New London ― In the wake of recent shootings and other incidents in the city, concerned residents will gather for a neighborhood walk on Friday as part of their goal to promote unity and foster a safer community.

Members of the Freedom Trail Neighborhood Association, comprised of residents from approximately 13 streets in the Joshua Hempsted House area, will meet outside the Opportunities Industrialization Center, 106 Truman St., at 7 p.m. for a stroll around the neighborhood, said City Councilor Akil Peck.

Peck, who helped organize two previous walks, said association members first reached out to him last year in his role as the council’s Public Safety Committee chairman. At the time, residents were having problems with a house on Hope Street.

“I suggested we all get together — we had a police officer join us, too — and just have a walk as a way for everyone to get to know one another,” he said. “When they reached out a second time, I wanted to take a different approach and invited some social service people along.

For Friday’s walk, church leaders will make the rounds with residents.

“The idea is, if we see someone who needs help, we have some to offer,” Peck said.

He said the upcoming walk was partially motivated by recent shootings in the city, including one on Sunday that injured a man in the area of Union and Golden streets, as well as the gathering of numerous illegal dirt bikes earlier this month that ended with an injured police officer.

He also referenced a June 5 shooting on Ocean Avenue that critically injured a 19-year-old victim.

Lisa Cygan, a Home Street resident and veteran member of the neighborhood association, said the group aims to create an atmosphere of unity through familiarity.

“We want people to know they can call on each other, that no one is alone and that people care in this community,” she said. “It’s about building relationships. Because of those relationships, I’ve been able to borrow a neighbor’s truck to go to the dump or have someone’s brother-in-law do some handyman work.”

In addition to the walks, the association hosts neighborhood clean-up days and alerts city officials when an issue, such as illegal dumping, arises. She said the area, like other sections of the city, has grappled with violent and other types of crime over the years.

“We’ve had overdoses, and I’ve woken up to catalytic converters being sawed off cars,” Cygan said. “We know people that have been shot at here.”

Peck said crime is less likely to flourish in an area where residents take an active interest in their neighborhood and each other.

“I know other areas of New London have issues I haven’t heard about, like maybe on Colman Street,” he said. “My hope is that these walks plant the seeds for other neighborhoods to go out and get to know each other.”

In the event of inclement weather, the walk will be postponed to 7 p.m. on July 21.

j.penney@theday.com