BRIDGTON – Baseball is a metaphor for life at Bridge Crossing, a group home for pre-teens in Bridgton.

For the 12 boys and girls ages 7 to 12 who live there, some in state custody, “the goal is to touch all three bases and go home,” said the home’s assistant director, Kurt Berger.

So when it came to providing a recreational activity for the children, a baseball field fit the bill perfectly.

“It’s been quite a project. We’ve been fund-raising since February,” Berger said.

On Wednesday, staff and residents alike were busy laying infield dirt donated by P&K Sand and Gravel of Naples. Berger said the level of support for the ball field project from community businesses and residents has been very gratifying.

Bridge Crossing staff and residents and their families have invited the community to celebrate the opening of the new baseball field with a game and barbecue July 28. The event, which will feature an appearance by Slugger, the Portland Sea Dogs’ mascot, will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. at the ball field behind the group home at 15 Wayside Ave.

A big part of the therapeutic approach at Bridge Crossing is having the children get involved with the community, said Berger. “We wanted to do something that truly reflected a community spirit, and everyone has really rallied behind this project,” he said.

Bridge Crossing is one of about 20 group homes in Maine run by the North American Family Institute of Danvers, Mass., a nonprofit human service agency that stresses homelike settings and teaching socialization and community living skills. Bridge Crossing is located in a large Victorian house set on five acres. The average stay for the children is a year to 18 months.

The ball field was chosen as this year’s Spirit of the Community project, in celebration of the 30th year since the founding of the North American Family Institute.

The founder of the institute, Dr. Yitzak Bakal, “was a pioneer in getting people deinstitutionalized and into community-based care,” Berger said.

Bakal will be on hand July 28 to throw out the first pitch.

Berger said P&K Sand and Gravel was just one of many businesses that supported the project through cash donations, labor or materials. Other businesses that helped include Howell Laboratories, Searles Excavation of Harrison, Reny’s, Mark’s Lawn & Garden, Paris Farmers Union and the R.G. Johnson sports store. The American Legion also helped, said Berger, as did the home’s psychiatrist, Dr. Eric Griffey, who “bought a bunch of raffle tickets.”

As part of the fund-raising effort for the new ball field, the home is raffling off Sea Dogs game tickets and a baseball signed by Boston Red Sox player Kevin Millar. Local businesses have also given gift certificates as raffle items.

Anyone who would like to lend a hand in the ball field’s construction or make a donation is asked to call Berger or Lisa Tolin at 647-4404.