Beloved Mr. Bennett

For decades this incredible teacher has inspired Petoskey High School musicians and brought joy to the Up North community—and beyond.

- CHRIS LOUD

If you’ve heard the popping Caribbean sounds of the Petoskey Steel Drum Band, you know you’ve witnessed something special and out of the ordinary in Northern Michigan. If you haven’t, please do yourself a favor and remedy that.

After being captivated by a steel drum performance at Central Michigan University back in 1994, Barry Bennett wanted to bring the instrument to the students and people of Petoskey and officially started the group in 1996. “In the beginning, there were only about 12 people in the band, and that included a few adults,” remembers Mr. Bennett. “The learning curve was very slow because no one in Petoskey had ever played a steel drum before, including me.”