Park’s Pearl, a quaint brick home built in 1911 in Sturgeon Bay, is part of this year’s Door County Medical Center House & Garden Walk on July 25.
DOOR COUNTY – Many people passing those homes on the Peninsula that look so spectacular, interesting, perhaps historic from the outside, likely often say to themselves, “I wonder what it looks like inside.”
Now, you can check out five of those spectacular and interesting places and help improve mental health care in Door County at the same time.
Those come together when the Door County Medical Center Auxiliary, the health care organization’s volunteer group, sponsors its 62nd annual House & Garden Walk on July 25. Throughout the day, volunteers lead tours of five selected homes and gardens − they’re different every year − in what is the biggest fundraiser the auxiliary conducts for the medical center.
What homes can we see?
Opening their doors for the walk this year are:
Park’s Pearl, 119 S. Eighth Ave., Sturgeon Bay: Likely one of the cozier structures featured on the walk, this quaint white brick home was built in 1911 and had additions in the 1930s, ’40s and ’90, including a three-season porch. It features steep intersecting gables, corner quoins and arched windows, and a major renovation by the new owners who bought it in 2018 reuses the existing woodwork to mimic details found in the original house.
Sawyer Harbor Lookout, 4441 Bay Shore Drive, Sturgeon Bay: This contemporary-style home built in 2019 overlooks the waters of Sawyer Harbor and offers views of the cliffs of Potawatomi State Park, Sherwood Point Lighthouse and the bay of Green Bay. Designed with the theme of “bringing the outside in,” it includes floor-to-ceiling windows, an open concept, an open fireplace including stonework and metalwork, and a three-story floating staircase intended as the focal point of the home.
Woodlands, 6587 Bay Shore Drive, Sturgeon Bay: Woods and the bay waterfront are the setting for this 20-year-old Italian Provincial home that includes art collected on trips around the world, a custom needlepoint rug featuring local flowers, a large armoire that serves as a bar, a patio with a spa, a 1920s Italian water fountain and a lower-level pavilion on the water’s edge. The surrounding gardens were designed using local plants in a European country plan.
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Woodwalk Gallery and Home, 6746 County G, Egg Harbor: Many original features (such as beams, trim and kitchen siding) remain in the 2.5-story, 2,200-square-foot Cream City brick house and dairy barn that were both built around 1908 on the 10-acre property. The barn was converted into an art gallery that exhibits the work of about 95 artists and hosts intimate concerts and gatherings, while the gardens are home to many perennials and the meadows showcase a variety of wildflowers.
A 2.5-story, Cream City brick home and a dairy barn now converted to an art gallery, both originally built around 1908, are featured at Woodwalk Gallery and Home, part of this year’s Door County Medical Center House & Garden Walk on July 25.
Lake Michigan Contemporary, 3884 Glidden Drive, Sturgeon Bay: This 3,400-square-foot home is a contemporary reinterpretation of the home that previously stood on the site. Described as a home “where nature is invited indoors,” it features 10-foot-tall glass walls allowing views of Lake Michigan and an exterior of masonry stucco, ebony-stained horizontal cedar and Lannon stone salvaged from the original home. The landscape combines native plants with a structured hardscape of linear design.
The funds go to …
Funds raised by the House & Garden Walk in its past 61 years have gone to DCMC for an educational conference center, dental clinic, inpatient services, the purchase of medical equipment and an emergency room addition. Proceeds from the 2022 event allowed the auxiliary to complete a $250,000 commitment to the Pete & Jelaine Horton Skilled Nursing Facility at DCMC.
For this year, proceeds will go toward the medical center’s plan to strengthen and expand its Behavioral Health Program. The number of cases of issues like depression, anxiety, and drug and alcohol abuse have risen dramatically for all ages in recent years, and health care systems across the state and country struggle to find and retain qualified mental health professionals.
The situation is especially notable in Door County, DCMC Behavioral Health Coordinator Barb Johnson-Giese said.
“Access to behavioral health services in our community is a significant issue,” Johnson-Giese said in a news release. “In Door County, the ratio of population to mental health providers is 715 to 1. The ratio in the state of Wisconsin is currently 440 to 1, which ranks 34th in the nation.”
An art collection from around the world and a pavilion on the water’s edge are among the highlights of Woodlands, an Italian Provincial home in Sturgeon Bay that’s part of this year’s Door County Medical Center House & Garden Walk on July 25.
The center said in the news release it put together a comprehensive strategy to strengthen and expand the program, with the DCMC Foundation setting a goal of raising $3 million to make it come to fruition. The plan includes:
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Expanding behavioral health services to all school districts in Door County and Algoma;
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Providing at least one full-time behavioral health provider in each clinic location with dedicated space;
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Expanding its Senior Life Solutions and Substance Use Disorder services;
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Increasing the availability of services by hiring full-time psychologists and psychiatrists and establishing a telepsychiatry program in the emergency department;
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And increasing the acceptance of behavioral health treatment with an extensive public relations campaign.
Those who aren’t able to participate in House & Garden Walk but want to contribute to the effort can visit dcmedical.org/foundation/behavioral-health-program to make a donation and find more information.
Know before you go
The House & Garden Walk takes place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. July 25. Tickets are $40 through July 24, $45 the day of the walk. The homes are not accessible to those with accessibility challenges.
Tickets can be purchased online, at each of the homes the day of the event, in the gift shop at DCMC in Sturgeon Bay, and at Nicolet Bank branches in Sturgeon Bay (main branch), Luxemburg and Kewaunee; Door County Coffee & Tea in Carlsville; Destination Door County or Bliss at the Marketplace, both in Sturgeon Bay; Island Fever in Jacksonport; Main Street Market in Egg Harbor; or Jerry’s Flowers in Sister Bay. All purchases must be by cash or check unless buying online.
The auxiliary recommends that guests can begin at any of the featured homes but move to another if the first choice is too busy. Guests will be asked to wear booties over their shoes to protect the homes, keep the booties and use them throughout the day. Questions while touring the homes are welcome, but photos cannot be taken inside them.
For online ticket purchases or more information, visit doorcountyhouseandgardenwalk.com.
Contact Christopher Clough at 920-562-8900 or cclough@doorcountyadvocate.com.
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This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Tour Door County homes and gardens, help improve mental health care
