Margaret Cooley, ’83, B.A., physical education, and ’84, M.Ed., and Susy Hymas, ’82, B.S., environmental health, met as students picking apples in Eastern Washington over summer break, but they really bonded over their shared interests in health and nutrition.
“We spent a lot of time hanging out at each other’s houses in the ’70s and early ’80s,” says Cooley. “We really supported each other like family.”
After careers in health education, plus disease prevention and research for Cooley, the retired friends have embarked on a new venture: a health and nutrition podcast called “Staying Alive with Margaret and Susy.”
“We thought about how we could share our life’s work and knowledge to help others going through health challenges, navigating the medical system, and even looking to avoid health problems by eating better and following some of the wisdom we share,” Hymas says.
To bring their vision to life, the pair enlisted the talents of Wil Guilfoyle, a WWU English major with a background in editing and film production.
Working on the podcast, Guilfoyle has seen his own approach to diet and health start to change. “For instance, my water intake skyrocketed after finishing the edit on the ‘Hydration’ episode,” he says.
