"New Hampshire Is Having an Identity Crisis!" Stay Work Play Executive Director on the Fight to Keep Young People in N.H.
Corinne Benfield · Stay Work Play, New Hampshire
Historical show notes, published Mar 9, 2026. Past event dates and time-limited offers may no longer apply. See upcoming events.
Corinne Benfield's story is a uniquely New Hampshire one.
Benfield, a Manchester, N.H., native, left The Granite State for college, vowing not to return to the state that raised her. Then, she moved to New York City to pursue an art career.
Her time in The Big Apple didn't go as planned, leading her back to New Hampshire, where she began to see her home state through a completely different lens.
Now, as the Executive Director of Stay Work Play, it's her job to convince young professionals to have the same epiphany she once did.
Today, Benfield joins host Troy Farkas to share her story: Why she came back to N.H., the endless opportunities afforded to young people in the state, and the "master narrative" that's driving so many young people away.
Plus, the biggest pain points for young professionals, and the three things she would change in this state if she were given a magic wand.
To learn more about Stay Work Play's upcoming events, research studies, and more, just visit StayWorkPlay.org or follow @stayworkplay on Instagram.
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Seacoast Stories Dinner Club: Friday, April 3, in Amesbury, Mass.! Sign up here. Seacoast Stories Dinner Club: Wednesday, April 15, in Manchester, N.H.! Sign up here. EPISODE CHAPTERS:
Manchester's glow-up & Corinne's backstory (00:00) The opportunities N.H. affords young people (15:10) SPONSOR: Business coach Jennifer Wilder (21:55) Corinne's path to Stay Work Play (24:03) The effect of the housing crisis on YP's (31:30) Childcare costs and workforce displacement (49:27) SPONSOR: Oomph Salon (54:07) A rough social life & dating scene for YP's (55:30) Three N.H. issues Corinne wants to solve ASAP (01:04:55)