LEWISTON - Outdoor pens secured performing goats and pigs, and pieces of the "globe of death" sat on the Colisee floor like the shattered shell of an enormous Easter egg.

Volunteers with the Kora Temple Shrine Circus spent Thursday unloading trucks and assembling gear for shows Friday and Saturday.

"Every one of us works for free," said Donald Skillings, an insurance agent from Skowhegan who serves as circus director for the Kora Temple shows in Augusta, Portland and Lewiston. "This is our only fundraiser of the year."

The circus is a fun and necessary event. Proceeds aid efforts to give free orthopedic and burn care for children under 18. There are 20 Shriner hospitals in the United States and one each in Canada and Mexico.

In its three Maine venues this year, the Kora Temple Shrine Circus will be helped by about 300 volunteers.

"We do it because of the kids," Skillings said.

Young and old ought to see something new in this year's circus, which is being run by a new promoter, Hamid Circus Inc., and features several acts that have never performed in Maine.

The change was made because former promoter Wayne McCary retired after 40 years. His acts scattered among other circuses or retired from the ring.

Among the departing performers was ringmaster Charley Van Buskirk, whose sonorous voice and alliterative descriptions - such as the dog act's "cavalcade of canine characters" - had been a symbol for the annual circus.

"It's an entirely new circus," Skillings said. "We think we have a very good show."

Among the acts are the "pork shop review" of performing pigs, a comedy horse show, clowns Greg and Karen Desantos, and the motorcyclists of the globe of death. The latter uses motorcycles inside a steel sphere.

Five shows are planned for Lewiston: at 4 and 8 p.m. on Friday, and at 9:30 a.m., 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday. Admission is $8 and $4 for children under 12.

Admission is free to families of military personnel who are deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan or who have deployed in the past two years. For free passes, they must send an e-mail to mark.cater@us.army.mil.