9WMS0000HDPL_Main_Streets_with_John_McGivern_Pledge_Transcript

- Hi, I'm John McGivern. Many of you know me for my years at PBS, traveling our great state of Wisconsin. 

When that show ended, I took a break, and if you know me, you know that that break lasted about 10 minutes. I knew I wasn't done. I wanted to get back on the road and I wanted to continue telling our Wisconsin stories, but I thought, why not expand my travels? If I go within 300 miles from my front door in Milwaukee, I could experience pure Michigan, or I could cross the Mississippi and explore Minnesota. Or why not head southwest and travel Iowa, or just go south and enjoy Illinois? I could drive southeast and visit Indiana. 

So, I partnered with Plum Media in Milwaukee, and John McGivern's Main Streets was born. Why call it Main Streets? Because I believe that Main Street is alive and well, and it's where the heart of a community beats the loudest. If you haven't already heard, I'm here to tell you that I'm coming back to PBS, right here, and I couldn't be happier. Wanna know what the new show is like? Okay. Last year we went to Rockford, Illinois, a place I hadn't been in 30 years. And can I tell you, I loved it.

[strumming guitar]

John: I am in the largest city of Illinois, outside the Chicago area. It was once known as "Midway Village" because, for travelers, it was halfway between Chicago and Galena. We, of course, today, know it by another name.

- § Cause these are our Main Streets §
§ Something 'bout a hometown speaks to me §
§ There's nowhere else I'd rather be §
§ The heart and soul of community's §
§ Right here §
§ On these Main Streets §

[upbeat guitar music]

- I'm in Rockford, Illinois. The name comes from the "ford" on the Rock River. If you don't know what a ford is, it's the lowest part of the river that makes it easy to cross. 'Rock'-'Ford.' I am on State Street, which is Rockford's “Main Street”. Even though there is a Main Street, we're on State Street; we're on East State Street. 

Across the Rock River is West State Street. Rockford was known for industrial manufacturing in the last century. This century, they have retooled, and is the home of healthcare and aerospace technology. 

Rockford is a north-central part of the state of Illinois, and Rockford is in Winnebago County. It's the county seat. Today, it has a population of just under 150,000 people. And I used to come here a lot as a kid. And this is not the Rockford I remember as a child. Rockford: great city!

[upbeat drum music]

This is Daxx Nielsen's drum kit. He is the drummer for Cheap Trick. This is his throne. And out of respect, I'm not gonna sit on his throne, but I'm just gonna gaze on his kit.

[upbeat rock music]

This is Rick. This is Daxx. They're, they're related. This is, this is your dad?

- That's what they tell me; yes.

- And what I hear about you guys is that you're originally from Rockford, Illinois. Is that right?

- Rick: Since I was eight years old.

- Since you were eight?

- Yeah.

- So, Cheap Trick happened when? Can we talk about that for a second?

- Rick: Ah, let's see, '73, we started Cheap Trick.

- Yeah.

- And we've been all around the world since then. And now, Daxx is a part of that.

- You're the drummer?

- Yes, since 2010.

- Congratulations.

- Thank you.

- John: Yeah.

- Daxx: It worked out nice... Nicely!

- John: Nicely, yeah.

- Daxx: Yeah, just been a musician my whole life, and made sure I knew all the music, and all the-- every instrument, just in case.

- Those are some tight pants.

- Yeah.

- I'm fat everywhere else, every other place. But my legs are skinny.

- You're quite the guitarist, though.

- I'm a songwriter more than a guitar player, I think.

- John: Well, how many of those Cheap Trick hits did you write?

- Rick: Almost all of them.

- John: "I Want You to Want Me." It has to be played every show you do, though, right?

- Oh, yeah.

- Yeah

- Yeah, it put all my kids through college.

- How great is that?

[laughs]

- Well, if they would've finished, it would've been great.

[John laughing]

- John: You have quite a commitment to this community. What's the commitment about? Is it because-- since you, you've been here since you were eight?

- Yeah, my parents moved here when I was eight years old. My father's an opera singer and a religious singer. And my mother was, too. And then, I worked at my dad's store on 7th Street in Rockford.

- John: Was a music store?

- Music store.

- John: Yeah.

- And I waited on everybody.

- So, Rick, you know you could live, well, anywhere. Why Rockford?

- Rick: I stayed here because of my family. My parents were, had their business here. I met my wife here.

- Mm-hmm.

