Neighbors come together for National Night Out

National Night Out was the “big night” – even though it was just late afternoon – for the four young dancers of Dream Catchers who made their public debut outside the Maddux Youth Center on Tuesday.

The girls, students at El Vista Elementary and La Loma Junior High, practiced four or five weeks to perform their routine to the hit song “Cheerleader,” by OMI.

Tia Gray, 13, and Tiara Gray, Kelsey Guynes and Leticia Lopez, all 11, said they were pretty nervous before taking the stage – which actually was the lawn outside the center. Turns out, they had reason to be. The song the DJ played was “Cheerleader,” and it was by OMI, but it was a remix of the version the girls knew. “We’ve never stayed in position for that long,” Tia said about how long the dancers stood frozen, waiting for the right part of the song.

Only they knew about the glitch, though. To the appreciative audience, all looked as though the Dream Catchers nailed it. And when it was over, the girls were relieved – and agreed the show went well.

The girls were the first to perform at Modesto’s big Night Out gathering, which included several folkloric dance groups. Other attractions included balloon creations from John’s Incredible Pizza, hot dogs cooked up by Target volunteers, face painting, bounce houses and more.

Modesto’s mayor, council members and city staffers were to attend later in the day, but to the children, at least, they’d be taking a back seat to costumed mascots such as the Doctors Medical Center tiger, McGruff the Crime Dog and Love Modesto’s heart, Big Red.

Little Alejandra Quirk – attending with mom Anjelica Torres and siblings Christina, Jasmine, Angel and Adrian, ages 1 to 6 – had her afternoon planned out. She wanted to play on the playground and dance, and eagerly was awaiting the arrival of a certain law enforcement unit. “I want to pet the police dogs,” she said.

This story was originally published August 4, 2015 at 7:32 PM with the headline "Neighbors come together for National Night Out."