During the mid to late 1880s and early 1900s, fat men’s clubs had a hefty presence in the U.S. A newspaper in Indiana in 1870 reported that the Fat Men’s Association of New York had agreed that men had to weigh at least 200 pounds to join. But, its members genially allowed that “a falling […]
Steve Collins
Columnist
Steve Collins became an opinion columnist for the Maine Trust for Local News in April of 2025. A journalist since 1987, Steve has worked for daily newspapers in New York, Connecticut and Maine and served as the State House reporter for the Sun Journal since 2016. The Maine Press Association named him Maine's Journalist of the Year in 2022. Among his other awards are the Society of Professional Journalists’ 2016 Ethics in Journalism Award, the I.F. Stone Whistle-Blower Award in 2015 and the Bob Wallack Community Journalism Award from the New England Newspaper & Press Association. Steve is a founder and board president of Youth Journalism International, a charity that teaches students around the globe about news writing, media literacy and issues of the day. His wife, Jackie Majerus, serves as its executive director. Born in Massachusetts, he grew up in a military family that took him to Norway, Ohio and Virginia, where he earned a degree in history from the University of Virginia. He and Jackie live in Auburn. They have two adult children, two collies and not enough time.
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1870 Fat Men convention consumed Lewiston-Auburn in a big weigh
Exactly 150 years ago the Fat Men of Maine gathered in the Twin Cities for a day of festivities and, of course, eating.
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Posted inMaine
Fears of a cult takeover roil a tiny town in northern Maine
The purported cult leader is calling on his followers near and far to move to St. Agatha, whose residents aren’t happy about the idea.
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Spaghetti dinner raises $18,000 for Auburn scam victim
Barbara Hinckley got help from the community and former Gov. John Baldacci.
Posted inBusiness, Maine
Major labor law overhaul sought by Maine lawmakers
Democratic U.S. Reps. Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden back a measure that would block right-to-work laws and bolster America’s struggling unions.
Posted inMaine, Politics
Jared Golden calls on Nancy Pelosi to hand over impeachment charges to Senate
The 2nd Congressional District Democrat said he wishes the House had tried harder to force testimony from key witnesses to dealings with Ukraine.
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Maine
Dinner raises money for 95-year-old Auburn woman who fell victim to scam
Hundreds attend spaghetti dinner to help Barbara Hinckley replace money she lost to a scammer last summer.
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Baldacci looking forward to big spaghetti dinner fundraiser in Auburn
Hundreds expected to attend Wednesday fundraiser for Barbara Hinckley, who lost life savings in a scam.
Posted inMaine, Nation / World, News, Oxford Hills
Divisions at Seeds of Peace bring conflict to famed nonprofit
The recently ousted camp director in Maine declares its board is unrepresentative of the organization’s mission and caters to wealthy donors.
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P.T. Barnum’s Maine Giantess wasn’t 8-feet tall but she was from Wilton
Sylvia Hardy of Wilton, the tallest woman of her time, won fame in the mid-1800s as P.T. Barnum’s Maine Giantess.