- And then, we started having kids, and we needed babysitters. So, we knew the babysitters here in town.

- We've had a really good time in Rockford--

- Until now, okay, great!

- So far, so good! You know, as a kid, I tell the story that we came down here every Easter because my aunt and uncle lived in Rockford.

- Rick: The Stockholm Inn?

- John: No.

- You didn't go there?

- We're going there next.

- Get outta here!

- No, that's our next stop.

- That's so... I'm one of the owners.

- Well, there you go. You wanna come? Oh, my God. Who would've thunk?

- Rick: So I said we couldn't change anything, and it's good. It's not cookie-cutter, but it's great.

- John: And it's iconic in this community.

- Rick: It is iconic.

- John: Yeah.

- Rick: I do stuff that I like. He is me.

- John: He is you. How great is that? Sir, are you Swedish?

- Denny Johnson: I'm Swedish. My last name is Johnson, so...

- Hello!

[Denny laughing]

- John: It's been around for how long?

- Denny: Since 1968. Yep, it's a staple in Rockford, so.

- John: It's a huge restaurant.

- Denny: Yeah.

- John: We walked in, and it was like, "Look at this!"

- Denny: Yeah, yeah, 650 seats.

- John: Is there a large population of Swedish people?

- Denny: There is still.

- John: Do they find your menu authentic?

- Denny: They do 'cause we have a special Swedish section.

- John: Oh, you do?

- Denny: Yeah. Swedish pancakes, they're where it's at!

- And you don't have to be Swedish.

- You don't have to be Swedish, so.

- You'll love 'em anyway.

- All nationalities.

- Swedish pancakes. That's what we're doing today. That's the batter? Oh, look at that. This isn't your first, is it?

- Denny: He's done this a few times.

- So then, this is served with what?

- Denny: Butter and then lingonberries.

- John: And Lingonberries is really the way to go.

- Denny: It's the way to go. Ready to go, right at the counter, right.

- This is so not what I thought. They're so thin. Did I get enough butter?

[Denny laughing]

I've lived a sheltered, terrible life. I don't know any Swedish people. Yum. So, you have a gift shop, as well?

- Denny: Yeah.

- A "Saucy Swede" or a "Naughty Norwegian?"

- Your choice.

- Your choice!

[men laughing]

- John: Good, I know the last thing we really have to do. Show me the tradition, would you?

- Denny: Strumming the guitar?

- John: Yeah, good.

- Denny: For good luck.

[guitar strings vibrate]

- The city of Rockford has had a lot of nicknames. The first was 'Forest City' because of the abundance of esitlm trees. Then it became known as 'Reaper City' because of the harvesting equipment that was invented here. Then, 'Furniture City' because I don't know if you knew, but it was the second largest manufacturer of furniture in the United States. Then, during World War II, it gave a lot of fasteners to the war effort. It became known as 'Screw City.' Okay, I don't really want to talk about that. Now, it's known as 'City of Gardens.' Rockford, it's always given a lot.

[gentle guitar music]

The Anderson Japanese Garden?

- David Anderson: Yes.

- Does that have anything to do with you?

- Well, my mom and dad started it as a backyard project in 1978.

- John: Their home was here on the property?

- David: Absolutely, that's where I grew up.

- John: Yeah.

- David: This is my backyard.

- John: And your dad worked on this?

- David: My dad spent… I don't know how many thousands of hours out here planting. Ferns, pachysandra. These are irises that are now done blooming. Never intended to be a public garden. And it just kept expanding and expanding. You know, this is really their gift. It's my mom and dad together did this. Not only this community, but this region. You know, people come from all over the place. It's awesome to see. So, this is a year-and-a-half project right here.

- John: Yeah. And the plants were lowered in by cranes. So, a pretty massive project.

- John: So what's the difference between a Japanese garden and, you know, my mom's garden?

- David: Well, a Japanese garden uses stone, plants, and water. It's meant to slow you down and use all your senses to take in nature. Pretty cool, the impact just being in nature has on people. You know, you hear the birds, hear the ripples in the water. And here, it's a place of respect, and it's a place of just being in the moment.

- John: Is this perfect landscape for a Japanese garden?

- David: It is. So, in a Japanese garden, they talk about borrowed scenery. So that's the hillside and the backdrop. You know, it kind of makes it all enclosed, you know. And it's supposed to be a place of peace and tranquility. What garden is for is to bring the community together in a beautiful, uplifting outdoor setting. We have weddings out here. We have all sorts of different classes. Tai chi, yoga. This is also where we hold our concerts.

