Meet In CommonNews

Local news in and around Oxford, ME

Bangor Daily News · Lewiston, ME

Nearby: Lewiston, ME

At 25, his Lewiston brewery took the craft beer world by storm. Now he’s helping other local products get noticed

PORTLAND — The heady days of founding and running a regionally distributed beer brand — and the accolades that came with it — will always be a part of Luke Livingston. In 2011, as the 27-year-old CEO of Baxter Brewing in Lewiston, he was named one of Forbes Magazine’s 30 under 30 entrepreneurs in the food and wine category, selected alongside entertainment and music giants like LeBron James, Lady Gaga, and Taylor Swift. He was also selected to Uplift L/A 40 under 40 in 2016 and to Maine Magazine’s 50 Mainers charting the state’s future the same year. Baxter Brewing was a trendsetter. It was the first craft brewery in New England to package its beer in cans instead of bottles, something that is now standard industrywide. Within a decade of operation, it was the third largest craft brewery in the state, producing nearly 20,000 barrels annually. But Livingston acknowledges there was job burnout, and some boredom, too.

The Bates Student · Lewiston, ME

Nearby: Lewiston, ME

Batesies: Take a Stand Against Bigotry in Lewiston Mayoral Runoffs

When I first came to Bates in 2023, I was impressed that a small city in this predominantly white state could have overcome such vitriolic xenophobia to have a thriving community of immigrants involved across the community. Of course I knew that racism and bigotry was still real here in Maine, just as anywhere else. But I also found great appreciation in the community efforts to bring Lewistonians together, whether they were originally French, Somali, Angolan, Thai or from anywhere else in the world. Much of this progress could be reversed if Rick LaChapelle is elected the next mayor of Lewiston. After the midterm election results were finalized, there was no clear winner of the Lewiston mayoral race. The top two candidates in this technically nonpartisan race were self-identified Republican Rick LaChapelle, with 6,164 votes or 45.7%, and current mayor and self-identified Democrat Carl Sheline, with 4,766 votes or 35.3%.

The Student Life · Lewiston, ME

Nearby: Lewiston, ME

Sagehens women’s basketball shoots for success, despite dropping season openers

After two home games, and despite two second half leads, Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) women’s basketball started their 2026-27 campaign 0-2. The Sagehens fell to Pacific University and Wheaton College last Friday and Saturday respectively, a disappointing start to a season with high expectations. The team is coming off a strong 2025-26 season which saw a 16-9 overall finish, an 11-5 record in SCIAC conference games and a spot in the SCIAC semifinals. They lost in that round in February to the No. 2 seed Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) in a 59-54 battle. Close losses early on, however, haven’t swayed the program’s expectations for the season ahead. Alaina Woo, now in her seventh season as the team’s head coach, described this group as hungry for success. “This team wants to be great,” Woo said in email correspondence with TSL.

The Bowdoin Orient · Bowdoin, ME

Nearby: Bowdoin, ME

Student groups light the way

Last month, in the wake of the sexual assault allegations at Cornell University, we ended our editorial with seven words: “We shouldn’t have waited for a headline.” In the weeks since, Bowdoin students have mobilized across campus to address concerns over student safety. Organizations including RISE, Bowdoin Reproductive Justice Coalition (BRJC) and the Women of Color Coalition (WoCC) have facilitated conversations about creating a safer campus, identifying inadequate lighting along highly traveled pathways as a recurring concern. Together, RISE, BRJC and the WoCC contacted Senior Vice President and Dean for Student Affairs Jim Hoppe and implored him to instate more safety measures, including improved campus lighting. Hoppe suggested an initiative where students, staff and administrators walk through a campus to identify areas that could use more lighting.

The Bowdoin Orient · Bowdoin, ME

Nearby: Bowdoin, ME

Students react to “blue wave” in midterm elections

HJ YunGET OUT THE VOTE: Members of the nonpartisan Bowdoin Votes organize student transportation to the polls. Turnout among Bowdoin students was high in the midterm elections, where a "blue wave" took place nationwide. On Tuesday, Americans across the country voted in local, state and federal midterm elections. For the Bowdoin community, elections included candidates running for Brunswick’s school board, town council, Maine state representative and senator, Governor and U.S. Representative and Senator. Troy Jackson was declared the winner of the election after 30-year incumbent Sen. Susan Collins conceded early Wednesday morning. Rep. Chellie Pingree won reelection to Congress representing Maine’s first district, while her daughter, Hannah Pingree, was elected Governor.

