Milwaukee has roughly 2,500 vacant properties across the city, a problem that weighs more heavily on predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods. Research has shown that vacant houses attract crime, are easier to set on fire, and can lower the value of homes nearby.
Martha Chambers Speaks Out for Disability Voting Rights
Kai Gardner Mishlove Helps Communities Find their Similarities through Food
Food tells the story of migration, evokes memories, reminds us of where we came from and connects us to the land that produces the food we eat. As Kai Gardner Mishlove so beautifully explains, food unifies us and heals us. “When you prepare a dish, you’re putting your heart and soul into it and you’re evoking the memory of your ancestors in that work,” she says.
Dr. Samantha Majhor and Danielle Barrett are Working to Restore Ecosystems and Culture with Wild Rice
The students and faculty working on the Wild Rice Project in Marquette University’s Indigeneity Lab are trying to answer the question: Will wild rice grow in Milwaukee’s rivers? What may seem like a straight-forward science-based approach, requires relationship building with Indigenous communities and a deep understanding of the connection Native people have with the waters and wild rice.
Mariana Rodriguez Built a Space for Latinas to Thrive
“I think about my 20-plus years advocating for the safety and empowerment for women, and healthcare has always been core to everything we do,” says Mariana Rodriguez, director of the Latina Resource Center at United Migrant Opportunity Services (UMOS). “When women have resources and when they have options, they’re safer.”
Sheila Badwan Helps Refugees Seeking Freedom
On July 4, America celebrates its independence—our day of freedom. But many of us may never truly appreciate the freedom we have because we’ve always had it. For centuries, America has offered the promise of safety and a better life for those fleeing war, religious persecution, or other hardships. Unless we are Indigenous, our ancestors came to this country seeking that freedom we celebrate today.
Richard Diaz fights for families with lead poisoning
Three thousand, nine-hundred and twelve children up to the age of six were reported being poisoned by lead in Wisconsin in 2018—and that’s with a testing rate of only 10 percent of children. The fact is simple. There is not enough being done in Wisconsin to prevent lead poisoning and to help families who are being lead poisoned.
Ericka Sinclair is Redefining Healthcare
After working in the healthcare industry for over 15 years, Ericka Sinclair had a vision of redefining patient care by creating a community-based clinic. In traditional clinical care, she saw patterns that were not beneficial to the patients: physicians weren’t trained to have deep conversations with them, and people often didn’t know how to use their insurance.
Finding Affinity: Sung
This month I want to do something a little different than my normal blog posts. I recently spent five weeks in Vietnam and while in this drastically different culture, it made me think about how we relate to each other in Milwaukee. Hear me out for a second. At first, the country seemed so foreign that I could not relate at all, but after spending time there and getting to know the welcoming people, I started to realize that we have a lot in common. Milwaukee sometimes struggles with this because as many of us know, it is a very segregated city. This series called “Finding Affinity,” that I will occasionally post, is meant to help us find similarities in each other rather than differences. If we can connect with one another, maybe we can make the world a more peaceful place.
Affinity: /noun/
- a spontaneous or natural liking or sympathy for someone or something.
- a similarity of characteristics suggesting a relationship, especially a resemblance in structure between animals, plants, or languages.
* * *
“All of us, we’re not so different.” Those were Sung’s words as she led me through the narrow paths of the rice fields near Sapa in Vietnam. Sung was our tour guide, who proudly showed my friend and I around her village in the far north of the country. We followed her for three days up and down steep dirt roads beneath banana leaves and foggy skies. The only item she carried was her small, vibrant bag draped over her shoulder, made using of the colors of her village. Adversely, we were weighed down with our large backpacks hugging our waists, with the newest back-support technology. It was a simpler way of life that she shared with us, but not necessarily an easier one.
Sung is 38 years old, no taller than four and a half feet, with five children and a husband. The family lives with her husband’s parents because that is the tradition in her culture. While Sung works the rice fields and leads tours to support the family (as most of the women do), her husband’s parents take care of the children and the home. Having her children in school, Sung explains to us, is more important than anything because she wants to give them the opportunities she never had. And isn’t that what all parents want? Her daughter recently taught her how to spell her own name because Sung never learned to read or write. Yet, her spoken English is nearly perfect, thanks to the tourists she has talked with every day for the last 6 years.
My friend and I shared long conversations with her, revealing pieces of each other’s lives for about 10 hours a day, and we slowly came to realize how similar we are, regardless of the cultural differences. We are all searching for happiness and finding a balance in our lives. Often all of us must compromise our hobbies and desires for our obligations. The moment this all became obvious was when we took a break from hiking to swim in a peaceful river at the base of a waterfall. As I was sitting on a rock drying off, I noticed Sung was perched atop the adjacent boulder with her long hair let out, deep in thought looking over the valley. It was her bold independent gaze that I recognized in myself; a woman determined to achieve her goals, no matter the cost.