- John: Is it open all year or--

- David: We're not. We're seasonal, six months a year.

- Are you here on a daily basis?

- David: I am, yeah.

- John: You are?

- David: Yeah.

- John: Should you be pruning right now?

- They don't let me have scissors or pruners. I do it at home, but not here at the garden.

- John: Right.

[laughs]

[birds chirping]

- This is the Rock River. It's 299 miles long. It starts up in Horicon, Wisconsin, makes its way to Rock Island, Illinois, where it flows into the Mississippi River. 

My question is, how many communities are on the Rock River from Wisconsin to the Mississippi River? There are 39 towns, cities, and villages on the Rock River. 

And the largest of those communities? Right here: Rockford, Illinois.

[piano music]

So, that's Mr. Potato?

- Chris: Mm-hmm.

[laughs]

- And the kids don't seem freaked out dancing with a potato? Your family's company?

- Family's company, yep.

- Yeah.

- Chris Spiess: Been in business since 1932. It's grown to the point now where we're now the chip for northern Illinois, southern Wisconsin, and slowly pushing further into central Illinois.

- John: Are you Ms. Fisher?

- Roma Hailman: I am.

- Are you really?

[laughs]

- Not really, but I worked here for probably about 30-something years.

- John: How long have you owned it?

- Since 2007, so... Do the math.

- You do the math.

- Fourteen.

- So, what happens first?

- So, first, when we get our potatoes in, they're gonna be in a giant tote like this. Holds about 1,500 pounds of potatoes. We just have a little bit of peel removed on there. The potatoes get scooped up, fling it into the slicer, and then go into the fryer.

- John: This is a perfect slice, isn't it?

- Every single time. That's what I love about it.

- This 30-foot-long cooker. It does exactly what we need it to do every time, which is to cook the perfect chip. And they just slowly drop the salt down, right on top of the chip.

[chip crunches]

- Wow. Do you have any idea how many pounds of chips you put outta here a year?

- About 2.6 million pounds of potato chips on a given year.

- I bought half of them.

- Chris Spiess: Making it right in Rockford. It's a testament of what we've been trying to do for 89 years.

- Chris said he had an emergency to take care of. I said, "I'll wait for you here."

[chips crunching]

[playful music]

Hope it's a big emergency.

[upbeat guitar music]

Rockford Art Deli. What do you think it is?

- Some people think we sell sandwiches, though.

- No, they have to.

- Jarrod Hennis: Yeah. The big push behind it was the acronym RAD. 'Cause everyone's like, "Oh, that's rad!"

- A really cool shop.

- Jarrod: Super exciting, yeah, growing constantly, and always trying to figure out the next, the big thing. And you know, we just keep trying to do better things and help the community out more and more.

- Where did you come from?

- Um, my mother.

- Yeah.

- I've been a hardcore Rockfordian in the last, you know, 18 years.

- John: Is that what you guys are called?

- Yeah, Rockfordians.

- John: Rockfordians?

- Jarrod: Yeah.

[John and Jarrod laughing]

- John: When I look around, it's so honoring of this community of Rockford.

- Jarrod: And just a lot of things that were, you know, showing our heritage of what started in Rockford. So, this is our press.

- John: Okay.

- Jarrod: Screen printing press, right.

- John: I see what you mean.

- Jarrod: I think it's the humidity.

- John: Would you hold this?

- Jarrod: Yeah, I'll hold this. We'll do a mulligan on that one. There you go. Look at you! You've loaded shirts before.

- John: Never.

- Jarrod: I think you're sharking me right now. And then, we're just gonna do a nice little line. This is the whole reason I started a retail space. I wanted people to see it happening. You know, like, people like to see things made. That's a good smoosh. Oh, look at that print you just did!

- Thank you.

- That's amazing.

- Thank you. Wow, could be the best one yet. Lookit!

[whoo]

- Look at that! I could do this anywhere. You know, I could go to any big city, and I could create this, probably be more successful. But I wanted to make it in Rockford, to give people a sense of pride and to make them happy and feel proud about saying, "I'm from Rockford."

- Oh, my Lord, this is the best one yet.

[John and Jarrod laughing]

And there's some benefits of working here, isn't there?

- Jarrod: Yeah, my dog.

- John: Your dog.

[peppy rock music]

I love public art. These are the rock guardians of Rockford, commissioned in 1988. And it was done by the sculptor Therese Agnew. I just have one thing to say: Rock on, Therese!

