things worked when I was growing up," she said "Everybody helps a little bit. That's the way it oughta be."

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