By Anna Guido
Enquirer contributor

OXFORD - Two popular events will combine for the first time Thursday in hopes of bringing together a broader spectrum of the community for an end-of-summer social.

The Oxford Police Department Pig Roast and Oxford Summer Music Festival's final concert are expected to draw 5,000 city residents and Miami University students for free food, nonalcoholic drink, music and a little community-oriented policing.

"The idea is to make everyone feel welcome after spending a summer on the go and out of town," Police Chief Steve Schwein said. "But we also want to show the community that their police department has a very humorous, human side - especially as the academic year cranks up and times can get a little crazy."

Thursday's pig roast starts at 6 p.m. Food will be served until 9 p.m. or until it runs out. Music by Oxford's John Kogge & The Lonesome Strangers goes until 10 p.m.

Combining the two events was the idea of Diana Durr, new director of the Oxford Visitors & Convention Bureau. The pig roast is in its seventh year. The music festival is in its 14th year, and its last Thursday night concert usually was held within days of the pig roast.

"Before, both events involved certain sectors of the community," Durr said. "Now, this one now embraces everyone."

With its tongue-in-cheek moniker, the pig roast helps break down barriers between the police department and the community it serves, Schwein said.

The philosophy behind community-oriented policing is that police can do their jobs more efficiently if they have the trust of citizens. So far, the pig roast has helped build that trust, Schwein said.

"It lets people know that we don't mind jokes, even though the joke is on us," he said.

If You Go

WHAT -- Oxford Police Department Pig Roast, and Oxford Summer Music Festival final concert.

WHERE - Oxford Memorial Park and Martin Luther King Junior Park, High Street and Park Place.

WHEN - Thursday (Aug. 28), 6 p.m.

INFORMATION - Oxford Police, (513) 524-5247; or Oxford Visitors & Convention Bureau, (513) 523-8687

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