[gentle guitar music]

It looks like we're on a Main Street somewhere.

- Patrick: It does, doesn't it?

- John: Yeah, yeah.

- Looks like a movie set.

- John: It does.

- Patrick O'Keefe:  On our campus, we have about 28 buildings total. We have a lot of events out here. We have World War I and World War II reenactments on our grounds.

- Have you ever heard the term "trench warfare?" This is what it's about. World War I replicas of trenches. They're permanent. It's only one of two in the country. The other is in Pennsylvania. The trenches in Rockford, Illinois. Who would've known? So, Patrick, we have to talk about the Rockford Peaches.

- Patrick: The Rockford Peaches are really an icon of Rockford's history. The team was founded around World War II by  . They had a concern that all the players, the men's leagues, were all off to war. So, a group of Chicagoland guys started a league of women's baseball, and the Rockford Peaches were one of the top teams, and played for about 12 years.

- John: But it brought crowds out, didn't it?

- Patrick: Absolutely.

- John: When we talk about the Sock Monkey, we have to talk about the knitting company, yes?

- Sue Saunders: Yes. And they started Nelson Knitting Company about 1853. They made all the socks for World War I and World War II. In 1932, the company added the red heel. So, then, ladies got the idea of making the sock monkeys. So you could cut that part and put it on for the face.

- And they're still being made today?

- Sue Saunders: Yes, I have made about a dozen sock monkeys myself.

- John: You have?

- The lady who made the first sock monkey, Grace Winget.

- How great that you have the actual sock.

- We have the actual sock monkey.

- John: That's amazing.

- Sue: Yes. They're so well known, and people just love these, aren't they?

- Sue: Yes.

- John: And it's Rockford.

- Sue: And it's Rockford.

- So, how long have you had this?

- Well, I've had this-- I opened up in the year 2000. It's really well done. Who to who to whose?

- Actually, I do it myself.

- Wayne: It brings you back in time. And that's what my tagline to my museum is: "A journey through time."

- John: Yeah.

- Wayne Lensing: Now, my first car I ever purchased, John, sits right here. This is Howard Hughes' limo. It was in Hemmings Motor News for sale. And I flew out there and I was all enticed, and went out and worked out a deal, brought the car home, started showing it to people. 

Next thing I knew, I started hunting for more cars. These are the actual hats that Bonnie and Clyde wore the day they got… shot. There's bullet holes in the back of the hat.

- John: And that's the actual car from the movie. Is this the actual one?

- That's one of-- George Barris signed the hood. I told you about the most famous car we got here. That's the one right behind President Kennedy when he got assassinated.

- John: You know, in our-- all our years of doing TV, we've been to a lot of museums, and this one is unlike any that I've ever been to before. And you should be really proud of what you've done here. Come on.

- Wayne: You know, something, those words make me feel pretty honored.

- So, it's so rare in my life when I say, you know, I've seen a lot of these, but this is the biggest one I've ever seen. And I know you're thinking, "Oh, it's the elephant he's talking about." It's not the elephant. Take a look at these. They're tires! 

I wish I had a huge poster board of that. Okay, Wayne, put it in drive.

- Ah, got it. Get up there and steer it.

- John: Okay!

[laughing]

Every year of my childhood, we would come to Rockford on Easter Sunday to visit my Uncle Jerry and Aunt Luann and my cousins, Kathy, Kevin, and Dennis, who lived in this house. It looked so much bigger back then.

- Mary Beth Peterson: So, this house was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1949. This is also the only home that Frank Lloyd Wright designed to be wheelchair accessible. It was completed by spring of 1952, and there was only one family that ever lived here. And that was Ken and Phyllis Laurent, with their two children. Ken Laurent relied on a wheelchair.

- And it was built specifically for him and his needs.

- Mary Beth: Correct.

- Did they not contact Frank Lloyd Wright and say, "This is what we have?"

- They did. He writes, "Dear Mr. Wright, "to give you an idea of my situation, "I must first tell you that I'm a paraplegic. "This explains my need for a home as practical and sensible as your style of architecture denotes." I should share that after Frank Lloyd Wright received the letter, within two weeks, he wrote back to Ken Laurent. His exact lines were: "Dear Laurent, "we are interested, but can't guarantee cost. Who knows what they are today?" So it did come in over budget.

- John: They made it work, though, didn't they?

