Door County Pulse Podcasts

Matt Stone is a man of many titles – trainer, real estate agent, podcast host, improv performer, dad. He joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about his search for fulfillment in career and life, fighting off screen time for yourself and your kids, getting on stage and even a little about the Packers.

Newly 80-years-old, Charlotte Lukes recalls the courtship that led to her marriage to Roy Lukes, and the life they lived at the Ridges Range Light. Introduced to the peninsula’s magic by her husband, Roy Lukes, Charlotte has carried on their legacy in many ways since his death in 2016, including through their Peninsula Pulse column, Door to Nature. She has also branched out on her own, becoming one of the county’s most knowledgeable mushroom guides (several are coming up in August at The Ridges, Björklunden and Whitefish Dunes).

Myles Dannhusen Jr. and Debra Fitzgerald catch up with some of the news that’s been happening at the top of the Door peninsula.

The Door County Triathlon returns to Egg Harbor this weekend, bringing 2,000 athletes to Murphy Park. Director Sean Ryan joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to reflect on 20 years of the event, the impact of the late Mark Ernst, and how the Tri helped change the face of the Door County visitor.

That’s a well known fact in Soil and Water Conservation Department circles and the people who work in those Wisconsin departments spend their days carrying out a mission of conservation and environmental advocacy to prevent pollution. Greg Coulthurst has been at it for more than three decades in Door County and the Door County SWCD conservationist and department head talks with Debra Fitzgerald about what his office does to protect surface and groundwater from agricultural operations.

Jacksonport resident and Sevastopol High School student Isabella Dereszkiewicz-Hodowany did what no other Door County student has achieved: she was accepted into the U.S. Senate Page program. Living at the Capitol for six months and working each day on the Senate floor, she witnessed the creation of legislation both small and large – including debates that led to aid packages for Ukraine and Israel. She talks with Debra Fitzgerald about that experience and how it changed her perspective on U.S. politics and on the importance of bipartisanship.

While the Green Bay Packers have announced the succession plan for retiring team President Mark Murphy a year in advance, most nonprofits don’t have the luxury of planning for succession in leadership positions. Northern Sky Theater is one of the few that had a plan in place for the transition, and new Managing Director Holly Feldman joined the podcast to talk to Myles Dannhausen Jr. about the process and the benefits of putting a plan in place. She also discusses highlights of the 2024 season, and how Northern Sky handles the ever-unpredictable Door County weather at a theater in the woods.

There are some 1,000 music performances happening in Door County between June and October and we have them all for you in the Peninsula Pulse’s Summer Music Preview – Part I (June through July, out now) and Part II (August through October, out July 26). Pulse arts & entertainment reporter Sam Watson joins Debra Fitzgerald to talk about what it takes to pull that together. We’ll also introduce you to the Pulse’s summer intern, Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism student and Gibraltar High School graduate, Betsy Lecy.

When Kevin O’Donnell moved to the Southern Door town of Clay Banks seven years ago, he immediately found himself drawn to the people and scenes of the peninsula. He turned his lens and his pen increasingly toward the overlooked stories of the county, particularly those south of the bridge. O’Donnell joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about his new book about those discoveries – Behind the Door.

Should music education change? That’s the question Charlie Eckhardt has been mulling throughout his final year as the leader of the band at Gibraltar School, where he has taught for 24 years. He talks to Myles Dannhausen Jr. about leaving the classroom and how small-school music education might need to change to keep kids (and teachers) engaged.

Long-time member and leader of the Door County League of Women Voters, Susan Kohout, is retiring, and Ann Morgan has been selected to lead the non-partisan organization into the future. Both women talk with Debra Fitzgerald about the League’s founding, current issues of importance and what the future may hold.

Mark Villers, a Door County Environmental Council board member, talks with Debra Fitzgerald about the Door County Environmental Council’s history, current mission, what is and isn’t working to protect our water quality and the phosphorus testing the organization will do this summer.

This week’s Pulse features art and writing from Dor County students who took part in a project related to Rebecca Carlton’s new installation, “Are We Listening?”. Debra Fitzgerald joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about her experience working with local high school students to produce art, essays and mixed media about the issues they are most concerned about.

Freelancers and part-time writers help Peninsula Pulse staff round out coverage of the county and Mike Bacsi is the latest such member, covering Door County restaurants and the dining scene. Mike and his wife, Patti, transplanted to Door County during the pandemic, retiring to a vacation home they’d long loved. So many others also take this leap of faith, some doing so more successfully than others. Debra Fitzgerald talks with Mike about this journey (and they of course talk about Door County restaurants along the way).

Golf.com senior writer Sean Zak joins the podcast to talk about his new book, Searching in St. Andrews: Finding the Meaning of Golf During the Game’s Most Turbulent Summer. The Sturgeon Bay native (and former Peninsula Pulse golf contributor) talks to Myles Dannhausen Jr. about covering the battles between LIV and the PGA Tour, exploring the birthplace of the game, and the nuances of the tour the public rarely sees.

The Door Community Auditorium released a summer slate full of amazing new bands and old favorites this month. Cari Lewis joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about the shows she is most excited for, how the schedule comes together, and standing out in a local music scene with more options than ever before.

Five of our 46 presidents came into office without winning the most popular votes nationwide. A movement to change that has gained momentum, with many states now signed on to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. The compact would change the way we elect our president from the winner-take-all Electoral College, to a one-vote, one-person popular vote. Debra Cronmiller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, and Dorothy Skye, president of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin join Debra Fitzgerald to unpack it all.

Door County’s nonprofit community, like most of the country, is grappling with a shortage of volunteers at a time when their services are in more demand than ever before. Kelly Hellmann, the coordinator of Volunteer Connections for the United Way, joins the podcast with United Way Executive Director Amy Kohnle to talk about the need in Door County and the opportunities at the May 21 United Way Volunteer Fair at Door County Gala.

Myles Dannhausen Jr. gives a glimpse of the Early Summer edition of Door County Living and the pain of finding an error in his story about the fascinating cliff-hanging structure known as Shadowcliff. Then, he’s joined by Orson Dutmer, the 13 year-old co-host of Hot Takes Hoops, to talk about what’s next for the Milwaukee Bucks, the NBA Playoffs and how the league is consumed in the modern media landscape.

Water-born illnesses aren’t new to Door County, as Ephraim Historical Foundation director Cody Schreck wrote in a recent History Hub column in the Peninsula Pulse. He joins the podcast to talk to Myles Dannhausen Jr. about an e coli outbreak in Ephraim in the 1950s, plus a little history about an estate on Horseshoe Island and 75 years of the Ephraim Historical Foundation.