John McGivern’s Main Streets

- We're in the RV capital, really, of the world.

It makes more than 50% of the RVs in the world.

This area, right here.

- "John McGivern's Main Streets" thanks the following underwriters: - Remember when the American dream was being able to say, "I made that.

I built that."

Wouldn't it be great if your kids and grandkids chose a career that provides that kind of pride with good pay, but without a ton of student loan debt?

A four-year degree isn't the only path to success.

We need talented people to make and build on Main Streets everywhere.

Skilled work isn't a thing of the past.

It's a bright future.

- To the unknown I'm on my way Oh, it's time to hit the road I'm on my way This is the freedom I live for [bright music] [pleasant music] - In southeastern Wisconsin, there's a village... With something for everyone.

It's everywhere you look.

On every street, behind any door you open.

And we want to share it with you.

You just gotta see Greendale.

- Additional funding is provided by the Friends of Plum Media and the Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Thanks, friends!

- 'Cause these are our main streets Something about 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 - I'm in Goshen, Indiana, which is a town with a population of 35,000 people.

It's on the edge of Amish Country.

In fact, Goshen is the manufacturing hub that relies on Amish craftsmanship to help build their products.

It's also known for Goshen College and a thriving Hispanic community.

Goshen is in Elkhart County on the northern border of Indiana.

It's about 25 miles southeast of South Bend and 50 miles northwest of Fort Wayne.

Emmy, we're in Goshen, Indiana.

– Emmy Fink: I love it.

- Yeah.

Let's talk about the name 'Goshen.'

People may have heard of it, but let's talk about the history of the name.

- So, the Land of Goshen might be familiar from the Bible.

Now, the Yankee settlers who founded this area, they actually identified with the Israelites from the Old Testament.

- Yes, because in the Old Testament, this was the Israelites' first land of freedom.

So, when they settled here, it kind of mirrored what happened in the Bible for them, so Goshen II.

- I like that take, for sure.

And you know, you mentioned RVs.

Here, in fact, it's nicknamed 'the RV Capital of the World.'

We've seen 'em all over the place.

- Yeah.

- That goes all the way back to the 1930s and a gentleman named Wilbur Schultz.

He bought a small trailer company.

Ten years later, he was such a marketing whiz, he was the leader in his industry.

- It's unbelievable.

I think we deserve an RV for next season, traveling the Midwest.

I think we should go look for an RV.

- Wow!

- Good idea, yes?

- Best show idea yet!

- Ever!

The RV Hall of Fame is about eight minutes from here, but why would I go there when I'm here and I can see how they're built?

Come on!

We're in the yard where it all begins here at Dynamax.

- We are.

- Forest River really is the company that has Dynamax in the area where half of the RVs in the world are built.

– Brian Clemens: Well, in the U.S.. - In the U.S.. - 85% are built in what we call 'the Michiana region,' which is the Southern Michigan/ Northern Indiana region.

- Here is the beginning of a Class C RV.

- All the C stands for-- It's the cab chassis.

So when it comes in, it's the front cab and an empty rail.

That's it.

- Yeah.

Is there a typical buyer for any of these?

- Typically, a motor home is something you work up to.

So you're in a tent camper... - From a tent, yeah.

- From a pop-up, then you're in a travel trailer.

COVID changed all of that.

- Really?

- And so, we had people who have never camped before in their life that are buying our biggest, most expensive vehicle, and they're first-time campers, which keeps me awake at night sometimes because there's a lot to know.

Like, you're buying a vehicle, you're buying a house, you're buying a power generation system, a sewer system... solar system-- Like, there's a lot.

- Yeah.

- What's interesting about RVs is they're built inside out.

So, unlike a house, where you might put the walls on then build everything in, we build the insides first.

- Is this the bedroom?

- This will be the bed.

- And this is the water tank.

It's got, like, 95 gallons of fresh water on board.

So after everything is up and running...

They'll then bring the walls in and the roof.

So they'll come through, and they'll paint everything.

We have some that are four-stage masked, so they'll do this about four times after first color.

- Wow.

- Every vehicle we build typically comes with anywhere from one to three slide outs.

So when the bed slide comes in, this platform here will touch against the drawers.

Most of our M2s come with... - Shut up with this.

- The washer/dryer option.

- Bathroom; again, Corian, solid surface.

- Yeah.

- That'll give you an idea of what it looks like with the slides in.

And you can see everything's pretty much usable.

Fridge is accessible, the bathroom's accessible.

- I traded it in my SUV, yeah.

[toots horn] [laughter] - Sitting here at 101 North Main Street, you'll find the Elkhart County Courthouse.