- Mary Beth: They did make it work.

- John: And were any other houses built to the specs of this house?

- Mary Beth: No. There, well, there are 60 Usonians, only 11 that are hemicycles. But this is the only one that is wheelchair accessible.

- John: Yeah.

- So, this house is designed to be from the perspective of Ken Laurent in his wheelchair. So, you see, we have lower doorknobs, lower light switches. There's a lower rack for Ken's clothes. So, one of Ken Laurent's requests was to have a wide hallway to accommodate the radius of the wheelchair, and Wright turned this into this little room, which is termed 'the garden room.' And this just becomes a beautiful, meditative place to sit.

- And I was allowed to sit here, as well. How great is that? Nice.

- All the furniture that you see here-- these chairs, tables-- designed by Frank Lloyd Wright or close apprentices at Taliesin. Wright felt that a fireplace was central to any living space.

- John: This is really remarkable. And the fact that the one family lived here, and now, that's what's honored.

- Mary Beth: Yes, and this house really helped him to focus on his capabilities, not his disability.

- John: Right.

- Mary Beth: But that is the true gift that Frank Lloyd Wright gave to him.

- In 2001, a group of amateur and professional paleontologists from this museum were in Hell Creek, Montana on a dig. Okay, on the very last day of that dig, they discovered the best-preserved and the most complete juvenile Tyrannosaurus Rex ever found. So Jane, the name they gave this dinosaur, lives here at the Burpee Museum of Natural History, which incidentally started as a WPA project in 1941. All of that, right here in Rockford. 

Where was your Main Street growing up? Every city, every town, every neighborhood has a Main Street, even if it isn't called Main Street. And that's where I go: to Main Streets all over the upper Midwest. 

We talk with locals and business owners, and they tell us and show us what's unique and historic, and charming, and why they are so proud of the place that they call home. 

If you were to Google "popular Wisconsin tourist spots," Sister Bay, Wisconsin would definitely be on the top of that list. Sister Bay is about an hour and a half north of the city of Green Bay. It lies at the shores of a bay known as Green Bay. 

And if you were to drive north to Door County, you could take Highway 57 or Highway 42. Both would bring you to Sister Bay, Wisconsin. Sister Bay is named after the unincorporated Sister Islands, which you can see on the horizon, out in the bay. The endless shorelines have drawn tourists here since the late 1800s. They come to witness the beauty of Door County, which will never change. 

I am a Wisconsin native. I've been coming to Door County for the last 40 years, and I never tire of a visit to Sister Bay. The first white settlers came to Sister Bay by boat. They were Swedish wood choppers. They came here because of the fish and the wildlife, and to chop down trees. 

And the Swedish influence is still incredibly prevalent today. But you know, they no longer chop down trees. Now they make meatballs and pancakes, yeah. And they're delicious And Swedish, yeah.

[upbeat folk music]

- Mihai: Swedish pancakes.

- Lars Johnson: Wow! Thank you, Mihai.

- Pyttipanna.

- Pyttipanna, homemade herring, and our homemade pickled beets.

- Mm. I could eat that all day.

- It's really great. When my dad first started this business, Al Johnson's, the original restaurant, was an IGA grocery store. He was gonna buy this little IGA grocery store, and turn it into an authentic Swedish diner. And my mom said, if we're gonna have a Swedish diner, we've gotta make it more authentic.

- And is this a Scandinavian tradition, these guys?

- The trolls? The trolls! Yeah, yeah. Of course, love the trolls. My brother: he helps run the whole show in the kitchen. And my sister: she's always behind the scenes, involved in our retail operations and our online.

- We're standing in a shop called?

- Skål Butik.

- John: Skål Butik, yeah.

- Lars: And it gives us an opportunity to feature more of our branded products. Since we had the property, we needed to expand. Our wonderful Stabbur Beer Garden. Sometimes I feel like most of Wisconsin and most of the Midwest is here.

- John: So why would they have a grass roof?

- Lars: This is old-world architecture. Keeps the building cooler in the summer. And also keeps it warmer in the winter.

- John: We should all have them!

- Lars: Maintenance is tough, though; I mean, like, you gotta have goats.

- John: Right?

- Lars: These goats come to the roof every day, weather depending.

- So, how do they get there?

- Lars: We have a pickup truck. They jump on the back. We just open this gate. They walk right up the steps.

- John: They know their way?

- Lars: They know their way. But don't they have the best view?

