September 2022

Dear Phil,

Wow! What a whirlwind August! 

I have had the best time meeting new people, seeing people I already know, and experiencing such diverse events and offerings throughout the County! 

To participate in our iconic Cana Island Lighthouse reopening was truly inspirational! The hard work that everyone has put into the refurbishing is incredible. From our performing arts venues and meetings with Brian Kelsey at Peninsula Players and Holly Feldman at Northern Sky Theatre to our artists' galleries (if you haven’t stopped and strolled through the sculpture gardens at Edgewood Orchard Galleries it is a must!) and hearing my neighbors talk about Write On, Door County and Door Shakespeare in such glowing terms, I can’t wait to see more! 

The Sister Bay Fine Arts Festival was busy even with the bit of rain we had that Saturday, and the Sister Bay Advancement Association did an amazing job. I had my first taste of Door County Creamery gelato! If you haven’t tried it yet, you really need to!

Birch Creek Big Band Jazz Concert was incredible! To hear the students play at the level of sophistication that they did was remarkable, and then to hear the artists in residence play the rest of the evening with downtown jazz club quality from Quincy Jones to Big Band sounds reminiscent of Count Basie and Frank Sinatra was truly amazing to hear and see the level of talent the entire evening.

I learned how to prepare “Global Street Eats” at Savory Spoon Cooking School in Ellison Bay and I encourage you to see the classes they offer. It was so much fun, and I met people from all over the County! Chef Janice was patient with me which I was very grateful for…as I am not the best cook…yet. 

Julie L. Gilbert CDME CTP

President & CEO

Destination Door County

Julie@DoorCounty.com

Julie Gilbert, President & CEO - DDC

Michelle Lawrie, Executive Director - DCEDC

Ken Pabich, County Administrator - Door County

Sara Pabich, Chaperone

Press Trip Update

We welcomed 11 travel journalists to Door County for a recent media visit, August 28-31. They experienced a wide variety of activities while they were here, from Southern Door to Washington Island. One of those activities included lunch at Al Johnson’s in Sister Bay followed by a special meet-and-greet with their famous goats on the roof, as seen in the photo below:

Since our press trip program began in 2007, we have generated more than 2,600 articles about Door County, reaching an audience of more than 6.2 billion people and earning a media value of $36.3 million for our destination. We have 3 more press trips scheduled this year, including trips in September, October and December. If you would like more information how your business can participate in press trips, please contact Jen Rogers at jen@doorcounty.com

Save The Date

Destination Door County invites you to our 97th Annual Meeting at The Alpine Resort on Tuesday, October 18. Invite and registration to follow in the next few weeks.

Fall Tree Giveaway

For the month of September, Destination Door County is teaming up with the Climate Change Coalition of Door County for a fall tree giveaway.

Catch DDC & CCC at the following farm markets & fests this September to pick up your FREE tree along with other Door County swag - trees will be first come first serve each day and will come with planting instructions.

• Saturday, September 10th @ Sturgeon Bay Farmers Market
• Sunday, September 18th @ Baileys Harbor Farm Market
• Saturday, September 24th @ Baileys Harbor Autumnfest
• Sunday, September 25th @ Baileys Harbor Farm Market

Bonus: When you get your tree in the ground, be sure to tag @doorcounty & @climatechangedoorcounty - we can't wait to see where you put down your roots!

Care for Door County T-Shirt Campaign

We’re excited to announce the launch of our Care for Door County t-shirt campaign to benefit the Door County Green Fund. T-shirts are $20 each and are available in two colors. The best part? ALL proceeds benefit the Door County Community Foundation’s Green Fund, which invests in environmental education, funds land preservation, protects native species and supports other types of “green” projects in Door County. This is a great way to give back to the community while supporting the Care for Door County initiative.

Learn More

We need a current Internet Speed test for every home and business in Door County.  This information will be used to update county broadband service maps with accurate readings of internet speeds being delivered to each premise. If a property does not have access to wired broadband or relies on premium wireless or satellite services to access the internet, it is vital that your situation is considered by taking a moment to complete the above survey.  And, if you have  friends or neighbors without affordable broadband internet access, please help them report their lack of service by completing a survey as well.

HOW IS BROADBAND DEFINED?  In 2015 the FCC defined “broadband” as internet service with download speeds of at least 25 megabits per second (or Mbps) and upload speeds of at least 3 Mbps. The FCC is proposing to change the outdated standard to a minimum download speed of 100 Mbps and 20 Mbps for upload. 

We need all residents, property, and business owners to participate in this survey to show what internet services are in place in the County. It is projected to cost $140 million for Fiber to the Premise in Door County. It is critical for us to obtain as much Federal and State funding as possible and not leave anyone behind. Every survey completed can help:

1. The State obtain more federal funding for Fiber.
2. The County and Municipalities qualify and apply for more State and Federal grants to help pay for Fiber to the premise.

We need you to complete this short 10-minute survey that includes an internet speed test from your home or business (or both) at fibernetdoorcounty.org.