It was built in 1870 and redesigned in the early 1900s to the beautiful Renaissance style that you see today.

You may be wondering why Goshen is the county seat here when there's a larger city named Elkhart.

Well, if you look on a map, you'll see that Goshen is smack dab in the center of the county.

Location, location, location.

- So, you know I ride a scooter, and you know, someone who rides a scooter, you know what they dream of in the middle of the night?

Take a look.

Ohh.

[edgy rock music] - Richard Worsham: It started off as two guys in the back of this building.

We didn't have the whole building, kind of in a garage, just building one bike to pay for the next bike.

This is really what put us on the map.

This DNA here, this fuel tank, this aesthetic.

You know, we've built about 1,000 of these, and I don't think any one of them is exactly the same.

- Really?

- There's just so many possibilities you can do.

- Yeah.

- It's designed specifically for country, twisty roads, or urban travel.

It's not designed for the Interstate.

- Janus, how'd that name come about?

- Janus is the Roman god of beginnings and ends.

He's usually represented with two faces, one looking to the past and one to the future and we really felt like that's what our bikes are trying to do, - Yeah.

- So of the perfect representation for us.

We encourage our owners to do service work on them themselves and maintenance work.

The carburetor, you can just take it apart and clean it, and put it back together.

There it is and you're good to go.

We have videos on all that stuff.

- People who buy your bikes, what are they used to riding and why do they come to you?

- I can't really tell you the typical owner because they're so eclectic.

New riders--a lot of people that want something a little different in their stable.

- And you're in Goshen, Indiana.

- Yeah, Goshen.

- What is it about this?

- I didn't know where Goshen was.

We kinda found Goshen through riding.

And then because of where our vendors are-- welding, laser cutting, any machine shops, every dotted, every square mile.

It just all kind of coalesced.

There's also a big Amish community willing to work with two guys that wanted frames made, for example.

I don't think we could do what we do anywhere else.

- They're really beautiful, these motorcycles you have coming out of that back room.

- That back room.

Thank you very much!

- If only.

And I found it in Goshen, Indiana.

I am outside the Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds.

There has been a county fair in Goshen since 1851.

In fact, it's one of the largest county fairs in the country.

So, we've all heard of 4-H, but can you tell me what the four H's actually stand for?

[quizzical music] - I am a proud 4-H alumna of 12 years.

I pledge my head to clearer thinking, my heart to greater loyalty, my hands to larger service, and my health for better living.

4-H is a national youth organization.

They focus on citizenship and life skills, and here in Elkhart County, over 4,000 kids participate.

It's like coming home.

[light music] - Karin Fry: Begonias look fantastic.

- We're talking Quilt Gardens.

This isn't the only one in town.

- We have 17 of them.

- 17.

- Throughout the Elkhart County.

- This is a major initiative.

- Absolutely.

- And how did this happen?

- It came up as an initiative for tourism.

We get visitors from all over the world, even.

- This was a really good idea.

We're gonna make a garden out of this pattern.

- That's exactly right.

- Out of a quilt pattern.

- Yes, a quilter has come up with some of these designs.

We have the patterns available to the participants.

- Are there squares that you can look at and say, "Impossible!

This ain't gonna work."

- Yes, once the design is chosen, there's a review group, and there are nine of us.

Most of us are master gardeners.

And we decide if it would be something that would be usable... Easy to do or not.

And then the choice comes down as to what flowers.

It normally takes two days to plant, and it's about 10 to 15 people that plant it.

After that, you're looking at watering, there is fertilizing, there is weeding, there are all these things that have to be taken care of from May 30th, and then, our last day is September the 15th, and if the garden looks great-- - We're gonna leave this one.

- Yes, we're gonna leave this.

- Because September 14th is tomorrow.

- That is correct.

- So you've got two days, which, if it didn't look good on the 15th, then-- - Pull.

- Oh.

[laughs] - Pull, absolutely!

- You are-- - Now you're scaring me, Karin.

- No, pull, that's it, that's it.

There are some flowers that had a problem.

- Like, what kind of flower is gonna give you a problem?

- We've had impatiens problems in the past.

- I've got that problem as well, just so you know.

[both laugh] And volunteerism is really, really important.

- That's a major part.

- That's the key.

- These would not be here.

We have probably over 200 volunteers.

- Wow, there's a plaque.

It'll tell you what it looked like.

- Right.

- It'll tell you what it is.

- This actually depicts where gardens are.

This right here is the name of the garden.

- And then, these are all the flowers, and it gives you the reference, and see, "Oh, that's what I would like to do.

These are the locations."