- Oh, my God. And their work life is just 'eat the grass?'

- Lars: Yeah, their work life, they're spoiled. There isn't a better place in the world than Sister Bay, as far as I'm concerned.

[goat bleating]

- I'm on Main Street in Sister Bay. And just so you know, Main Street is also Highway 42, and it's also known as North Bayshore Drive. So, just so you know, North Bayshore Drive, Highway 42, Main Street. They're busy. Do you know where I'm at? Does this help? And I'm in Sister Bay, so where do you think I'm at? Come on! Sister Bay Bowl.

[pins clanking]

- And who started this business? Your family?

- Penny Anschutz: Actually, my grandfather.

- John: Your grandfather started it?

- Well, he bought it in the early forties. And then, my dad graduated as a chiropractor, and he tried to set up shop, but nobody believed in it way back then. So, Grandpa said you can have the Sister Bay Hotel.

- John: So, this was a hotel?

- Penny: Mm-hmm.

- Paula: In '57, Earl said, "Dancing's out," but he put the six lanes in, and it was three leagues, and was super popular.

[bowling ball thuds]

[pins falling]

We would like to keep this as authentic as possible for as long as we can.

- John: Is bowling as important today as your supper club?

- Generations of families have come here and bowled, so it kind of is.

- Paula Anschutz: But really, our supper club, that is, like I said, with everything new coming in around us, that's kind of defined that there's still a want for the supper club-style plate.

- This is my 51st year working here.

[John laughing]

Yes.

- John: Well, happy 51st. So, your daughter is now stepped in.

- It was mostly about letting my mom retire and keeping the business in the family.

[group laughing]

- Well, there's a--

[bowling ball thuds]

- John: Whoops.

[pins collapse]

- Penny: You got a strike?

- John: Okay, well, I'm done.

- Paula: Okay.

[group laughing and clapping]

- Do you want to hear about the Sister Bay-Kennedy connection? I know what you're thinking. "Oh, is it like Hyannis Port?" No, here's the deal. See that mast there? That mast used to be on a ship owned by Aristotle Onassis, who was Jacqueline Kennedy's second husband. So, I just think that this connection's kind of weak; I do. That's like somebody coming up and saying, "Did you know Kevin Bacon has a boat here in Sister Bay?" Yeah.

[gentle guitar music]

We're in front of the Edith M. Becker, and you've been the captain for how long?

- This is my second season up here.

- Do you know Edith Becker? Who is that?

- So, the owner, Peter Nelson: it is his great-grandmother. She came over when she was about six years old on a tall ship. And her family made their home in Sister Bay. And he just wanted to honor her so he named it Edith Becker. 

But we do four, up to five sails a day. It's a very interactive experience. And so, we'll ask her volunteers to raise sail. We have two lines right here that manipulate the control of this sail.

- Like, one person can't do both of these, can they? They can, okay.

- I mean, I can because we've been doing this all summer.

- I am so new here.

- That's okay.

- This is what I was doing.

- Yep, understandable. I mean, I have--

- Most people would, wouldn't they?

- They do, they do.

- Kate Wicks: Yeah. So, it's this, this is really the-- This is really the action right here?

- That's the action, right there.

- How do you prepare to become a captain of a ship of this size?

- I realized I had my sea time after about five years. Part of it was from the Dennis Sullivan, down in Milwaukee.

- John: Oh, really?

- Kate: And then--

- John: Oh, nice.

- Kate: Yeah?

- John: Yeah.

- Kate: And then, I've been all over. I've been to Hawaii. I've transited the Atlantic. Tall ships are my passion.

- John: Yeah.

- Kate: So, to come back to Wisconsin where I originally started--

- John: That's a gift, isn't it?

- Kate: Yeah, mm-hmm.

- Sister Bay hasn't always been its own community. It used to be part of the township of Liberty Grove. Then in 1912, there was a disagreement. Can you guess what issue made Sister Bay want to go solo? 

The issue that made Sister Bay want to go solo? Come on, we're in Wisconsin! The issue was alcohol. Liberty Grove wanted to go dry, and I guess Sister Bay wasn't ready to close out its tab.

Okay, okay, there were issues around roads, as well, but they petitioned to become their own village, and they won. So, cheers to you, Sister Bay!

[playful rock]

If you've ever been to Sister Bay, you know exactly where we are. It's the Wild Tomato. This is Britt Unkefer. How are you, sir?

- Good, nice to see you.

- Good to see you. This is your place?

