A CLOSER LOOK
Family Fun Day is from 12-3 p.m. on Monday at Riverbank Park on Main Street in Westbrook. The event is free, but donations are appreciated.
Donations can also be sent to the Cumberland County Sheriff c/o Mark Dion, 31 County Way, Portland, ME 04102.
Children’s musician Rick Charette and the Bubblegum Band is set to headline Family Fun Day at Westbrook’s Riverbank Park this Labor Day as the concluding event for a youth athletics fundraising drive through the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office and the Police Athletic League.
Cumberland County Sheriff Mark Dion said about $35,000 has been raised over the last two months with the help of Westbrook-based East Coast Marketing Group, a telemarketing company that specializes in raising funds for nonprofit groups and police and fire departments.
Dion cuts checks for a variety of youth sports teams and outdoor programs and in return asks coaches to lead their players to community service, which he finds to be a better use of the children’s time.
“I always hate the fact that kids have to stand at the end of a food store begging for money,” Dion said. “They could be more productive.”
Dion does the drive once a year for about 60 days, he said. He has given funds to Portland youth football, Gray little League, Lake Region basketball, Westbrook cheerleading and soccer and Gorham baseball’s spring training program, to name just a few.
Dion said the funds aren’t limited to school programs, but are available to most youth athletic programs. Dion said he focuses on athletics because it gives kids confidence and puts them in a better place than kids who are idle.
In addition to Rick Charette, the event, running Monday from noon-3 p.m., features bouncy inflatables, the Magic of the Steelgraves magic show, balloon animals, face painting and pony rides. Last year’s event was a youth concert at Cumberland Fairgrounds. The year before was a basketball game at the University of Southern Maine that overflowed the gymnasium, Dion said.
Dion expects to ask Westbrook’s new police chief, William Baker, to join him in the dunk tank this year if he is available.
Family fun fundraiser highlights Labor Day
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