Nataly Mendez, a soon-to-be first-grader at Reiche Community School, joins her peers in a game of bouncing balls within a parachute Thursday during a Summer Success picnic at Deering Oaks Park in Portland. The event, which was hosted by Portland ConnectED, featured a free meal for children, tours of fire trucks, music performances and visits from the Portland Sea Dogs’ mascot Slugger and Maine Red Claws’ Crusher. The event helped promote a city-wide program to stem summertime learning loss and child hunger, which provides free lunches four days a week during summer break to children at 16 locations throughout the city. For more information, visit portlandmaine.gov/PortlandConnectED.

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