We often get caught up in the conveniences and privileges in our lives, but we too easily forget that we all want the same things: peace, freedom and happiness. Sung opened my eyes to her way of life and made me realize how lucky I am, but the truth is that we all have challenges and we all have to find a way to make the most of what we’ve been given. On our last day together, we walked up a dirt road with the occasional motorbike zooming by, to sit above what seemed like endless rice fields stretching below us. I tried to imagine what life would be like if I called this home. After sitting quietly next to Sung for a few minutes, I looked at her, and she looked back and smiled.
Urban Guesthouses and B&Bs: A New Way to Experience Milwaukee
I recently wrote an article for the Shepherd Express about Milwaukee's guesthouses and B&Bs, highlighting the uniqueness of these businesses and why people would want to stay at this type of accommodation. You can read the article here or see it on the Shepherd Express website.
The accommodation industry is shifting toward small cozy guesthouses and Milwaukee is picking up on the trend. When most of us imagine a bed and breakfast (B&B), we think of a remote cottage in the countryside, but Milwaukee has urban guesthouses and B&Bs that offer easy access to the city and a comfortable, welcoming place to rest your head at night. With the rise of the “sharing economy” through sites like Airbnb and Couchsurfing, people in the industry are realizing that travelers are looking for a “home away from home.”
Imagine for a moment that you are visiting a new city for a few days, and when you first arrive to your accommodation, you are greeted by a friendly face—the owner of the house. Rather than walking into a generic lobby, you enter what feels like home, with a personalized touch. You sit down in the common room with a warm cup of tea to have genuine conversation with the other guests, and suddenly this city doesn’t feel so strange.
As travelers, we are drawn to these small, unique businesses when looking for accommodations because we want a story. The structure and design of a guesthouse tells the story of its neighborhood, just as much as its owner does. By staying in a family-run guesthouse or B&B, you get the chance to meet the people who run it and see Milwaukee through their eyes. Not only will they reveal the hidden corners of Milwaukee, but they take the time to learn about you and your interests before suggesting the perfect outing. When traveling, the place where you stay should be as much a part of the experience as the rest of the city.
Milwaukee has six small, family-run guesthouses or B&Bs that are all notably unique. From Victorian-style bed and breakfasts to a guesthouse in the midst of flourishing gardens and a cozy gallery space, each place adds a unique accent to the urban neighborhoods of this city.
Here they are in alphabetical order:
The Brumder Mansion
The Brumder Mansion brings a different experience to the Concordia neighborhood. Built on Wisconsin Avenue in 1910 by George Brumder (1839-1910), the building has a theater in the basement and five bedrooms, most of which have a Jacuzzi and fireplace. Nine years ago, Tom and Julie Carr came from California, bought the Brumder Mansion and rebuilt the basement theater. Some guests come for romantic escapes in the bed and breakfast, while others come specifically for the theater.
“This isn’t a bed and breakfast; it’s a Hollywood set,” says Tom Carr. Stay a night during one of the performances, and you will be taken away into another world of fantasy and imaginary characters. The Brumder’s theater puts on four to five shows per year, made possible by production manager Amanda Hull, artistic director Tom Marks and Milwaukee Entertainment Group. Whether you are trying to solve a murder mystery or you are being swept up into the madness of the Hatter in Alice’s Wonderland, you won’t be bored. Don’t miss their upcoming shows including Dancing with Hamlet.
Kinn Guesthouse
Originally from Chicago, Charles and Connie Bailey moved their family to Milwaukee in 2015 when they bought the Cream City brick building on Kinnickinnic Avenue in Bay View. After a year-and-a-half of restoring the building, the couple opened Kinn Guesthouse in March of 2017. The name Kinn comes from Charles’ father and grandfather who ran the Drake hotels in Chicago and passed the trade down to him. The eight-room guesthouse has a chic modern feel with large windows in every room, making the rooms seem twice their actual size. All but one of the rooms and the spacious common area are on the second floor of the building, above the restaurant, Kindred.
Before you get to your room, you will be stopped by the stunning kitchen and living room space that is free for all the guests to use. Along with the deep-cushioned couch, gallery wall and fully outfitted kitchen, the Baileys have a Nespresso machine, bottle of wine and popcorn waiting for their guests. “People care to live in a different way,” says Charles. “They want something that’s more cozy and comfortable and feels more like home than the big hotels.” If you stay at Kinn, you will most likely meet the charming couple and be treated to the Honey Pie pastries that they offer every weekend.
