Sisters Rebecca Cook and Sarah Johnson meet every week to walk their dogs on the Northern Michigan University campus. Throughout the conversation the two dogs, Razzle a husky mix and Duke a golden lab, wrestled together on the ground. Cook said that the dogs are best friends and love walking on campus. They explained that the spot where they were standing, next to the Wildcat Willy Sculpture, is directly in between their two houses. “I love this campus. It’s like a huge park,” Cook said. “I walk on campus every morning and every evening.” Cook moved to Marquette 35 years ago after her husband got a job working at Marquette Senior High School. She then enrolled in NMU’s nursing program and began to work at the hospital. Johnson came to the area for school. Now, Cook is retired and Johnson works at the DJ Jacobetti Home for Veterans. “I would say that Marquette is definitely more of my hometown than my hometown,” Cook said. “You know, I left my hometown when I was 18, haven’t lived there since. I can walk down the street in Marquette and see friends, people I’ve known for 30 years.” “The people in this community are fantastic, and between hanging out with great people and a beautiful place. There’s nothing better,” Johnson said. (Journal photo by Caroline Ray)