FREEPORT – Once again, L.L. Bean has stepped to the plate when it comes to support of the community.

In an email sent on March 9 to the chairwoman of the Playground Committee at Mast Landing School in Freeport, L.L. Bean announced it would donate $10,000 to Phase II of a new playground at the school.

“In the spirit of helping as many children as possible enjoy the outdoors, I am pleased to let you know that L.L. Bean will commit $10,000.00 to this project,” the company’s Janet Wyper told Danielle Peterson in the email.

“We are all beyond excited with this news,” Peterson said later.

In a few weeks, people from Bowdoin College who administer a program called the Common Good Grant, will conduct an onsite interview at Mast Landing School. If Mast Landing School gets the grant, which could amount to $2,500, those who have worked for a year on the playground project will have secured matching donations of about $3,100 from families.

Students at Mast Landing School have been using the first section of the new playground equipment since last fall.

Peterson, a parent of three school-age children, including a third-grader at the school, is among the Playground Committee members who spearheaded the project. Jennifer Pope, Tom Whelan, Marie Gunning and Alan Tracy also worked on the committee. They worked with Robin O’Connor, the school’s physical education instructor.

Mast Landing School has students in grades 3, 4 and 5.

Peterson said that the total cost of the new playground would be around $50,000. Phase II would be about $23,000 and $14,700 has been raised, including the L. L. Bean gift.

“We have a bunch of fundraisers in the works,” Peterson said. “Bath Savings Bank and the Freeport Rotary have both donated $500.”

Peterson said that the drive for a new playground originated last winter. A certified inspector had determined that the height of the existing equipment was unsafe, there were splits in the metal and the wood surfacing was inefficient, she said. A group of parents, teachers and the principal, Beth Willhoite, met with landscaper Joel St. Pierre to discuss the playground. The equipment was deemed unsafe and off limits to the children, Peterson said.

“There was a whole school vote where all the students voted on their favorite equipment,” Peterson said. “With these results, along with the physical therapy needs of the school and accessibility requirements, a playground design was born.”

Phase I, funded with $10,000 in the Regional School Unit 5 capital budget and donations from school families, got the old playground torn down last August. It also funded the delivery of the first section of the new playground.

“We hosted a Community Build in September where students, families and community members got together on a Saturday to build and place the equipment,” Peterson said. “We had our concrete donated by a local business who has children in our Mast Landing School. The concrete was poured on the following Monday morning. We waited two days for it to set. The school held a ribbon-cutting ceremony and chose a few kids to be the first to play on the new equipment.”

While the new equipment is “wonderful,” Peterson said, there are long lines and an immediate need for Phase II.

“We just sent out an Easter chocolate fundraiser with Wilbur’s in Freeport to the students of Mast Landing,” she said.

Much more community fundraising is planned, including a memorial plaque to be hung in the lobby of the school for donations of $100 or more.

On Thursday, March 20, Gritty McDuff’s Brew Pub in Freeport will donate 10 percent of its sales to the Mast Landing School playground from 4:30 until closing, at midnight. There will be a 50/50 raffle and it is also trivia night.

On April 12, the annual Freeport Rotary gala at the Freeport Community Center will donate 50 percent of its proceeds to the playground. There will be a silent auction, live music and local food. On April 30, Tuscan Bistro will donate a percentage of sales to playground. There will be a gift certificate raffle. Lowe’s in Brunswick has donated an outdoor propane grill for one of the raffles, and might help with landscaping.

“The community has been amazing, truly amazing, in their support and efforts to complete our playground,” Peterson said. “The Mast Landing School playground not only belongs to the school, but to the entire Freeport community. Families, visitors and neighbors are invited to play and enjoy the playground.”

Phase I of the Mast Landing Playground is complete. Organizers are now fundraising for the second phase.