Manderley Bed & Breakfast
For the last 17 years, Marie and Andrew Parker have been running Manderley Bed and Breakfast, making it the oldest running B&B in Milwaukee. Originally from the Milwaukee area, the couple decided to open the bed and breakfast once they discovered the elaborate mansion on Wells Street in the Concordia neighborhood. “Even in its dilapidated condition, it had charm and appeal,” explains Andrew. After seven years of rebuilding the structure and designing the interior with hand-made stencils and hand-painted art, they finally opened their dream business. Because there were no other Milwaukee B&Bs at the time, the couple helped the city write the laws pertaining to bed and breakfasts, making Concordia the official Bed and Breakfast District of Milwaukee.
When you first walk up to the Manderley mansion, you will most likely be greeted by one of the friendly cats waiting for you on the porch. As you pass through the door into the house, you will be taken back in time to a Victorian era filled with old books, ornate wall décor and a warm fireplace. Andrew and Marie will make you feel right at home with friendly conversation over fresh breakfast from their backyard chicken coop and vegetable garden. There is no doubt these two are dedicated to their guests and to Milwaukee.
Muse Gallery Guesthouse
When you choose to stay at the Muse Gallery Guesthouse in the heart of Bay View, you may spend hours sitting and talking with Mary Ellen Hermann and Andrew Meechan—the owners of the place. The novelty of this guesthouse comes from the Milwaukee art hanging on its walls and the dedication the couple has for the local artists. All of the art changes quarterly, thanks to the curating of Renée “Luna” Bebeau. To see the work on display, stop in during one of their gallery events or during the Bay View Gallery Night.
As experienced travelers, Hermann and Meechan see the value in bed and breakfasts because of the well-traveled people they often meet in such places. “When you have breakfast with them, you learn so many things, particularly the next two dozen places you want to go visit,” explains Mary Ellen. The guesthouse is meant to be an experience and a welcoming place for travelers to relax and feel like they are part of the city.
Sanger House Gardens
While walking up the front stairs to the Sanger House Gardens through the lush greenery, you can look over the vast array of plants at the beautiful cityscape of Milwaukee. If you continue on the winding pathways through the arching branches and multitude of colors, you will reach the carriage house in the back of the garden. There is only one bedroom in this urban getaway, but it is a luxury space with two floors, kitchen, laundry machines and double doors that open to the gardens. Steve Bialk and Angela Duckert bought the Brewer’s Hill property in 1985 and have been enhancing the gardens ever since.
About five years ago, they decided to start a wedding and event business in the space. Along with formal events, the couple has also hosted neighborhood garden clubs and participated in Doors Open Milwaukee 2017. After getting repeated requests for a guesthouse, Bialk and Duckert finally renovated the carriage house and opened the guesthouse last April. There is no breakfast included with your stay, but when you arrive, you’ll get a personal tour of the gardens and personal suggestions for your Milwaukee stay. One of the best things about Sanger is that pets are allowed. It’s a place where you get the best of both worlds: close proximity to the city and a hideaway amidst blooming flowers.
Schuster Mansion Bed & Breakfast
In that same Concordia neighborhood, you will find Schuster Mansion Bed and Breakfast, run by Rick and Laura Sue Mosier. They’re known for their Victorian-style high tea and exceptional hospitality. If you want coffee or tea delivered to your room in the morning, a choice of breakfast from their menu that has not changed in 10 years and freshly-ironed sheets every night, then the Schuster Mansion is the place for you. As you wander through the halls of the mansion, you get lost in the relics adorning the walls and the hand-made decorations throughout the house. The attention to detail is unreal, even down to the shower curtain rings covered in fabric so they don’t make a sound.
The moment you meet Rick and Laura Sue Mosier, you already feel like old friends. “It is so fun to meet people and learn about their lives and why they’re here. We’re part of people’s lives,” says Laura Sue. After talking with the couple for what could be hours, they will give you customized suggestions about the city based on your interests and their own secrets spots in Milwaukee.
Silver Spring Neighborhood Center
As you pull off Silver Spring Drive onto 64th Street, you may not think twice about the large building in the quiet neighborhood but once you walk through those front doors, you are greeted by smiling faces and a vibrant chandelier made by the kids that are part of the Silver Spring Neighborhood Center (SSNC). The community center is a nonprofit organization that services the people in the neighborhood through programs relating to health & wellness, education, and employment. At the heart of this organization are the people that work tirelessly to ensure these community members thrive in their city. “Whenever you are doing social service work, it is so critical. You go through a lot internally. It’s no easy job,” says Devin Hudson, the Development Director at the SSNC. The work they do at the neighborhood center opens so many doors for the individuals that take part in the programs.
