PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 13, 2024
Maine is beautiful and quaint, but a large reason why people from away return to our state is the hospitable character of the people here. The camaraderie that Mainers share for each other is palpable, and tourists want to experience it. Tourist season in Maine brings other people closer to Maine. In that way, it brings Mainers closer together. We all sweat, complain and laugh our way through the traffic and long working hours as we uphold this tourist industry, occasionally wishing September would come sooner. But in a backwards sort of way, tourists remind us of who we are and why we love our home state. ~ Charlie Hunter, Yarmouth, senior studying English at Whitman College