FREEPORT – What is community and how can it play a role in changing lives or making a town better? These questions and more will be asked during Freeport’s Community Night at Freeport Community Services.

Community Night will be held Thursday, April 25, at 6:30 p.m., for a discussion and opportunity to share thoughts and ideas. There will be snacks and socializing from 6:30-7 p.m., followed by a discussion of programs that support the community and help identify what is lacking. Moderator is Lesa Andreason. For more information, see www.fcsmaine.org.

Andreason will moderate the event, which is designed to give Freeport and Pownal residents the opportunity to identify services that may be lacking or needed in the two towns.

“It’s been a wonderful event with proven results,” said Carol Southall, a longtime volunteer in Freeport who helps with the Community Night event. “It’s an open discussion and we want to hear what types of things can be done to improve our community. We encourage everyone who may have ideas or thoughts to attend.”

According to the information provided by Freeport Community Services, the tradition of Community Night began in the 1970s to create a forum for residents to express concerns and bring change. The Summer Camp Scholarship Program, Family Life Support Group, and D.A.R.E. program were a direct result of this annual gathering. More recently, Community Night input was the motivation for starting the Tolerance and Respect Project (TARP), which is creating more awareness of bullying and has been responsible for such outreach programs as a panel on community safety following the school shooting in Newtown, Conn.

This year marks the return of a live discussion, after a decision last year by community night organizers to jettison the talk in favor of written surveys. The change was designed in part to reach a broader audience, said Sue Mack, family services coordinator for Freeport Community Services and a longtime attendee of the event. Unfortunately, the response to the surveys was underwhelming, so Community Night is returning to its roots with the moderated but free-form discussion, according to Southall. Regardless of the method, the hope is to inject fresh thought into the event.

“I love these people to death but I started to feel like we were talking to each other,” said Mack. “We really want and encourage as many residents to attend. This is not the Town Council, this is a community discussion.”

Mack said enthusiasm is noticeably higher this year as tragic events in Newtown, Conn., and the recent Boston Marathon bombings have drawn neighbors closer and, as a result, made them eager to discuss common fears and possible solutions.

Community Night has a history of turning ideas into action, most recently with the creation of the Tolerance and Respect Project, a subcommittee of Freeport Community Services. The group includes parents and grandparents, business owners and community leaders, administrators, health and education professionals, librarians and police officers. The mission is to promote civility, compassion, kindness and understanding in the schools and throughout Freeport, Pownal and Durham.

Both Mack and Southall agree that getting a true cross section of the community to participate is imperative to the effectiveness of Community Night.

“We want to hear what the average taxpayer thinks,” said Mack. “How do they feel? How can we grow?”

The Freeport Community Center on Depot Street will host Community Night this week. File photo