CHINA — Town residents and others will gather for three days of events this weekend, beginning with a chicken barbecue on Friday evening, a day of activities for children and adults on Saturday and ending Sunday with a scavenger hunt.
“It is all about the residents of China being the heart of the community,” said Irene Belanger, one of the organizers.
The weekend begins at 4 p.m. Friday with a chicken barbecue at the Boynton-Webber American Legion Hall in South China. For $7.50, each meal comes with a half chicken, beans, coleslaw, macaroni salad, a roll, drink and dessert. At 6:30 p.m., there will be a softball game for adults and a Wiffle ball game for kids under 18 at the China Town Ball Fields.
One of Saturday’s features is the child identification program run by the Freemasons of Maine, Belanger said. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the town ball fields, parents can get a compact disc full of information about their child, including digital fingerprints, personal data, a DNA sample, photos of the child and a short video that captures their mannerisms, said Wendall Graham, the spokesman for the program in Maine.
Since the program came to Maine in 1999, nearly 50,000 children have participated, he said. There is no charge for the service.
“If a child becomes missing, usually parents don’t have enough information,” he said. “They change dramatically in the first 15 years. It behooves a parent to be aware this can be done every year.”
The whole process takes less than 10 minutes, he said.
Also at the ball fields, there will be music, bounce houses, food, vendors and a book sale. In the evening, the action moves to Causeway Road for a bean supper, live music and fireworks.
Sunday caps off the weekend with a fishing derby at 9 a.m., a farm tour at 10:30 a.m., and a scavenger hunt at noon.
Belanger said she hopes the events bring the town together and build toward an even more successful event in the future.
“We’re hoping to make it bigger and better next year,” she said.
Susan Cover — 621-5643
scover@mainetoday.com
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