- That's so good.

Scan the QR code, it'll give you directions and everything.

- Absolutely, and since we're here at the 4-H Fair, if you look, in the middle, it's a clover for 4-H. - Okay, I would've thought of that if you'd given me a minute.

[both laugh] Northern Indiana is home to one of the largest Amish populations in the entire country.

I'm on the Pumpkinvine Trail, which heads east out of Goshen and goes through the Amish communities of Middlebury and Shipshewana.

In fact, Amish craftspeople who work manufacturing jobs in Goshen take this trail to and from work every day.

This is their commute.

And you take a look at this trail, I'm kinda jealous of their commute.

It's beautiful.

[upbeat music] - El da de hoy, yo tengo un invitado.

- We're at Radio Horizonte.

- Yes, s.

- And you're Manny Cortez?

- Yes, I am.

Qual es tu nombre?

- John McGivern.

- John?

- S, McGivern.

- Oh, it's hard to pronounce, that one.

- This community knows you.

De donde eres?

- El Salvador.

- El Salvador.

- I'm born in Salvador.

- How long have you lived in Goshen?

- 22 Years.

- 22 Years?

- Yes.

- And how long has this radio station been here?

- Six year.

- So is it a mixture of talk and music?

- Yes.

- And it's a bilingual station?

- Yes.

- There's a large Latino population in Goshen, yes?

- Yes, the Latino population is close to 53%, 55%, like, population.

We are from different countries-- Venezuela, Colombia, Honduras, El Salvador.

Obviously, Mexico the more big population over here.

- Yeah, how do you create unification in the Latino community?

- Oh, well, from all the diversity.

Tell me about your culture, I wanna learn.

Tell me a little bit about you.

- I'm the host of a TV show... - Okay.

- Called "John McGivern's Main Streets," and this week, we are shooting in your community of Goshen, Indiana.

- My employer, I work for Lippert Components, they give me opportunity to go to the Ivy Tech College.

So, Goshen College gave me the opportunity to learn more about education for people like me, you know.

I am really, really blessed.

- Yeah.

And this is all volunteer?

- This radio station is run by volunteers.

Everything you see here was built for volunteers and they can bring information about what happened in our community, what happened in your church, what happened in your neighbor next, who needs help.

It's no matter who you are, it's no matter where you coming from... - Yeah.

- The radio station is open for you.

Seoras y seores, pues como les deca Manny Cortez y... - John McGivern.

Gracias.

- Goshen College might be small, but they have a big reputation for their environmental sustainability programs.

Besides offering various environmental majors, they have built native prairie restorations, installed solar panels, and they purchase 100% of their electricity from renewable sources.

And because of all of this, they are recognized as one of America's greenest colleges.

[light music] - We're on the campus of Goshen College, and this is Gilberto Perez.

Pleasure.

- Gilberto Pres: Hola.

- How are you?

- Muy bien!

- Yeah.

- Doing great.

- Good, so talk about the history of this place.

- This college was founded in 1894, and Mennonites have been connected to this college, as they founded it, as a way of saying to the church community and the community that we are here to offer education.

And so, initially, there were a lot of Mennonite students.

We're 23% or so at this point.

But the Mennonite Church focused on peace, and they focused on justice and social justice, and as our teaching faculty engaged, they're about serving others and being compassionate and being good stewards of the things that we have.

And there are many of us, and we all can belong here and we can be a part of this community as we find support, we find engagement, and we get you through to the degree and to that profession that your call, that you're wanting to do or wanting to be engaged in.

- All dealing and being based in Mennonite values.

- Yeah, we're a private Christian liberal arts college and all of us can be connected to Earth, connected to living out our faith as individuals here, and then exploring and finding the things that actually connect us to being better human beings.

- How did you find your way here?

- My dad came in the '80s to Goshen College to study in the Hispanic Ministries program.

Met my wife in Virginia, we lived in Puerto Rico, and we moved to Goshen about 21 years ago now.

- You're quite involved in the community, as well.

You're a city councilman?

- I'm a city councilman.

We wanna make this a stronger community, a better community, and a place where individuals say to one another, "That's my town, that's my city.

I belong there."

- John Mischler: If you look here, this piece is a model.

- That's your piece.

We stood in front of that piece earlier today.

- Yeah.

- "Broken Shield."

- Right.

- Yeah.

- And it's become a real iconic piece.

Whenever I make a sculpture, especially that one, since it was early in my career, you wonder if it's gonna have lasting value, but it's maybe more popular now than when I put it up.

- Isn't that great?

- Yeah.

- These are all the materials you work with as an artist.

- Right.

