Door County Pulse Podcasts

Rick Cleveland won an Emmy for his writing on The West Wing and has also written for Six Feet Under and several other television shows, in addition to writing for the stage. This month he’ll be taking part in the Door Kinetic Arts Festival, where he’ll stage a reading for his new play for Deaf West Theater. He joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about working in a writer’s room, the future of television writing, and the personal story behind the episode of the West Wing that won him an Emmy Award. Then they discuss his new play, Lulu, about a Gorilla who is the only witness to a murder and must communicate through sign language. Cleveland will be in Door County next week for the Door Kinetic Arts Festival, joining fellow writer Chris Nee for a discussion about writing for film and screen at Write On, Door County on Sept. 23 at 4 pm, and then a reading of his play on Sept. 26. Get more details on DKAF at Doorkinetic.com.

At last year’s Door Kinetic Arts Festival, David Maraniss and Eric Simonson came together for a fascinating discussion about turning Maraniss’s biography of Packers legend Vince Lombardi into a Broadway play. Moderated by Jacob Janssen of Third Avenue Playworks, the writers bring you a great discussion not only about Lombardi and the Packers, but also about the creative process and the choices they made to bring a sprawling biography of one of history's most compelling sports figures to the stage.

Fair representation is fundamental to Democracy in the United States. In Wisconsin, the way voting districts are drawn has long been a source of controversy and debate. But a dedicated group of advocates is working to change that. Debra Fitzgerald sits down with Nicole Gabrail and iuscely Flores, both with the Wisconsin Fair Maps Coalition about the organization’s nonpartisan movement to create transparent, impartial maps through an Independent Redistricting Commission. Their mission is simple: to ensure that every vote counts equally and that voters choose their representatives, not the other way around.

Mark Honold didn’t plan to take on another job in retirement, but after his teaching career ended, a more challenging chapter began when his wife was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. He talks to Myles Dannhausen Jr. about the difficult journey of navigating the disease, watching his wife’s decline and navigating a maze to find resources and assistance. He also discusses what he’d do differently if he could go back to the beginning, and how he was able to gain the perspective to get help before tthe burden of caregiving took an irriversable toll on him.

When Mitch Larson agreed to give a friend a ride to a clothing show in Chicago nearly 40 years ago, he didn’t know it would change the direction of his life. The founder of On Deck Clothing Co. joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about how that trip hooked him on the clothing industry, why his stores have their unique style, and his passion for historic preservation and rejuvenating spaces.

An important hearing is coming up Sept. 4th about the waterfront portion of the former Alpine Resort property (25:04), so Debra Fitzgerald and Myles Dannhausen Jr. hop on the mics to give listeners to the lowdown on where things currently stand on the two Alpine properties and the many issues in contention between the property’s different owners and the village. But first they discuss Marina Fest, the big weekend event in Sister Bay, and the community value of local festivals.

This summer, Wisconsin lawmakers approved a major increase in special education funding — something districts across the state have been requesting for years. But while that’s good news for special ed programs, there’s a catch: general school aid is staying flat. In fact, several districts in Door County are seeing cuts. So what does that mean for schools, and for your next property tax bill? Eleanor Corbin, Peninsula Pulse reporter who covers schools across Door County, joins Debra Fitzgerald to unpack it all.

“Why don’t immigrants just get in line?” is a common refrain when people discuss the illegal immigration problem. But if you ask where the line is nobody can tell you - because it doesn’t exist. Immigration attorney Luca Fagundes joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to discuss the many nuances of the U.S. immigration system and the laws that make solving the riddle so complicated. They'll discuss Luca's path to becoming an immigration attorney, why it's so hard for those already here to start the legal process to become a citizen and the misconceptions people have about how the United States immigration system works.

It will probably come as no surprise to anyone that Door County’s robust music scene includes world-class chamber music. Allyson Fleck, executive director of Midsummer’s Music, and a talented violist herself, talks with Debra Fitzgerald about the organization’s roots, its mission, what chamber music means and the musicians who bring their music to the Door County community. Stay tuned: she also brought along her viola and plays a short piece by Bach.

