About Andy Benton
A sidekick. That's not exactly what I ever aspired to be. I never took any classes in college to head me in that direction. But that's where I am today.
I like to be called the Co-Producer/Photographer of the Carolina Traveler. Mike Redding calls me the "Man behind the camera." Even though I also am also the editor and post-producer of the show, when it's all said and done, I'm a sidekick.
The job basically boils down to going out and seeing the beautiful places of the Carolinas and meeting some truly amazing people. And while it's Mike's and my job to have fun with the show every week, I do actually have a background in Journalism.
My journey to the CT started off by walking to school in the snow both ways. No folks, I'm from Buffalo, NY, I literally had to walk through the snow! Honestly though, it's where I grew up and is still dear to my heart. Every fall and winter I get to have the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres rip my sports heart out. The said part is I wrote the first part of this paragraph three years ago and every word of it is still true!
I'm a stellar graduate of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Journalism program and that's the town where I got my first television job. I have criss-crossed this country with stops in Columbia, SC and Phoenix, AZ in route to my home in the Charlotte area.
This past year I've added a new woman to my life. The best thing of all is my wife isn't even jealous! That's because I'm a proud father of a little baby girl who quickly has had her daddy wrapped around her little (and I mean little) finger. My beloved Golden Retriever Kramer is still in charge of the other half of the house.
Mike and I have been fortunate to win a few awards while putting on the Carolina Traveler. We've won our share of Emmy awards and a few Gabriel awards among others.
Just recently we won a national Edward R. Murrow award for a story about a high school football player with no legs. I don't want to brag, but it's a pretty amazing story, it should still be on our web site.
So all in all, I've drawn a pretty good lot in life. Mike and I get to go out and see the beauty of the Carolinas and meet the most fascinating and sometimes odd people of the land. We do put in some hard hours, but in the end, it's a labor of love. And in the end of the day, if you can enjoy a job as much as we do, consider yourself a lucky person.
Of course in the end, it's television so the Carolina Traveler only works with people watching us. The job is great and I want to keep it that way, so thanks for watching.
