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FARMINGTON - Two-year-old Charlie Shafto of New Sharon walked into Franklin Memorial Hospital on Saturday morning with his mom, who had to attend a meeting, and later walked out bewildered, dressed as a pirate in shaped balloons.

Like several other children visiting the Farmington hospital, Shafto had just experienced a close encounter with Kora Shrine Klown President Steve "Speckles" Moore of Madison.

Speckles and a few members of the Western Mountains Shrine Club were there to help FMH conduct the three-hour annual Shriners Hospital free screening clinic. One of 11 simultaneous statewide clinics, the Western Mountains club clinic is designed to identify children in the greater Franklin County region who could benefit from the orthopedic and burn care provided by Shrine hospitals, Shriner Bill Holmead of Madrid said.

By 10:15 a.m., only two children and their parents had taken advantage of it.

Michael and Cathe Kelley of Avon brought their 3-year-old son Marty to see clinic volunteer and orthopedic surgeon Dr. Joseph Caldwell. Marty suffers from "trigger finger" and can't straighten his thumbs, the child's dad said.

The other child, a little girl with a back injury, was being X-rayed by then, Western Mountains club President Richard Morton of Rangeley said.

"If we only have two today, I hope they're the only ones that absolutely needed help," he said. Last year, one child showed up. Two came in 2005.

"We never know how many will come out. We may have none or we may have five or six. But when Speckles comes down, every kid that comes through that door gets something," club member Ed Innes of Rangeley said. He chuckled while watching Speckles quickly make and put a blue balloon pirate hat atop Shafto's head, a black balloon sword in his right hand, and a blue balloon sheath around the boy's waist.

Club members served as ambassadors, guiding the parents and afflicted children to Caldwell in the second floor outpatient clinic. There, they helped them fill out registration forms, while Caldwell did preliminary examinations to determine if each child has a condition that can be treated free of charge at a Shrine Hospital.

Shrine Hospital officials review the doctor's information to determine eligibility.

Any child under the age of 18 - regardless of race, religion or relationship to a Shriner - can be treated at a Shriners Hospital if, in the opinion of the hospital's chief of staff, the child has an orthopedic or burn condition that Shriners Hospitals can help, Holmead said.

In addition to clowning around and chatting with people of all ages, club members also shared personal anecdotes.

"One lady from Florida came up to me and said, 'You guys are wonderful.' She had curvature of the spine as a child, and now her back was just as straight. She gave all of us a hug. It brought tears to your eyes. That self satisfaction - knowing we've done something good for someone - that's a pretty good feeling," Innes said.

Types of conditions treated by Shriners Hospitals:

• Scoliosis, spinal deformities

• Clubfoot, related deformities

• Osteogenesis imperfecta

• Spina bifida/myelodysplasia

• Neuromuscular disorders

• Hand problems

• Hip disorders

• Orthopedic problems resulting from cerebral palsy

• Missing limbs/limb deficiencies

• Leg length discrepancies

• Metabolic bone disease

• Skeletal growth abnormalities

• Spinal cord injuries

• Burn injuries

For more information, call 800-237-5055, or visit the Kora Shrine Temple on Sabattus Street in Lewiston. On the Web, visit www.korashriners.org/.