Much like their colleagues in Kewaunee County, the challenge of recruiting and retaining high-quality employees is one of the issues the four candidates running for Door County sheriff would like to tackle if elected in November.

 

Republican candidates Curt Vandertie and Carl Waterstreet, Democratic candidate and incumbent Sheriff Tammy Sternard, and independent candidate Randy Wagner all mentioned staffing as one of the biggest challenges facing the Door County Sheriff's Department and other law enforcement agencies. Waterstreet paired that challenge with the budget, adding that the department has to be creative to fill roles without increasing the burden on taxpayers.

 

 

Vandertie says one of the strongest foundations of any organization is its people, adding that improving the culture within the department can help attract new recruits.

 

 

Sternard recognizes the challenges she has faced hiring new deputies and jail staff, saying the department needs to become more aware of what is happening and determine what it needs to do differently.

 

 

Wagner says promoting a culture of personal growth could be key to retaining more staff and attracting new hires.

 

 

Vandertie and Waterstreet will face each other in the Aug. 11 Republican primary, while Sternard will be unopposed in the Democratic primary. The winners will join Wagner on the ballot for the Nov. 3 general election.

 

You can listen to all four candidate interviews on our podcast page and watch their candidate forum with the League of Women Voters of Door County below.

 

 

Multiple agencies are searching for two kayakers who went missing near Wickman Drive on Washington Island Saturday night.
Washington Island police, fire and ambulance personnel were called to the area at approximately 6:50 p.m. Emergency personnel were told the two missing kayakers went out without life jackets. Crews conducted their own search operations until nearly 10 p.m.
The United States Coast Guard then took over the search, conducting operations until 2:30 a.m. The Coast Guard resumed the search at 7:30 a.m. before suspending operations at 10:45 a.m.
Search operations have since continued with assistance from the Washington Island Fire Department, Egg Harbor Fire Department, Ephraim Fire Department, Sister Bay/Liberty Grove Fire Department, Gibraltar K-9 Search Team and Jacksonport Fire Department, along with the Gibraltar Police Department, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Door County Sheriff’s Office and Door County Emergency Management.
Crews are searching for a 20-year-old man who is approximately 5 feet, 11 inches tall and weighs 195 pounds. He was last known to be wearing khaki shorts and has brown hair.
The woman is 20 years old and is described as 5 feet, 1 inch tall and weighing 95 pounds, with brown hair. She was possibly wearing a teal or red/pink swimsuit.
Washington Island Police Chief Gary Schultz says search operations will continue until further notice. More information will be released when it becomes available.

You can play a bigger role in helping pet owners find their furry best friends when they go missing.

 

The Door County Scottie Rally announced Wednesday that its lost pet microchip scanning station is now open for use in Baileys Harbor. A first of its kind in northeast Wisconsin, the station is located on the north side of the Town Hall building near the fire station, where people can use it 24/7 to help connect lost pets with their owners.

 

Door County Scottie Rally President Michele Geiger-Bronsky says she read about a similar station being installed elsewhere in the country and felt it would be a good fit for an area that sees its fair share of dogs and other pets that either call Door County home or come along with their owners on vacation.

 

 

The sign attached to the station has step-by-step instructions on how to scan a pet, along with additional resources and information to help Good Samaritans reunite pet owners with their animals.

 

The station is just a small part of the philanthropy shown by the Door County Scottie Rally, which attracts dozens of dogs from around the country to Baileys Harbor for its annual spring event. Since 2001, the organization has donated more than $648,000 to Scottish Terrier health research and Scottie rescue while also supporting other pet-related causes in Door County.

 

Picture courtesy of Door County Scottie Rally

For the second time in three years, you will be able to enjoy the music of Johnny Cash with bayside views at Peninsula Players Theatre in Fish Creek.

 

Starring Aja Alcazar, Joe Casey, Trevor Lindley Craft, James David Larson and Paul Wyatt, Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash uses more than two dozen of Cash's songs to bring the spirit of the Man in Black to the stage.

 

Last year, it was the Broadway hit Million Dollar Quartet that brought the story of Cash to the stage as part of an ensemble featuring Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis. Speaking before the season, Artistic Director Linda Fortunato said it was exciting to highlight Cash's song catalog once again.

 

 

Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash runs Tuesdays through Saturdays through Aug. 16.

Plants shape the character of Door County. From white cedars clinging to the Niagara Escarpment and sugar maples shading forest trails to native wildflowers brightening meadows and wetlands, plants provide food, shelter, beauty, and the foundation for every ecosystem. This week’s Summer at Crossroads theme, Plants, invites visitors to discover the remarkable lives of plants and the important role native species have played in Door County’s natural history.

