Podcasts. Still Surprising. Very Rewarding.

By Erica and Karen

About a year ago, Erica suggested we do some podcasts. She felt strongly that we should tell the stories of the women who changed the world when they went into the workforce in the 1960s and 1970s, and who are still changing the world by embarking on new post-career challenges now that they have retired. Few of these women are famous. But there are millions of them, and they change the world simply by moving forward, one day at a time.

Karen was a little leery. She loved the idea, but what did we know about podcasts? Other than that podcast hosts had to sound intelligent, and that seemed stressful. Of course we knew nothing about websites and blogs until we started, either, and that is working out really well, so maybe this would too?

So we jumped in. We asked friends for podcast producer recommendations—few had any, and we couldn’t find any other podcasts aimed at Lustre Ladies. So we cold-called a team we found on the internet.

We did our first podcast—in a bar. (Obviously, this duo got us immediately!) Our first victim was Erica’s college roommate, who had been in publishing for years and could tell a story or two about those early times. She was great. But we were unsure of ourselves, and futzed around too long, so our team got tired of us. They were used to people who know a little more about what they were doing!

So we looked around, and eventually came upon Wonder Media Network, a newish company started by two impressive young women who know a lot about podcasts, and who were interested in the project.

Ultimately, we decided to make a first series of ten episodes. The first would be the two of us interviewing each other; the last would be our daughters interviewing us. We needed eight more. We were lucky to be able to choose from an amazing pool of women with remarkable stories. One would be Susan, of course. The others include a brilliant media and arts pioneer; a trailblazer in the art world; a woman who pivoted from non-profits to showcasing her grandmother, a textile artist; a lawyer turned banker turned reproductive health advocate; a retirement expert; and a woman who worked her way up, from a campaign volunteer to one of a handful of women in the executive dining room.

Meanwhile, WMN had opened a new office and studio in Little Italy, and that is where we did most of our recordings. A cool location, usually quiet in the morning but bustling as the day goes on—especially when San Gennaro is in full swing. And these women, and our new producer, really know what they are doing. They make us sound great!

Now, the series is recorded, and what fun it has been. We are getting more comfortable in the studio, and we just love hearing the stories. We’ve had great feedback, too.

We hope you listen, subscribe and rate us. Here’s the link. With your help, we can do some more!