This part of the country-- Indiana, Northern Indiana-- is very industrial, so there's a lot of scrap metal around.

I work mainly with aluminum and stainless steel.

- So do you work with what's found, or do you try to go find?

- Sometimes both.

- Does size intimidate at all?

- No.

I am more comfortable working large than small, so my style has grown and changed slowly over time, but I've always been focused on creating and I couldn't go without being in my studio a week or so.

- Good for you.

- I gotta do something.

[both chuckling] - You have to go to work.

And in a space that-- where else are you gonna get this space?

- That's right.

Yeah, this is a former boiler building.

- And this is an Old Bag Factory.

- Right.

- You have to know that every time somebody says, "The Old Bag Factory," I think of Mrs. Jajung, who lived on the block from us.

- Oh, okay.

- Who, we as kids, were like, "She's an old bag," so I hear that, and I think of Bartlett Avenue in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Just so you know.

- Sure, yeah.

- The Old Bag Factory is just that, a renovated factory built in 1896 as the Cosmo Buttermilk Soap Company.

In 1910, it became the Chase Bag Factory and they made everything from burlap sacks to the paper strips you find in Hershey Kisses.

Well, now it's a shopping destination, home to artisans, retail, restaurants and more.

- If someone had told me that there was this kinda shopping in Goshen on Main Street, I would've brought a bigger suitcase.

So cool!

Come on.

How are ya?

- Good, how are you?

- Good to see you.

Take a look.

Three floors, beautiful mid-century antiques.

Art from all over the world.

I'm gonna do some shopping.

- No, no, we have to go!

- [whispers] I'll be back.

[upbeat Indian music] - Rosie Singh: Do you know how to eat Indian food?

- I don't.

- All right, so what you wanna do-- the rices are a base, so you wanna put a little rice on your main plate.

- That's the base.

How long have you had this restaurant?

- Eight years.

- Eight years.

And had you had an Indian restaurant before?

– Bobby Singh: No.

- No.

But you had recipes that you wanted-- - That we wanted-- - Share with the public.

- We used to--yep, we used to cook at home, me and her, she knows I love cooking.

- He loves cooking.

- Then we just-- - A little bit of the sauce and the meat.

So, today you have a lamb korma.

- That's onion sauce with a cream in it.

- "Indian restaurant in Goshen?"

First thing they say, "I really was wondering if it was gonna be authentic."

I'm like, "Yep."

- I am from Punjabi, I speak Punjabi.

That's my mother tongue.

He's from Haryana, the next state right next to the Punjabi.

- Good.

- And then you can kinda scoop it up with the bread.

- Oh.

- The traditional way would be that.

- Eat it with the naan?

- You kinda poke it with your naan.

[laughs] Now, you'll get a fork, also.

Our expectations are high on our foods.

With our cuisine, you either like it or you don't.

- See, once they come in the door, once they have it, then they change their minds.

- And they'll be back.

- They recommend somebody else back, and they send people over, okay.

Go there and try it.

- It's not spicy.

People think Indian food-- - The perception is it's spicy.

- Yeah, the perception was, "Oh, it's spicy, it's curry."

- However people want it-- mild, medium, spices.

This all here is mild.

When somebody asks for some different, more spices or medium, we do it here.

- Do you like it spicier?

- Medium spice.

- Medium spice.

- Yeah, I used to eat spicy a lot, but now it's an age, and I don't eat spicy.

- [John laughs] - Just kidding.

- It can be spicy if you choose it spicy.

- Spicy is what a little bit about this much.

It's extra hot chilies.

- Okay, that's fine then.

- Yeah.

This is good enough for that-- - That's good enough for us.

- Yeah.

- But it's great home food, you know.

Everything is made here.

Everything is made fresh.

And I think that really goes with what Goshen is.

- And pretty healthy.

- Oh, yeah, definitely.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

And that is the right way to eat Indian food.

- That's delicious.

Really smooth and very yummy.

Thank you so much.

- All right.

- So glad we stopped by.

- Have you ever been writing out a card or a sign and realized everything you wanna say is not going to fit in that space?

Well, that's the backstory here with this theater.

It opened as the Jefferson Theater in 1905.

Decades later, when they put up a new sign, they realized all the letters for Jefferson Theater were not going to fit, so fewer letters-- Goshen Theater, they just renamed it.

It's pretty smart, if you ask me.

Today, this is truly the centerpiece for arts and culture right here on Main Street.

- That building has been sitting on that corner by the courthouse since 1939.

Do you know what purpose it served?

I'll give ya a hint.

It's a great place to keep an eye on Main Street.

