Episode 130 - Why Are There So Many Breweries in Maine?
The Maine Show
In this episode of the Maine Show Podcast, we are talking with Sean Sullivan, Executive Director of the Maine Brewers Guild, about why the Maine craft beer scene is so vibrant. And just why are there so many breweries in Maine? Plus, what comes next. Can a state of relatively modest size support all of these breweries? This podcast is a companion piece to an article by host Ben Sprague on the same topic on Substack. Visit: to read this article and others.
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Episode 129 - Susan and John Burgess
The Maine Show
Susan and John Burgess, farmers in Newport who grow, among other things, Christmas trees, talk about their lives in farming, what has changed over time, and what the year is like for people in the Christmas industry.
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Episode 128 - Earl Villanueva
The Maine Show
Earl Villanueva shares his story of moving to Maine with his wife and working remotely for one of the top companies in the world all from his home in Veazie. Earl works for AWS, a subsidiary of Amazon, helping to pioneer their 5G and cloud computing services. He shares his ideas and suggestions on how Maine can attract more people to live here and enjoy life in the anticipated post-COVID world of working remotely.
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Episode 127 - The East Coast Greenway
The Maine Show
Dennis Markatos-Soriano and Kristine Keeney share the story of the East Coast Greenway, a collection of trails, paths, roads, and connectors linking Calais, Maine to Key West, Florida. With a particular focus on Maine, this episode covers the history and mission of the organization, current efforts underway, and how you can get involved. Visit for more information.
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Episode 126 - Josh Bridges
The Maine Show
Josh Bridges talks about growing up in Downeast Maine, making his way to Bangor, and working as a mental health professional with a particular interest in Alzheimers and dementia issues.
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Episode 125 - Emily Burnham
The Maine Show
Emily Burnham talks about growing up in the Searsport/Belfast area, becoming a journalist with the Bangor Daily News, and how COVID-19 has impacted the local arts community. This episode also features a look at some of the key events and people in Downtown Bangor circa 2007-2011 that were catalysts for much of the positive momentum that continued throughout the decade that followed.
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Episode 124 - Emily Poland on the role of school nurses in Maine during COVID-19
The Maine Show
Emily Poland, School Nurse Consultant for the State of Maine, talks about how school nurses have been working to help keep students, teachers, and staff safe and informing public policy during the COVID-19 pandemic in addition to their many other responsibilities in our Maine schools.
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Episode 123 - Dr. Jeremy Yardley
The Maine Show
Dr. Jeremy Yardley of Northern Light/Eastern Maine Medical Center talks about working in a hospital during this very challenging year, what it felt like to recently get the vaccine, and what he sees for the weeks and months ahead. Dr. Yardley is a Bangor High School graduate and moved back to Maine several years ago.
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Episode 122 - Mary Butler
The Maine Show
Mary Butler talks about playing college basketball at Brown University and then choosing to move back home to Bangor to work in public health.
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Maine Stories: impact of COVID-19
The Maine Show
A bride prepares for her wedding, a restaurant owner negotiates a changing landscape, and a sportscaster with no sports: three stories of how COVID-19 has changed life as we know it here in Maine. Special thanks to Jordan Bragg, Susan Stephenson of Pepino's, and Eric Gullickson from WABI TV 5 for joining the podcast to share their stories. Musical content provided courtesy of BenSounds Royalty Free Music on YouTube.
info_outlineHost Ben Sprague shares the news that the show is going on a semi-permanent hiatus. He says, "This is not a goodbye and it's not a closing out of the whole podcast, it's just an acknowledgement that there are seasons in life for different things, and right now my energy and emotion and time are all turning inward towards my family and our immediate future."
Ben is also happy to share the joyful news that he and his wife, Malorie, are expecting their third child in November, a boy! He says, "I have absolutely loved bringing you this podcast week after week for these last three years, it has been an absolute honor and I have loved the conversations with the guests but also getting to know many of the listeners. I just can't keep up with it anymore on a week to week basis. My goal when I started was to do a new episode every Tuesday and for the most part I was able to do that for awhile, but then life happens, and now with a third child on the way, a day job at First National Bank, and my work as a City Councilor and for this year mayor of the City of Bangor, it's just been too much and while I hate to admit that, I also want to be realistic about a healthy work-life balance, spending time with my kids and wife, and not being on a computer editing audio files and researching interviews week after week."
Ben wishes to thank the audience for tuning in week after week and he concludes by saying, "It has been an absolute honor to be able to bring this podcast to you and like I said, don't lose total track of the link to it because you may see a new episode pop up here and there."