- It is. I just love the location. I was out on the schooner one night with my two boys and came in. Band was playing in the park. And, like, “This, I wanna be here.” 

I brought in the wood-fired oven. That was my background. I had worked for Wolfgang Puck back, a long time ago, in the early nineties.

- John: Yeah.

- Britt Unkefer: So, pizza always was kind of part of my existence. My dough is a little bit more of a West Coast dough, but our pizza dough has a little more structure than his. It's not too bad. I've seen worse.

- I'm gonna retire!

[John and Britt laughing]

- And then, you're gonna pick it up.

- Okay.

- There you go. It's not too bad.

- Oh.

- Because it's Wisconsin, we put a lot of toppings on. We have to. So it's, that's just it.

- So, these don't take long in here, do they?

- Not at all. Only about six, seven minutes.

- Six, seven minutes?

- Britt: Yep.

- John: And is it all about the placement?

- It is.

- So, what's the trick?

- We start in the back a little bit. We'll rotate it a few times out to the front.

- John: And do they have to be rotated?

- Britt: Every two minutes, roughly.

- John: Every two minutes.

- And there we go.

- Look at that. Was this mine, or was this yours?

- You can claim that one if you want.

- It's not, is it?

- It's not.

[John and Britt laughing]

Oh, here comes my bad one.

- Yours still looks good.

- So it's 9:30 in the morning, and we just finished making, and now we're having pizza for breakfast. There is nothing wrong with that, yeah. To you!

- Cheers.

- Thanks.

- Thanks.

- Now, I want to work here, or live here, or eat here. Oh, so good! 

Yum! Cherry Pie. This is one of Door County's favorites. And I heard that this is one of the best. We're at Seaquist Orchards. It's a family business. They've had a farm since the early 1900s, and now they have over 1,000 acres of cherry trees. So, I think maybe I should have a little taste, is what I think I should do. Cherry pie.

[John chuckles]

This is delicious. This is Door County cherry pie from Sequist's. It is one of the best. Mm-hmm. 

People come to your shop in town, of course. And do they, are they ever, like, "Can I come visit the farm?"

- Jesse Johnson: All the time.

- Oh, they do--

- All the time. We do tours, usually, in some capacity, every year. It may just be hanging out with the goats, or walking with the goats, or actually seeing the farm. 

My background is cooking throughout, you know, the world. We had restaurants, as well, growing up. So, food was always in my background. 

And so, I had found myself in Avignon, France, and spent some time on a little goat farm. I said, "Someday, I'm gonna make cheese and drink wine." And so, eventually, I convinced Rachael to get a couple goats, and you know, sold her this story of the Avignon countryside.

- John: Yeah.

- I haven't been there yet.

[Rachael laughing]

- Did it take convincing to get the first 10?

[goats bleating]

- Rachael: Ah, not too much.

- John: No.

- You know, Jesse would just, he kind of would nonchalantly say, "You know, we should just get some goats, and you should make some cheese." You know, and again, it sounded really romantic. And so, I trusted that we could do it together.

- You are so pretty.

- Rachael: So we brought these 10 goats back, and converted the barn, and put a milking parlor in.

- John: And they're milked how many times a day?

- [Jesse and Rachael in unison] Twice a day.

- John: Twice a day. So, they're fed as they're being milked.

- Rachael: Correct.

- And that's a motivation, no doubt.

- Rachael: Yes. They literally will eat until they die.

- John: So goat-like, I--

- Rachael: You've got a lot of similarities. You never knew, huh?

- Jesse: So, that milk will come from the farm directly into the cheese vat right here.

- That's really good. That's, that's delicious. And it couldn't be any fresher, could it?

- No.

- No. That milk was on the farm two days ago.

- I met that goat today.

- Yeah.

- Jesse: You met that goat.

- It's unbelievable.

- You did.

- This is, this is from Sassy, I think.

[goat bleating]

[food sizzling]

- The Jamaican Door is a combination of the two of us and the Jamaica.

- I was gonna guess.

[Georgina and Carlin Hatch laughing]

- And the Door!

- Carlin: I'm the Door, yes.

- Born and raised in Door County.

- Nice.

- So, when I came here, it was pretty hard to find anything that was seasoned to my liking.

- John: Yeah.

- You know? So, I introduced him to the Jamaican jerk sauce. 

And then we decided, "Well, let's make it a business." So The Jamaican Door was born at that time.