 

The week begins with a Tale. At 2 pm on Monday, August 10, enjoy “Plants Can’t Sit Still,” written by Rebecca E. Hirsch and illustrated by Mia Posada read aloud. This engaging story reveals the surprising ways plants move, from sunflowers tracking the sun to seeds traveling on the wind, water, and wildlife. Through colorful illustrations and fascinating examples, readers will discover that plants are far more active than they might appear. For those unable to attend Story Time, the book will also be featured on our Trail Tales storybook walk all week long beginning at the West Trailhead.

 

At 1 pm on Tuesday, August 11, Journeys with Joan will explore Finding Fossils. Naturalist Joan Wilkie will guide participants in discovering how ancient plants and animals from a long-vanished sea became the fossils we find throughout Door County today. As participants learn about life hundreds of millions of years ago, they will gain a deeper appreciation for the historic landscapes that came before.

 

On Wednesday, August 12, at 1:30 pm, participants in Wandering Wednesday will join a naturalist-led hike focused on the plants that make Crossroads unique. August is an excellent time to observe native wildflowers, woodland plants, and wetland vegetation. Along the trail, hikers may encounter species such as goldenrod, asters, jewelweed, and native grasses while learning how these plants support pollinators, birds, and other wildlife. Participants will also explore how Door County’s soils, geology, and proximity to both Green Bay and Lake Michigan create conditions that support a rich diversity of plant life.

 

The week concludes with a special Thursday Talk at 2 pm on August 13. Dina Boettcher and Ruth Wasson of the Door County Master Gardeners Association will present Heritage Garden, a guided tour and discussion of the Heritage Garden at Heritage Village at Big Creek. Participants will discover how plants were traditionally grown and used by early Door County settlers for food, medicine, and household purposes. The program will highlight heritage plant varieties, period-inspired garden design, and the practical ways families worked with the land and seasons to sustain themselves. Through storytelling, gardening knowledge, and hands-on observation, visitors will gain a deeper appreciation for how plants connect history, culture, and sustainability.

 

Throughout the week—and all summer long—visitors can also enjoy Tinkers, our self-led, hands-on activities designed for curious minds. Guests can investigate seeds, leaves, flowers, and plant adaptations while exploring the many ways plants grow, reproduce, and interact with the world around them.

 

Plants may seem rooted in place, but they are dynamic and essential members of every ecosystem. They capture sunlight, produce oxygen, stabilize soil, provide habitat, and nourish countless forms of life. In Door County, native plants help define the peninsula’s distinctive landscapes, from shoreline bluffs and cedar forests to wetlands and prairies. By learning more about the plants that surround us, we gain a deeper understanding of the natural communities that make Door County such a special place.

 

Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we can offer free programming for all ages, and our trails are open all day, every day, free of charge.

 

Monday, August 10

2:00 pm Tale: “Plants Can’t Sit Still”

Join us as our weekly story, Plants Can’t Sit Still written by Rebecca E. Hirsch and illustrated by Mia Posada, is read aloud.

 

You might be surprised by all ways plants can move. Plants might not pick up their roots and walk away, but they don’t sit still! Discover the many ways plants (and their seeds) move. Whether it’s a sunflower, a Venus flytrap, or an exotic plant like an exploding cucumber, this fascinating picture book shows just how excitingly active plants really are. Meet at the Collins Learning Center, Crossroads at Big Creek, 2041 Michigan Street, Sturgeon Bay. 

 

Tuesday, August 11

1:00 pm Journeys with Joan – Finding Fossils

Join our naturalist, Joan Wilkie, for free family-oriented activities exploring nature!

Discover how plants and animals from an ancient sea transformed into the fossils we find at Crossroads. Registration is not required. Open to the public and free thanks to donors like you! Meet at the Collins Learning Center, Crossroads at Big Creek, 2041 Michigan Street, Sturgeon Bay. 

 

Wednesday, August 12

1:30 pm Wandering Wednesday

Join a naturalist-led hike. Easy walking. About an hour. Well-behaved dogs allowed on leash. Registration is not required. Open to the public and free. Meet at the Collins Learning Center, Crossroads at Big Creek, 2041 Michigan Street, Sturgeon Bay.

 

Thursday, August 13

2:00 pm Talk: Heritage Garden

Step back in time and discover how gardens once shaped daily life in Door County! Join Dina Boettcher and Ruth Wasson of the Door County Master Gardeners Association for a guided tour and discussion of the Heritage Garden at Heritage Village at Big Creek, part of the Door County Historical Foundation.