The Bowdoin Orient · Bowdoin, ME

Nearby: Bowdoin, ME

No Hate November encourages student athletes to turn awareness into action

The Athletes of Color Coalition (AoCC) and the Bowdoin Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (BSAAC) hosted their annual No Hate November event Tuesday evening in Morrell Gymnasium, bringing together more than 300 student athletes and staff to discuss discrimination, exclusion and accountability within the athletic community. This year’s theme: “Be a Good Bear: How to Be an Upstander in the Bowdoin Community!”, emphasized the importance of speaking up against harmful behavior and supporting fellow athletes. No Hate November grew out of an earlier program focused on the intersection of race and athletics. Director of Athletics Tim Ryan explained that the event evolved from providing athletes of color with opportunities to share their experiences to facilitating discussions among student athletes and coaches. “Originally, the hope was to help inform members of the community of the experiences that students of color were having within our athletic teams,” Ryan said.

The Cornell Daily Sun · Yarmouth, ME

Nearby: Yarmouth, ME

Students From Swing States Share Post-Election Reactions

Reading time: about 9 minutes After Democrats regained control of both Congressional houses in the 2026 midterm elections, Cornell students hailing from states where Democrats flipped Senate seats expressed shock, pride and excitement about the implications for their home states. In what election analysts have referred to as a “blue wave,” Democrats flipped eight Republican-held Senate seats — in Kansas, Texas, Ohio, North Carolina, Iowa, South Carolina, Maine and Mississippi. While the Alaska Senate race has not yet been called, The New York Times predicts Mary Peltola (D) will flip the seat. Maine In Maine, former State Senator and logger Troy Jackson (D) defeated incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R). Collins has served in the Senate since 1996 and was the only Republican senator to represent a state Kamala Harris won in the 2024 Presidential contest. Anna Siegel ’28, who grew up in Yarmouth, Maine reflected on Collins’ defeat after 30 years in the Senate.

Molalla Pioneer / Herald Pioneer · Brunswick, ME

Nearby: Brunswick, ME

SALUTE TO VETERANS | A Marine career that spanned the globe

(CANBY) — Spending 22 years serving in the U.S. Marine Corps takes one all over the world, and into all sorts of interesting situations. When Canby’s Alex Bello left the Corps in 1999, he knew two things: first, he wanted to get some schooling; second, he wanted to build things for people. And that’s what he’s been doing since. “I was tired of destruction. I wanted to build things, to build community, and that got me into construction,” Bello, age 68, explained. “The combat engineers piqued my interest in getting into construction. I just knew I didn’t want to go into law enforcement or a federal agency, which a lot of peers had done.” Bello’s Marine Corps journey actually began when he was about 14 years old. His brother-in-law took him to the July 4th parade in California, and the Marines were there with a color guard. “He had been in the Marines and our conversation sort of ended with him telling me that I should join,” said Bello.

New Hampshire Bulletin · Shelburne, NH

Nearby: Shelburne, NH

Deep drought fueling White Mountains forest fire that has reached historic scale

On Thursday night, while crews from across the country battled a wildfire in the dense woods of the White Mountain National Forest, residents of nearby communities and officials with the U.S. Forest Service crowded into the Shelburne Town Hall. The blaze, which according to officials grew to a peak of nearly 1,000 acres since it began on Sunday but was reduced to 856 acres as of Thursday night, is highly unusual for the region. “We’re not used to fires of this size here in New England. This is, unofficially, the largest fire in the White Mountain National Forest’s history since its creation,” said Derek Ibarguen, forest supervisor. Drought conditions during the last two years have made the forest much more flammable than it would be under average conditions, said Ryan Hughes, incident commander with the Forest Service, during the meeting. About 40% of New Hampshire, including much of Coös County, is currently experiencing moderate drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

White River Valley Herald · Randolph, ME

Nearby: Randolph, ME

Is Turnover a Sign of Success?

The former Wit & Grit and Oak & Iron buildings sit empty with their signs still hanging on Merchants Row. (Herald / Wilder Grimes) On October 19, the owners of Oak & Iron announced they’d be leaving their Merchants Row location to move to White River Junction. “A heartfelt thank you to Randolph, the surrounding communities and all of our wonderful guests for supporting us and making the past two years memorable,” owners Nate Aldrich and Katie Hanscom wrote in a post on Facebook. The pair explained the move came with the decision to be closer to their hometown and family. Hoping for a quick turnover, Aldrich and Hanscom expect to reopen in their new location sometime this month. Opening in April of 2025 and closing about one and a half years later, the boutique steakhouse is the third restaurant to leave Randolph this year, following Chef’s Market and Wit and Grit. Prior to Oak & Iron’s opening, Tacocat Cantina filled the space from November of 2020, until closing in 2024.