[quizzical music] - This little building behind me is the Goshen Police booth.

Now, it was built by the Works Progress Administration during the Great Depression and it really served as the home base for police officers right here on Main Street, so they could keep law and order.

Today, it's managed by the Goshen Historical Society, but have no fear, Goshen, because I'm on duty today.

- Running perpendicular to Main Street in downtown, there's Washington Street, then Jefferson Street, then Madison Street, then Monroe Street-- named after the first, third, fourth, and fifth presidents, which kinda begs the question, what did the city planners have against John Adams?

Just wanna know.

[upbeat music] I'm on my way into Venturi to have pizza.

It's a very popular pizza place.

It's a Neapolitan pizza, meaning that there's rules and laws around serving.

I'll follow the rules if I can have a slice.

So there's some sort of Neapolitan test that you've gotta go through to be certified as a Neapolitan pizza-making restaurant?

– Stacy Dechnik: Mm-hmm, yes.

- And it deals with the oven?

With what--ingredient?

What does it deal with?

- All of it.

When we opened, we were the only certified Neapolitan pizzeria in Indiana.

That's no longer true, but-- - It's not?

- There's not that many.

- It's proven if you're around for almost 13 years.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- Ooh, and about the building-- We painted it black and white... because all Neapolitan pizzerias in Naples are painted black and white.

- That's amazing.

It's good.

So should we watch somebody cook something, or-- - Yeah, that would be great.

- Are you gonna do something?

- I am not.

[both laugh] That's not my specialty.

- I love that you were so sure of that.

I'm John.

- I'm Johnny.

- Johnny.

- Hi, Brian.

- Brian, good to see ya.

You're gonna do it for me?

– Brian Jones: Let's do it.

- All right, yeah.

- So Neapolitan dough, it's double zero flour.

- Does it have to rise?

- At least 24 hours.

So I'm gonna start in the middle.

I'm gonna work my way out clockwise.

- Because that's a rule.

- That is a rule, yeah.

This is our fresh Mozzarella that we make every day.

Just enough there.

- Uh-huh.

- You want every bite to be different.

- To be different?

- Yeah.

- This is the margarita?

- This is the margarita.

- And this is the most popular one in house, yes?

- Yes, yes, absolutely.

- And you make it fit the paddle, yes?

- Mm-hmm.

Yep.

Should be about 90 seconds to stretch it and top it, 90 seconds to cook it.

- There's some heat in there, yes?

- Yeah, it'll be around 800 to 900.

- It's warm right here.

- Oh, yeah.

- Work and do less.

On a busy night, you know, we're doing 200, 250 pizzas.

Everything going in there.

- That was the fastest pizza.

[laughter] That was kind of remarkable.

Looks delicious.

- Cheers.

- To you, thanks.

- Yes.

Mmm.

And the concept that every bite is different-- Here's some with just the sauce.

- Yeah.

- It's great.

- And then you get the crust to finish off, which is delicious on its own.

- Mm-hmm.

Delicioso.

- Delicioso.

[upbeat music] - I had no idea the kind of culture and the kind of craftsmanship we'd find in Goshen.

- I agree, I love the vibe.

I just didn't get enough time here.

- Me neither.

It's great.

- So, we're staying?

[both laugh] - Right here on these Main Streets - Northern Indiana is home to one of the largest amni-- [laughs] - And a gentleman named Wilbur Shoot.

Schult?

[laughter] [bleep] - In his first season of driver--[babbling] It's not gonna happen, you guys.

I don't think it's gonna happen.

- Whoo!

- Oh, okay.

- How about that?

[laughter] - "John McGivern's Main Streets" thanks the following underwriters.

- Remember when the American dream was being able to say, "I made that.

I built that."

Wouldn't it be great if your kids and grandkids chose a career that provides that kind of pride with good pay, but without a ton of student loan debt?

A four-year degree isn't the only path to success.

We need talented people to make and build on Main Streets everywhere.

Skilled work isn't a thing of the past.

It's a bright future.

- To the unknown I'm on my way Oh, it's time to hit the road I'm on my way This is the freedom I live for [bright music] [soft acoustic music] - In southeastern Wisconsin, there's a village... With something for everyone.

It's everywhere you look.

On every street, behind any door you open.

And we want to share it with you.

You just gotta see Greendale.

- Additional funding is provided by the Friends of Plum Media and the Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Thanks, friends.

– Producer: Okay, I just wanna get it.

Well, because I know if it was me, I would be like, "[Bleep] it!

Why didn't they say?"

- Fine, fine.

- There you go.

- She'll let anything hang off my face.

[laughter]