It started out with ten neighbors congregating at Emma Schmitz Park along Beach Drive, coming to a place they enjoy on a daily basis – walking the dog, taking a jog, catching up with a friend.

But it was also a symbolic confrontation with a piece of West Seattle where tragedy struck nearly three months ago. It was the night of March 11 when 51-year-old Greggette Guy drove from Kent to this spot, intending to take a solo walk in blustery weather so she could enjoy the sights of a raucous Sound. She never returned home, and suffered injuries sometime that night deemed a homicide by police. Her body was found floating several hundred yards to the north the next morning.

The case remains unsolved.

On the evening of June 1, the neighbors of Beach Drive were invited to the park by the people who are charged with helping to keep it safe: the Southwest Precinct of the Seattle Police Department.

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Operations Lt. Pierre Davis, Community Police Team Officers Kevin McDaniel, John Kiehn, Ken Mazzuca, and Crime Prevention Coordinator Mark Solomon brought the group together to take a unifying stroll.

“Police in partnership with community: You can’t get a bigger police force than that; and that is what we are after,” Lt Davis said.

The neighbors took their opportunity to discuss lingering fears in the aftermath of a mysterious crime, and suggested concrete changes that could make Emma Schmitz Park more safe – from improved landscaping and pruning to open up visibility on the lower walkway of the park (where Guy may have been attacked) to dismantling fire pits in the trails above Me-Kwa-Mooks Park where teenagers like to build big fires and drink beer on the weekends.

A Seattle Parks spokeswoman also joined the group to take notes on the changes her department can make and relay any improvements that have already been made.

During the walk Lt. Davis reiterated a familiar SPD mantra: “If you see something, say something.” He said that ethic rings true in West Seattle, and credited community tips earlier in the week that helped police locate Ian Stawicki and put an end to his murderous spree.

“Once we get information out to people in the neighborhood, they watch out for each other very well,” he said.

By the time the short walk ended and Lt. Davis thanked everyone for coming out – only a half block or so, spanning the likely area where Guy lost her life – it was apparent the group of neighbors had grown. People who may have not been aware of the safety walk were out enjoying the evening and took notice of the group.

Next thing you knew, they were part of it.

Lt. Davis encouraged the neighbors of Beach Drive to activate their streets by being more diligent in calling 911 if they see suspicious characters or behavior, spending time outside and walking together – just as they did on this night: becoming part of the police force because, at the end of the day, “You have more eyes and ears out here” than the police ever will.