Troy R. Bennett, Freelance Journalist Profile

Articles

Maine groundhog expert reveals 5 secrets Punxsutawney Phil won't tell

Feb 2, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

Our own Pine Tree State has no officially recognized, meteorologically minded woodchuck predicting spring’s arrival each year such as Ohio’s Buckeye Chuck, Nova Scotia’s Shubenacadie Sam or Pennsylvania’s Punxsutawney Phil. Instead, we just wait and see if the eventual thaw comes early or late. Which is fine. There’s nothing we can do about it, anyway.
Hand-picked new owners take over iconic Portland breakfast joint

Jan 31, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

PORTLAND, Maine — In a city where eateries can come and go in an over-hyped instant, Hot Suppa! stands out as a study in quiet stability. Local brothers Moses and Alec Sabina opened their cozy breakfast-and-lunch comfort food nook on Congress Street almost 20 years ago. Since then, their restaurant has survived shifting neighborhood demographics, a global pandemic and an ongoing, citywide real estate crunch.
A fisherman’s photos capture an old way of life on Penobscot Bay

Jan 24, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

Maine photographer and fisherman Jeff Dworsky admits that he can be downright ornery. “I’m a big, burly, loud, tough guy,” Dworsky said. “I’m a Stonington fisherman, for [expletive’s] sake.”However, it’s those same traits that have allowed him to live an amazing life. They helped him move to Maine, on his own, while still a teenager in the 1970s.
Below zero temps make for sea smoke in Maine

Jan 22, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

PORTLAND HARBOR, Maine — As temperatures dropped to just below zero at dawn Wednesday morning, the frigid air, comparatively warm water and rising sun made for a dazzling display of sea smoke. Oblivious ducks and gulls paddled and swooped. A pair of tug boats met a barge just off Portland Head Light. A few hearty people and dogs gazed at the natural light show from Willard Beach. Sea smoke is a kind of fog.
7 Maine fishermen chosen to go after long-prohibited shrimp

Jan 21, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

Maine’s Department of Marine Resources has chosen the seven fishermen who will take part in a short, experimental shrimp season due to start in February. More than 40 fishermen applied for the coveted slots. Four fishermen will be allowed to take shrimp by trawling and three by trapping. Justin Libby of Port Clyde, Dana Hammond II of South Bristol, Robert Tetrault II of Portland and David Osier of South Bristol have been selected to trawl for shrimp.
Toddler-famous Maine YouTuber inks big-time Netflix deal

Jan 21, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

Maine native Rachel Accurso, better known to millions of internet-watching toddlers as Ms. Rachel, recently announced her mega-popular online children’s show is coming to Netflix starting Jan. 27. Accurso made the announcement in a typically bright, playful Instagram video, while revealing the “letter of the day” as a big, red Netflix logo “N.”“More ways to watch,” she said, clapping her hands.
Real estate crunch threatens a beloved haven of Maine’s music scene

Jan 20, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

Grime Studios’ vast warren of small music rehearsal spaces roiled and thundered in rock-and-roll ecstasy Tuesday night. Cymbals shimmered, guitars wailed and basses pounded behind rows of closed doors as the city’s bands honed their noisy craft.
Oscar-winning Maine native loses home in LA fires

Jan 16, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

Oscar-winning cinematographer and Maine native Erik Messerschmidt lost his house in the Los Angeles fires, according to an online fundraiser. Messerschmidt, who was born in Portland in 1980 and grew up in Cape Elizabeth, won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for his work on the film “Mank” at the 95th annual awards in 2021. It’s unclear when Messerschmidt’s house burned down but, according to the fundraising page, it was in Altadena and he built much of it himself over the past 30 years.
Maine lighthouses added to list of endangered world cultural sites

Jan 15, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

PORTLAND, Maine — On Wednesday, the World Monuments Fund named all of Maine’s lighthouses to its global watch list of significant architectural and cultural sites under dire threat around the planet. The state’s iconic oceanside beacons, all intentionally built in the most precarious places, face increasing dangers from sea level rise and the rapidly warming Gulf of Maine, which make winter storms more intense.
Maine musician gets stolen drums back in elaborate sting operation

Jan 14, 2025 | bangordailynews.com | Troy R. Bennett

CUMBERLAND, Maine — When police asked Evan Casas if he was positive the drums for sale online were his beloved set, stolen from a storage unit last year, he didn’t hesitate. “I told them I was 1,000 percent sure,” Casas said. They were like no other, and he’d know them anywhere. The veteran percussionist had played the custom maple set at hundreds of gigs and recording sessions since a college friend made them for him 25 years ago, when they were both freshmen at the University of Southern Maine.

Journalists covering the same region

Meghan Morrison

Digital Content Specialist at Intrepid Travel

Meghan Morrison primarily covers news in Southern Maine and parts of New Hampshire, United States, including areas around Portland and surrounding towns.