Wisconsin Public Television

Transcript: In Wisconsin #915

Air Date: February 17, 2011

Patty Loew:

Welcome to In Wisconsin. Im Patty Loew. This week, she was shot down in Vietnam twice and thats only the beginning.

Woman:

They wouldnt teach her as a girl, so she thought well, all right then, Ill be a boy.

Patty Loew:

Well bring you DJs amazing story. Plus, this great northern forest is a tribute to the advice of Chief Oshkosh.

Man:

When you reach the end of the reservation turn and cut from the setting sun to the rising sun, and the trees will last forever.

Patty Loew:

The Menominee way of forestry conservation. And a new Wisconsin park unlike any other. Its edible. Well, sort of.

Man:

Theyre very good.

Jo Garrett:

You should try those.

Patty Loew:

Those reports next on In Wisconsin.

Announcer:

Major funding for In Wisconsin is provided by the people of Alliant Energy, who bring safe, reliable and environmentally friendly energy to keep homes, neighborhoods and life in Wisconsin running smoothly. Alliant Energy, were on for you. And Animal Dentistry and Oral Surgery Specialists. A veterinary team working with pet owners and family vets providing care for oral disease and dental problems of small companion animals.

Patty Loew:

We begin this week with a rather remarkable report about a woman who claim she is anything but remarkable. Her name is Dorothy Douglas. DJ to her friends, and she has earned their respect and admiration. DJ had it rough as a child, sometimes living on the streets. But she became a nurse, a UW professor and was shot down in combat. Thats only the beginning. Wait until you hear the rest of her amazing life story In Wisconsin.

Rory Ward:

DJ, real name Dorothy Douglas, was born in 1927. DJ Douglas was many things. Many faceted, both in what she did and who she was.

Laurie Gorman:

The person who perhaps knew DJ the best is her partner of 35 years, Rory Ward.

Rory Ward:

She was, in her later years a professor in medical schools, Connecticut, Iowa, here in the School of Nursing at the University of Wisconsin.

Laurie Gorman:

DJ and her brother spent five years in a makeshift orphanage at a St. Louis railway station.

Rory Ward:

They were essentially taken care of by a guy in the railway station who was taking care of several other kids. At that time, he dressed everybody alike.

Pat Calchina:

I think what is unique about DJs story is that a male mentor, thankfully a kind male mentor, is dressing the girls as boys in order for the little girls to be safe.

Rory Ward:

He also socialized them as boys, how to act, how to talk so that it went along with their clothing.

Laurie Gorman:

As an adventurous adolescent, DJ witnessed a plane crash and decided flying was to be her passion.

Rory Ward:

At that time, there were civilian pilot training airports. That was a program instituted in the late 30s by Roosevelt to increase civilian pilots.

Pat Calchina:

She realized she could not learn to fly as a girl. They wouldnt teach her as a girl, so she thought all right then Ill be a boy.

Laurie Gorman:

In 1943 at the age of 15, after being rejected at a training field for being a girl, DJ changed clothes and tactics and as a boy marched into a mess hall with cadets.

Rory Ward:

Her adaptability shone through in her becoming a boy for what she wanted to do. Thats why she became a boy, in order to fly.

Pat Calchina:

What I know of DJ is she would do whatever was necessary to do the work that she wanted to do. That was her primary motivation.

Laurie Gorman:

That started a love affair with flying that lasted almost 70 years.

Rory Ward:

She called herself Sam Douglas at first.

Laurie Gorman:

The commander of the base, Captain Tom Hartman, taught young Sam Douglas how to fly Steermans in three to four days.

Rory Ward:

Her rank increased in the civilian pilot training program.

Laurie Gorman:

After the war, Hartman asked his protege to perform in his flying circus. DJ starred as the young boy in short pants, who did kid-like stunts in the air.

Rory Ward:

She would pull the power of course, and that would make the engine sputter, do slips across the field. And the patter on the ground was, here comes that kid. Where is that kid? Hes gone again. I bet hes lost. And then, no, hes in the wrong field. Oh, here he comes again. Theyd build it up so she would come in and slip sideways, forward slip, and land it. It was a show.

Laurie Gorman:

In the 1950s, the Society of Catholic Medical Missionaries needed pilots. DJ flew for them in the states and they put her through nursing school. DJ flew as an army crew chief in Vietnam and was shot down twice.