The Silver Spring Neighborhood Center started in 1958 as a settlement house servicing the Westlawn neighborhood. The center was a resource for new residents to turn to as they started their lives in Milwaukee. Throughout SSNC's history, their partners have helped shape who they are and who they impact. So in 1986, the center partnered with the UWM College of Nursing, which allowed them to implement programs like health care services for people that are under-insured, classes to teach teens about choosing healthy foods, collaboration with the Childhood Development Center and the list goes on. At the core of these programs is the director Jean Bell-Calvin, who has been with the UW-Milwaukee Silver Spring Community Nursing Center since the start. “It’s a blessing to do the work that we do,” says Jean, “It’s about resources. It’s about how you advocate for resources in the community and it’s a challenge.” The lives Jean has touched in the community is hard to put into words, much less fit into a blog post.
Jean Bell-Calvin (left) and Devin Hudson (right)
The next major partnership happened in the early 2000s when SSNC joined with Browning Elementary School, part of Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS). The two started their cooperative because MPS was focused on bringing neighborhood schools back to the city. A neighborhood of support is what binds these organizations together.
The core of the SSNC's programs have always been youth oriented, but they also have a number of programs for adults such as their GED program and the Transform Milwaukee Program which opens job possibilities for those with a criminal background or a child support order.
For those in the area needing guidance or a way to start over, the Silver Spring Neighborhood Center stands as a center for hope. The SSNC has quality employees that can work with you to make the program successful. As soon as you step onto the campus, you are confronted with encouragement and place of comfort away from the challenges of everyday life. The SSNC's impact on Milwaukee is overwhelming. Learn more about what they are accomplishing on their website: www.ssnc-milw.org
Kinn Guesthouse
As you walk into the entrance way of the Kinn Guesthouse, you’ll find a beautiful open kitchen that faces a large couch, conveniently placed next to a cozy fireplace. As you enter, you instantly feel as though you’ve walked into a close friend’s home. Decorating the wall behind the couch is a broad collection of art displayed in a gallery style. If you look close enough, you’ll find two black and white portraits of men hidden among the colorful bustle of art. These men are the grandfather and father of Charles Bailey, the same men that ran The Drake Hotel in downtown Chicago and The Drake in Oakbrook, respectively. Now that Charles has opened his own guesthouse with his wife Connie Bailey, they thought it fitting to name their business Kinn (adding the extra “n” because the building is on Kinnickinnic Avenue in Bay View).
Originally from Chicago, Charles was a floor trader for years. But as the industry changed, he started looking at other career options. “I’ve always been fascinated with the idea of hotels because I’ve been around them my entire life. I never thought I’d be in the business but it always intrigued me,” says Charles. The couple lived in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood until they decided it was time to move as their son, Quinn was getting older. The family moved their life to Milwaukee and soon after that, found a beautiful brick building in Bay View for sale.
“The building presented itself and our dream started to take shape,” Connie explains. “The concept was all Charles, but we did work together to perfect the idea and execution.” The couple put in a great deal of work to get the building to where it is now. It started out as a masonic lodge then a series of bars and restaurants that didn’t take care of the space. Connie and Charles gutted the entire thing and brought the building back to life, while keeping the original flooring (110-year-old maple) and exposing the cream city brick walls.
Charles was always interested in the idea behind Airbnb and foresees the company changing the hotel industry. “To me, the success of Airbnb means that people care to live in a different way. They want something that feels more like home than the big hotels,” he says. Charles found the perfect mix between that homey concept and the luxury feel of hotels: comfy but not too personal. “Usually you just want to live like you do at home [when traveling],” says Charles. “I didn’t have to prove that concept, I just had to build it.” The idea was to keep overhead low by making the building totally self-sufficient so that Charles and Connie could focus on enriching the rooms as much as possible. When you book a room with Kinn Guesthouse, you receive a code for your room that becomes active the day you check in. When you arrive, your room is ready, there’s community wine in the common room, and if you happen to be there on a Saturday morning, Charles is most likely there to greet you with fresh muffins from Honey Pie (the bakery next door).
Kinn Guesthouse opened in March of this year but it is already very involved with theMilwaukee community. On all the walls in the guesthouse, you will find artwork from local Milwaukee artists that Connie handpicked herself. The exception is the gallery wall in the common room, which is part of Charles and Connie’s personal art collection. Connie plans on swapping the artwork in the rooms to display more local artists. On the Kinn website, you can find links to these artists. Kinn is also working with the restaurant Kindred, located on the first floor of the building. “We are starting to create events that bring local vendors in for conceptual dining experiences,” explains Connie.
Kinn makes it easy for travelers to instantly connect with Milwaukee. Guests can enjoy the luxurious day-lit rooms while feeling like they’re at home with access to a kitchen and a bottle of wine waiting for them on the counter. And the best part is that Charles and Connie take the time to get to know their guests. View their website and take a peek into the Kinn Guesthouse.
View the full blog at www.MKEinFocus.com