Radio hosts Ruth and Ed Shaw toss their show in a suitcase and broadcast from the jungles of Borneo, from Shanghai, Hawaii, The Queen Mary in Long Beach, the location of the movie The Bridge on the River Kwai or anywhere else they might venture to. A 5lb Comrex hot box allows the couple to keep their date with listeners every Saturday on the WAXY network and Sundays from noon to three on the Talkamerica network.

In June and July, the Ruth and Ed Shaw Show will hail from such places as the Statue of Liberty, the Potomac River, Amsterdam and the beaches of Bali. In between such exotic locations, Ruth and Ed broadcast from the deck of their 32-foot sailboat, docked behind their Lighthouse Point, Florida home.

How does the couple, both of whom qualify for senior discounts, keep up with their hectic schedule? "Even as we speak, Ruth is mixing up an ugly green drink," Ed says. "We're the healthiest middle-aged couple in America."

Privy to all the latest health and nutrition news via the guests and books they highlight on the show, Ruth says, "We try to live like we teach." Her "green drink" comes from the book, The Living Beauty Detox Program, written by well-respected nutritionist Ann Louise Gittleman. Another recent guest was Burton Goldberg, publisher of the popular Alternative Health prevention guides.

The Shaws follow their interests. That's why mother and daughter-in-law author team Sue Johnson and Julie Carlson who wrote "Grandloving," were invited on the show. "Problems arise to us," says Ruth, "and we try to bring the subject up to the general public." The Book's issue of developing a close emotional relationship with grandchildren who are physically far away hit home with Ruth and Ed who face this with their own miles-away grandkids. The radio show's health, family and positive living content recently earned them a spot among the 100 Most Important Radio Shows in America as listed by Talkers Magazine.

Ruth founded the nonprofit organization, Hugs Not Drugs, in 1983, and says the radio show evolved four years ago as a way to reach more people. "I was doing workshops around the country," says Ruth of her efforts to help parents be good role models and provide them with tools to educate their kids against drug abuse. "It was exhausting, and you could only reach fifty to a hundred people at a time." Calling upon Ed's colorful background as an actor, publicist and former host of the radio show, Ed Shaw's America, they now reach listeners in 95 countries with an extended happy, healthy and wealthy message for families that Ruth began with Hugs Not Drugs.

Ed's no lump of jelly either. At fifteen, he hitchhiked out of the poverty of Buffalo, New York into a Hollywood acting career. He played in TV programs like Ozzie and Harriet and Father Knows Best. Longing for more stability, Ed made what he calls "an easy transition" into the publicity side of the business. "I'm the last of Hollywood's genuine press agents," he says, describing once-common publicity stunts reminiscent of the I Love Lucy Show's Hollywood episodes. "Now they're all public affairs execs with three-button suits."

Ed has a list of friends and clients that reads like a theater marquis or the TV Guide. "Now, at my older age, I can't see a movie or turn on television without seeing someone I used to go bar-hopping with or count as a good friend." Ed still does an occasional publicity stunt for Hugs Not Drugs. He recently launched a 25-foot blimp balloon in Orlando, splashing the Hugs Not Drugs message across the sky. "There's no big plaque and no award banquet," says Ed about his wife's anti-drug work. He's proud of the woman who cashed in her teaching pension to start the program. "She began by going door-to-door with the message. Now there are more than a million bumper stickers on cars in America."

Ruth hopes she can get more grandparents involved in the fight against drug abuse. "The generation who are grandparents right now can still remember when the word 'crack' meant a hole in the sidewalk," Ruth says. "They can be a driving force for good." She welcomes ideas from readers and listeners about getting grandparents involved. "Just give us a call," she says.

With a colorful track record rooted in hard work and positive living, Ruth and Ed have touched many lives. Ed was excited to get a call from a blind man who said all of his blind friends listen. Ruth is happy that young people and teenagers listen in too. She holds a very different perception of teens than the negative one that's often projected today. "They're intelligent and interested in their health," she says, explaining that teens as young as 12 and 13 call in to the show.

With a verve for life and an intense interest in the people they "talk" to all around the world, there is no doubt that Ruth and Ed Shaw will continue to make radio waves for a brighter future.

Tune in for a "Hug."