Rory Ward:

If you remember the game show To Tell the Truth? She was on To Tell the Truth with two other people dressed the same, and nobody successfully guessed that she was the Lieutenant Commander in the Navy and a black belt in Judo.

Laurie Gorman:

DJ again wanted to further her education. She wrote and won a DOT grant to study for-profit private ambulance services.

Rory Ward:

She found in private services there were no standards.

Laurie Gorman:

Ambulance services were unregulated enterprises, and sometimes had strong ties to organized crime. DJs research and dissertation resulted in standardized care and regulated services.

Rory Ward:

DJ came to the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a professor, this time in the School of Nursing, with a joint appointment to the hospitals.

Newscaster, 1983 news clip:

A Madison woman was one of the heroes last week when the pilot of a single engine plane died while in flight and a passenger had to land the plane at an Illinois airport.

DJ, 1983 news clip:

I was up in the air, 3,500 feet, I believe.

Newscaster, 1983:

Enter Dorothy Douglas of Madison. A professor at the UW School of Nursing and a flight instructor…

Laurie Gorman:

Rory remembers flying with DJ and hearing the May Day signal over the radio.

Rory Ward:

We stayed in the air at the same time. She offered her assistance.

DJ, 1983:

Our job was to get sort of behind them, and then on the side of him, and monitor the flight and try to help out the controller who was bringing them down.

Newscaster, 1983:

Flying in a small Cessna 152, Dorothy Douglas trailed behind the more powerful and sophisticated plane. On the ground was the control tower. It was pilot training via the radio.

DJ, 1983, radio communications:

Now aim for the runway. Now. Go down now. Youre doing great.

Passenger landing plane, 1983, radio communications:

Hallelujah! We made it!

Control, 1983 radio communications:

You just had your first solo.

Rory Ward:

She was meticulous but spontaneous. Once things were researched and referenced in her head, she wanted to go do it.

Laurie Gorman:

Even with little formal education before college, DJ managed to earn five advanced degrees.

Pat Calchina:

She was so brave and smart at such a young age, and then found a mentor to help her, thankfully. But it did seem to set the pattern for her life.

Rory Ward:

She had the right personality, the right background, the right history for making real contribution in the community in any number of ways.

Donald Douglas:

Im sure that wherever she is, shes teaching someone to fly…

(laughter and applause)

Laurie Gorman:

A young Sam Douglas punched holes in the sky, so DJs dreams could soar to new heights in a mans world.

Rory Ward:

DJ died one year ago on February 10, as a result of complications of Alzheimers. Her legacy lives on in the many lives shes mentored over the years, a remarkable pioneering woman. That report was produced by videographer Wendy Woodard and narrated by Laurie Gorman.

In life, there are hunters and gatherers. And through the years we have become less of both. Now, there is a new park you can visit thats edible. In Wisconsin reporter Jo Garrett says its best to visit in warmer weather, but here in the middle of winter it has us longing for a taste of summer in Price County.

Jo Garrett:

This is a typical northern hardwood forest in Price County. Not the first place that comes to mind when mulling over grocery shopping or thinking about dining al fresco.

Sam Thayer:

This is mid-August right now, so a peak time for blackberries.

Jo Garrett:

Unless you are a forager. A forager of what are called wild edibles. The man enjoying the blackberries is Sam Thayer.

Sam Thayer:

Partridgeberry, this is common in all of northern Wisconsin. It tastes like a chunk of apple the size of a pea.

Jo Garrett:

Previously the only way to access Thayers fast fields of knowledge was to join one of his classes, or check out one of his two books on wild edibles. But that has changed.

Sam Thayer:

This is smartweed. Its not really a food, but its a seasoning. Its called smartweed because it can burn your skin. Its hot like a pepper.

Jo Garrett:

Thayer has teamed up with his father-in-law, Dan Price.

Sam Thayer:

Feel it yet?

Dan Price:

I feel it.

Jo Garrett:

Price owns a campground thats been in his family for nearly 50 years. Holiday Hills Camping.

Dan Price:

Ooh! Its getting hotter. Its getting real hot.

Jo Garrett:

They came up with a hot idea, smoking.