- And Jamaican Door deals with products, and it also deals with pop-up kitchens, is what I understand.

- Yep, yep.

[coals tumbling]

- John: And we happen to be here on the night where you have a pop-up kitchen.

- Carlin: Yeah, we're doing some jerk chicken tonight. I do all the manual labor.

- Georgina: And I make sure, as much as he doesn't like it, I make sure that the recipe stays authentic, yeah.

- John: And did your family have a recipe for this? Did you create a recipe?

- Georgina: My brother-in-law.

- John: Really?

- He's the chef of the family.

- Nice.

- So he's the one that I call up. I'm like, "O'Neil, I need a recipe for this or that."

- John: Where do you source the stuff and--

- Carlin: Well, about sourcing: we get all our pimento-- That all comes from Georgina's uncle's farm in St. Elizabeth, Jamaica.

- And you guys met here?

- Georgina: Yes.

- You met on that dance floor at the corner place, right?

- Georgina and Carlin: Yeah.

- Remember at the bar? And I made my way to the dance floor, and--

- She was-- You were impressed!

- I was just impressed that these white boys were keeping up with us. You know, it was five Jamaican girls of us, and it was impressive.

- John: This'll bring people in-- just the smell-- won't it?

- Georgina: Just the smell, yes.

- Carlin: Yeah.

- Georgina: Any day, you'll hear people say, "Oh, I just followed my nose here."

[Georgina laughing]

- Carlin: They say it just like that, too.

- That was so--

- Carlin: That's her politest white lady accent.

- It's good, mon.

- Carlin: That's good, mon. There you go. That was a vast improvement. Slice the roll for me.

- Georgina: And then, the magic: the cherry jerk.

- John: Right there.

- Georgina: On top.

- Ooh, that's good.

- Carlin: Yeah.

- Master chef.

- Thank you, yeah.

- Thank you.

- Learned from the best.

- Who taught you?

- My beautiful wife.

- Here we go.

[Georgina laughing]

- Did you know that Door County has more miles of shoreline, more rare plants and animals than any other county in the state of Wisconsin? 

And you know, you can experience all of that right here at Three Springs Nature Preserve. It's in Sister Bay, and it's off the beaten path. 

[cheerful guitar]

We're here at a place called Hidden Acres Farm, and we're here for one reason: Aronia berries. Have you heard of them?

- So, they are native to North America. They are a super-fruit. They don't taste the best on their own.

- They don't. They dry up your mouth like--

- They do.

-  Yeah.

- Amber Hamilton: A lot of people call 'em chokeberries. So, I mean—
[laughs]

- I get it.

- Ryan Bergner: But when we mask them into a smoothie or a baked good, or a sauce or syrup, we can make 'em taste delicious, and they're really good for you.

- John: What are your responsibilities?

- Amber: We have a large garden plat up top, and that's where we do all of our produce for our farm stand.

- Gardner: Today, we are harvesting shishito peppers, eggplant--

- John: Those look fake. How gorgeous are these?

- Ryan Bergner: They're really nice.

- John: Look at this.

- Ryan: They're doing really well now.

- Amber: And then, also, we service about a dozen restaurants in the community.

- This is our processing room on the right half. Everything that goes from the garden comes down into here, cleaned, processed, cooler or freezer. And then, on the left half, is the event space.

- Amber: So, we do a couple different events throughout the season. Door County Underground, once a month, here, they do farm-to-table-type dinners.

- So, the community garden, 26 beds. When we have somebody sign up to water the gardens, they'll come and water, you know, all 26 beds and pick a little, take a little.

- Amber: You'll see there's a couple signs in each bed. That says, "It's ready to be picked." Or some beds say, "Wait a little while."

-  John: I was raised in the city.

[group laughing]

Are you surprised so far?

- Horseradish comes from the grocery store?

- I'm like, wow. This what it looks like?! It's really so wrong.

- Ryan: Right?

- The real goal of John McGivern's Main Streets is to strengthen and build goodwill in communities. I want to educate, amuse, and engage all of the people we touch. I wanna foster lasting connections in each place because that creates unity and progress. 

I want this show to encourage tourism and have a positive economic impact on each of the Main Streets we feature. Okay, this is not a travel infomercial. Communities do not pay to be featured on my show because that would mean you would only see communities that can afford to pay. 

That's where you come in. Your support will allow us to help all communities connect and grow, and we'll all learn something. And trust me, we're gonna have some fun along the way.

[folksy guitar music]