 

This special program will explore how plants were traditionally grown and used for food, medicine, and household purposes, offering insight into the practical and cultural importance of historic gardening practices. Dina and Ruth will highlight heritage plant varieties, period?inspired garden design, and the ways early settlers worked in harmony with the land and seasons.

 

Through storytelling, plant knowledge, and hands?on observation, participants will gain a deeper appreciation for how gardens connect history, culture, and sustainability. Whether you’re interested in gardening, local history, or both, this program brings the past to life through the plants that sustained it.

 

Join us for a stroll through history and discover how heritage gardens preserve stories, skills, and seeds for future generations. Meet at Heritage Garden at Heritage Village (across from the Collins Learning Center), 2041 Michigan Street, Sturgeon Bay.

Birch Creek Music Performance Center is not the only place in Door County where you will be able to tap your toes to jazz music next week.

 

The Door County Jazz Festival returns for its second year, kicking off with a documentary screening Sunday before six straight days of free concerts across the peninsula, including gigs in Ephraim, Fish Creek, Sister Bay, Baileys Harbor and Sturgeon Bay.

 

This year, the festival is celebrating the music of Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Tony Bennett, with musicians including the Aaron Hedenstrom Quintet, The Harmon Brothers, Aubrey Johnson, Alyssa Allgood and Paul Marinaro helping to fill the bill.

 

Bringing a jazz festival to Door County has been a dream come true for organizer Staci Griesbach, who hopes the event and its accompanying Door County Jazz Foundation continue to grow.

 

 

The shows are free to attend, but the Door County Jazz Foundation will take up a special collection to support United Way Fox Cities as it assists the community following Monday's tornado in Appleton and Menasha.

 

You can learn more about the Door County Jazz Festival on our podcast page.

I just returned from my annual training exercise with the Wisconsin National Guard. The ability to serve my country and state at this point in my life remains one of my greatest honors, as well as one of my greatest challenges. I am privileged to serve among some of the finest men and women, and I hope they learn as much from me as I do from them.

 

One of the activities we engaged in during our time was land navigation. This is one of my favorite basic warrior tasks because it has not changed a great deal over time, regardless of advances in technology. While so many of us automatically revert to our smartphones and the navigation programs they provide, our military training takes us back to the basics with a compass, map, and protractor. We also work as a team, with one person focused on the compass and another focused on the distance. For any of you who know me or have read any of my articles, you know by now that I am about to turn this into an exercise in life lessons, so here we go.

 

The first step in any navigation is knowing where you are, or as we call it, acclimation. This may be easy when holding a map, but it can get a little tricky when we are navigating life, especially in the early part of our journey. This process of personal "acclimation" is one of soul-searching to know who we have been, who we are, and who we hope to be. Once we answer these foundational questions, we can then determine our direction of travel. In land navigation, we base this direction on what is called "magnetic north." In life's journey, we need to base it on our "moral north."

 

Each of us has our own moral north. It is built upon our foundational beliefs, values, traditions, and virtues. Every step we take and every decision we make must first be aligned with that moral north. If not, we will undoubtedly go off course and languish in a reality that may have presented itself as the easier path but ultimately did not align with our moral north. Just as in land navigation, once you are off course, your probability of success quickly diminishes. Although you may strike out on a direction that is a certain number of degrees off magnetic north, that new direction is still based on the foundation of the original bearing. The same is true in life and in our need to maintain an adherence to—and relationship with—our own moral north, regardless of the many easy paths that tempt us along the journey.

 

The second component of land navigation is the need for a pacer. This person establishes a pace count per 100 meters, which allows you to determine how far you have traveled and how much farther you must go on your journey. This is important because not knowing runs the risk of either overshooting your destination or coming up short. Either way, you miss your target. In life, we would call this goal-setting. We need to set our goals at a level that is both challenging and reasonable. If we set our goals too close, no real gain is made. However, if we set our goals too far in the distance, we risk making them unattainable.

 

At each point on the map, we pause and set our compass for the next leg of the journey. It is at this time that we verify we are, in fact, still on course because, if we are not, every step moving forward will also be off course. In life, we must do the same. We must pause and take stock of our journey thus far, making sure that we have not compromised our moral north and that we are, in fact, still "on course" in life's journey.

 

There are so many temptations in life that cause us either to violate our moral north or, in some cases, to drift just a few degrees from our intended direction. In both cases, we must have the discipline to first know our moral north, then chart a path in accordance with it, and finally resist straying from it. Each is a deliberate and conscious decision.

 

For those of you just getting started on this amazing journey of life, I offer the following advice: Know who you are and what you stand for, and don't violate your moral north for anyone or anything. And finally, when given the choice, follow the path less traveled.