Sam Thayer:

Its so hot, that if you take your finger and rub it on it, and then lick your finger its like oh, it is hot!

Jo Garrett:

Together theyve made something new. It winds through a half mile of Prices land, the first ever, as far as they know, nature trail based on wild edibles. There is nothing like it in the U.S. I its called the Standish Price Wild Food Interpretive Trail, after Dan Prices dad, who loved this land and worked hard to hold onto it. That a person could make a meal of the plants on the land was amazing news to Dan Price.

Dan Price:

I had no clue. I was just stunned, actually, when Sam and I walked through this and started numbering everything. I was astounded how much stuff is out here that a fellow could eat.

Jo Garrett:

Thayer has set stakes on 118 plants. This is his dream trail.

Sam Thayer:

When I was a teenager, I loved nature trails. And any time I would go camping at a state park, Im just, where is the interpretive trail. So I tried to create the trail that would have got me really excited, like a long trail with a lot of plants, you know, because its great learning from a book, but it is so nice to just have the plant marked, the real thing, and its so much easier to imprint on that than on a picture.

Jo Garrett:

There is a guide book that matches the markers. You can walk and imprint at your own pace.

Sam Thayer:

Its your schedule. You could identify plants for two hours in the morning and then go fishing. Or whatever you want to do. And thats the way I learned.

Jo Garrett:

We went down the trail with Thayer in late August, which brings up another reason to visit often. Different menus in different seasons.

Sam Thayer:

Here we have ripe choke cherries. This is one of the more common edible fruits in northern Wisconsin. Important wildlife food. Some people like choke cherries. Some people like black cherries. Some people dont know the difference. Black cherries are a much larger tree but these are good choke cherries, actually.

Jo Garrett:

Its important to note you shouldnt do what were doing. The trail is meant to teach people how to ID edible plants. It is not a smorgasbord.

Sam Thayer:

Very stringent. Its more of a problem. Theyre very good.

Jo Garrett:

This does illustrate how great wild edibles can be.

Sam Thayer:

Basswood spring bean salad with some wild leaf greens is excellent.

Jo Garrett:

Who does Thayer envision coming here to learn how to ID plants?

Sam Thayer:

There is a survivalist crowd. There are cooks and chefs that come out. There are a lot of people preparing for disaster. But I think people should learn it because its fun. Thats why I do it.

Jo Garrett:

Food connects.

Sam Thayer:

You dont forget what you taste and smell. And when you are familiar with something, you love it.

Jo Garrett:

Consider marker number one.

Sam Thayer:

The first marker on the whole trail was a sugar maple, most people forget that maple syrup is actually a wild food. This is kind of the maple syrup capital of Wisconsin, Price County is. A lot of people dont realize that.

Jo Garrett:

Who can ever forget maples and maple syrup? Which is the wonderful surprise in marker 27. Fire up the waffle maker.

Sam Thayer:

This is a white birch. Most people know this tree, but a lot of people dont know it makes a delicious syrup. Birch syrup is not commercially made in the Midwest, but it is commercially made in Europe and in Alaska. The sap starts to run just after maple sap runs. The sap is less sweet but produces more swap. Because it takes more boiling than maple syrup, its more expensive.

Jo Garrett:

In addition to edibles, Thayer also includes some plants that arent for dinner, but he feels are important to know.

Sam Thayer:

This is maple leaf viburnum. I like to include plants like this that are often overlooked, just because theyre interesting to learn. It has beautiful fall foliage.

Jo Garrett:

The trail also includes more than just forest food. It winds by Hultman Lake, where a whole different menu waits to be IDd.

Sam Thayer:

The last seven plants on the trail are not really on the trail. Theyre plants that can be easily seen by taking a canoe or boat here into the wetlands or the lake.

Jo Garrett:

Grab a canoe and check out the cattails.

Sam Thayer:

Cattails have several edible parts.

Jo Garrett:

And the bull rushes.

Sam Thayer:

The base of the plant is edible in early summer. The tips of the growing rhizomes are also edible. Theyre sweet and mildly flavored.

Jo Garrett:

Way out beyond the bull rushes are 115 and 116. Both water lilies.

Sam Thayer:

The whitewater lily is not edible, but the yellow water lily was actually a staple food for natives of parts of the Pacific Northwest. And thousands of years ago, was a staple in England.