Rural birthing centers are closing at an alarming pace in Wisconsin and across the country, but Door County Medical Center CEO Brian Stephens says their birthing center isn’t going anywhere. Stephens and Dr. Dorene Dempster join Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about why rural hospitals struggle to keep the service going and what the Medical Center does to keep theirs open to serve our isolated community.

The Door County Drug Treatment Court has been in operation since 2020. Earlier this year, the county paused new admissions to the program, and in May, announced it would be shut down due to staffing shortages. But last week, new developments suggested the program may continue after all. Joe Krebsbach, director of the Door County Health and Human Services Department and the person who oversees the program, joins Debra Fitzgerald to talk about the program, why it’s important and what’s next.

Myles Dannhausen Jr. and Debra Fitzgerald discuss the Pulse’s approach to covering difficult stories and how we choose what merits a story. But first, a look at the growth in live music on the peninsula, the smoky haze settling in the air, and a potential third round-about coming to Sturgeon Bay.

Dr. Kristen Raney, President of Northeast Wisconsin Technical College (NWTC), talks with Debra Fitzgerald about how the college is transforming education into opportunity in Door County and elsewhere within the systems’ communities. Dr. Raney shares what makes NWTC her favorite college to lead, how job-focused programs are tailored to local workforce needs, and how the school is partnering with employers, K-12 districts, and even correctional facilities.

Few people will put more planning and time into catching a great photograph than Kevin O’Donnell, who shared the story of his pursuit of a very particular photograph in the Summer edition of Door County Living Magazine. He reads his essay, “The 40-second Window” on the podcast this week, but first John Mielke joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to discuss his story on the fishing guides who steer people to the catch of their lives on the lake and the bay in Door County.

It’s becoming difficult to ignore the Canadian and western U.S. wildfire smoke that is causing an increasing number of air quality alerts throughout the Midwest, including within Door County. To help us understand what’s going on, a leading air quality expert at UW-Madison, Brad Pierce, (Director of Space Science and Engineering and former NOAA physical scientist and NASA research scientist), joins Debra Fitzgerald to talk about why we’re seeing more Door County days flagged for poor air quality, what people can do to keep themselves and their families safe, and what the future may hold for the air we breathe.

Peninsula Pulse interns Betsy Lecy and Cassidy Johnson sat down with Debra Fitzgerald to share what it’s like to cover Door County through the eyes of the next generation of reporters. From unexpected community insights to the stories that left a lasting impression (so far), they reveal what surprised them most, how their perspectives have changed, and what they discovered about the peninsula that only a reporter on the ground could know.

Since 1972 a unique cultural exchange program has connected Southern Door with Belgium, where many of its first settlers came from. Muraelle Havet, an exchange visitor from Brussels, Belgium, joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. and her host, Bill Chaudoir, to talk about her impressions of Door County and the strong connection between Wisconsin’s Belgian settlement and Wallonia.

Wilkins & Olander has been a familiar name to local residents, particularly in Sturgeon Bay, since the clothing store opened its doors in 1990. Now in its 35th year, the store is owned by Dawn Fischer, who took over from her stepmother, Carol Overland, who died in 2019. In April, the Door County Economic Development Corporation honored Fischer with its Light Keeper Award for women, minority or veteran-owned business of the year. She joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. on the podcast to talk about her business, the evolution of 3rd Avenue, and the lessons she learned from Carol Overland.

The Door County Food Pantry coalition has raised awareness that this year, people have been using, at unprecedented rates, the nine food pantries across the county. Debra Fitzgerald talks with Adam Peronto with the Door County Community Foundation and Heidi Penchoff with the Door to Life Food Pantry in Sister, about the rising need, what’s driving it and how federal funding cuts would impact the food insecure. They also talk about solutions, community generosity and how people can access the resources they need.

Jeff Lutsey of the Climate Change Coalition of Door County joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about the effort to add 50 new solar installations on the peninsula this year. The Coalition is hosting several informational sessions in the coming weeks for people to learn more about the possibilities for solar energy and potential savings through a group buying program.