The First Women Lifeguards: How Perseverance and Skill Overcame Obstacles

·53 min·3 clips

“Guarding taught me not to make that same mistake, not to underestimate anyone standing before me.”

A former lifeguard looks back with care. Don Murphy introduces Debbie Friedman as one of the first women lifeguards on the beaches of Southern California, then asks what pulled her toward water and rescue work in the first place. Her answer is not neat or cinematic. She talks about joining swimming at 13, getting stronger, going to Saddleback Community College, and landing at a Huntington Beach tryout after lifeguarding came up as a good summer job. The interview moves at an easy pace. Murphy gives Friedman space to tie her own story to a harder question: who gets trusted when the work is dangerous and public. The world she describes feels boxed in. Friedman says that period, around 1978, sorted people too quickly by gender and appearance. Murphy reads from her book, including a passage about men driving past women guards and assuming they could not do the job. Friedman sees that now as more than an insult. It became part of what guarding taught her. She learned not to size someone up too fast. Ability and good judgment can sit behind appearance, gender, size, or age. Friedman speaks like someone who has had time to understand what happened. Writing the book helped her put language to lessons she may not have been able to explain then. The conversation does not stay only with women lifeguards. Friedman asks who still gets left out, and who gets misunderstood because people reach for quick categories. Emergency work makes that sharper. A first glance can twist how people judge readiness, experience, and skill. She also talks about aging in physical work, and how to respect wisdom after years of demanding labor. Murphy closes warmly, pointing listeners toward her book and returning to the show’s familiar invitation to stay safe, share happiness, and keep questioning.

As heard by us

A steady account of skill, scrutiny, and the risk of underestimating people.

Debbie Friedman tells a straightforward story about becoming one of the first women lifeguards on the beaches of Southern California, and the draw is in the details.

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Why you'd press play

A reflective lifeguard interview about first women on Southern California beaches, first impressions, and what experience adds with age.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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