Jo Garrett:

The Standish Price Trail even offers examples of good eating, from what are called disturbed habitats, those with remnants of human habitation. A delight to me, I have this stuff in my yard.

Sam Thayer:

This is bishops weed or gout weed. Its commonly planted for landscaping, but used to be commonly planted as a vegetable by the settlers in Europe. Its still quite a popular vegetable in France. It actually makes a delicious soup base. It tastes somewhat like celery in flavor.

Jo Garrett:

Its just like celery.

Sam Thayer:

We can be spoiled by how easy food is to access and forget what it meant to our ancestors. People become attached to plants they eat, and when we eat a landscape, we love and protect that landscape. Theyre actually a delicious nut.

Jo Garrett:

Bon appetit.

Patty Loew:

If youd like to learn more about the Standish Price Trail or Sam Thayers books, go to our website wpt.org and click on In Wisconsin. Youll find this report along with additional links and information. Foraging for food in rural or forested areas seems like a natural. After all, isnt that where food grows? Not everyone is content to forage in the wild. And while you have to wait until warmer weather arrives, here is a small sampling of edible items found on an urban tour led by Chicagos Nancy Klem, in the heart of Madison.

Nancy Klem:

Start walking. Im always looking at transitions in landscapes where there is hills, collections, or the base of buildings, particularly stone buildings. There are a lot of minerals in stones and a lot of things that will collect as with precipitation runs off the stone. There will be certain communities of plants.

One of the plants I want to show you is right here. This is malva –, or mallow. It is a great green. In Mexico, theyll eat this, and make tacos with this. Theyll cream this and add a little bit of really, really young cheese, and then reduce it with some garlic, and use it for tacos. Theyre delicious.

Woman:

I do a lot of traveling. Its really nice to be able to find your own food or medicine, while youre traveling rather than have to constantly add to your luggage, and then have to travel home with extra things.

Nancy Klem:

This one well see tons more of. Its wild spinach or lambs quarters. Wild spinach is pretty indistinguishable from regular spinach, particularly when its cooked. It has a much higher Vitamin A, higher protein content, and a huge amount of Vitamin C.

Woman:

Im big into the local food movement, and getting really connected to where we live via food.

Nancy Klem:

This is wild ginger. This is something you can dig up and use as stand-in for ginger. Another two pretty good base plants for just more greens for cooking. This is wild amaranth. Its a great green full of protein. You can stir-fry it, cook it in a casserole, or eat it green. And this is smart weed. There are a lot of things that serve as general basis of salad.

Man:

150 years ago, humans knew all of this just it was passed down. And I want to close the loop back up and regain the information.

Patty Loew:

Just be aware of where you are picking your urban forage. Automotive and animal pollution can make some plants unedible. For centuries, Native Americans have foraged for food in our state. The cultures teach tribal members how to live off the land. The same is true when it comes to sustaining forests. In Wisconsin reporter Andy Soth shows you how that has translated into more than a century of success at a paper mill in Menominee county.

Andy Soth:

The secret to running a successful saw mill lies in making the most of every log. For starters, each piece of timber is assessed on arrival. A calculation is made of how much quality a log can produce. Each log is tracked as it travels through the mill and the percentage yield of the days run posted for all to see. But thats not the only message on the board.

LeRoy Shawanokasic:

Maehnow – Pematessonon – Yopeh. In the Menominee language, that means have a nice day.

Andy Soth:

Its in the Menominee language, because this is the Menominee Reservation. The sawmill is owned and has been operated by Menominee Tribal Enterprises for 100 years.

Man:

The butcher blocks are made from Menominee forest wood…

Andy Soth:

An anniversary celebrated in October 2008. That means for a century MTE has provided a paycheck for Menominee mill workers, a way of life for Menominee lumberman and an economic base for the Menominee community. But what may be most remarkable about Menominee Tribal Enterprises 100 years is that the mill remains surrounded by trees. The entire reservation is one of the most densely forested parts of Wisconsin. There are more trees today than before the mill was built.

Adrian Miller:

At that time, we had 1.3 billion feet of timber on our reservation. We now have over 1.7 billion feet.

Andy Soth:

Many companies credit a founder or CEO for their success. At MET, its Chief Oshkosh, who in the 19th century advised cutting selectively and sustainably, moving slowly from east to west.

LeRoy Shawanokasic:

When you reach the end of the reservation turn and cut from the setting sun to the rising sun, and the trees will last forever.

Andy Soth:

And they have lasted. When the other great forests of northern Wisconsin were stripped bare, this forest remained. But not because it had been left alone.

Marshall Pecore:

At first glance it looks like a forest that hasnt been managed. Its anything but that. Its a managed forest.

Andy Soth:

Marshall Pecore knows. Hes managed the forest for years. His staff determines the time to harvest each tree, and tells the loggers how it should be done.

Marshall Pecore:

The things that we do is intelligent tinkering. We dont have all the answers. But one of the important things of tinkering, is keep all the pieces. Were trying to keep all the pieces of the forest together.

Andy Soth:

The sum of all those pieces is more than simply timber for the mill.

Marshall Pecore:

The other thing they get is, well, we just saw a couple guys ahead of us going fishing. Pretty unique place for fishing, just scenic drives for the tribal members. But it is part of their ancestral lands. And I think seeing the forest and seeing it held intact, I think has enabled the Menominee to maintain their cultural identity.

Andy Soth:

An identity expressed in simple ways, like have a nice day in the Menominee language. Or more grand like when the mill was honored at the annual powwow.

Man:

It was built in 1908. It is quite an achievement. This is only the first 100 years.

Andy Soth:

The mill has also been honored with a trophy case worth of national awards for its green business practices. And visitors from all over the world come to study their methods. But what may be hardest to teach, as Marshall Pecore says, is the forest is the Menominee people.

Marshall Pecore:

The forest is kind of the body. The water can be viewed as the blood going through the veins. I think there is that relationship. I think most Menominees feel that in their hearts.

Patty Loew:

For the Menominee Nation, the uncertainties of climate change complicate their goal of thinking seven generations ahead to sustain forest health. For more information go to QuestWisconsin.org. As part of our Quest environmental reporting project with the Educational Communications Board, you can see how climate change could impact the Menominee forest in a report they call Forestry. Next week, the impact of climate change on a famous winter event. Its one of the reports were working on for the next edition of In Wisconsin.

North Americas largest cross-country ski race happens in Wisconsin.

Man:

Some events are bigger than simply a ski event from here to there.

Patty Loew:

It faces a threat from climate change. Youll see why in our Quest environmental reporting project.

Liz Koerner:

Im In Wisconsin reporter Liz Koerner. This newly renovated building houses a museum thats so unique its already attracting visitors from around the world. Its not just about the past. They also offer hands-on lessons here at the Wisconsin Canoe Heritage Museum in Spooner.

Patty Loew:

Those reports and Michael Perrys humorous essay.

Michael Perry:

We dont burn a lot of white pine. Its fun to watch burn, but it goes real fast. Its kind of like burning firecrackers.

Patty Loew:

See what happens when the calendar and the dwindling wood pile meet.

Jo Garrett:

Call it what you like, a stormy kromer, a kromer domer, or a Yooper hat, its northwoods chic.

Man:

I cant imagine this hat will ever go out of style.

Jo Garrett:

Im In Wisconsin reporter Jo Garrett, and Ill bring you the history of this hat.

Patty Loew:

Those reports next Thursday at 7:30pm, right here on Wisconsin Public Television. If youre online this week, we invite you to take a look at our interactive blog called the Producers Journal. It is updated each weekday by the people who work in front of the camera and behind the scenes. Youll find out in advance about special projects and the places weve been. Its all in the Producers Journal at wpt.org. Just click on In Wisconsin and look for this picture. Grab your stormy kromer, youll need it for our final video this week, as we bring you winter at the University of Wisconsin Arboretum. Its a 1200-acre wonderland located a stones throw from the heart of downtown Madison. Have a great week In Wisconsin.

Announcer:

Major funding for In Wisconsin is provided by the people of Alliant Energy, who bring safe, reliable and environmentally friendly energy to keep homes, neighborhoods and life in Wisconsin running smoothly. Alliant Energy, were on for you. And Animal Dentistry and Oral Surgery Specialists. A veterinary team working with pet owners and family vets providing care for oral disease and dental problems of small companion animals.