May brought a wave of honors and meaningful moments I’m incredibly grateful to share. I’m thrilled to announce that my Ireland TV segment, “Celtic Charm,” on The Jet Set TV won a Telly Award (there were 13,000 entries), and I’m a five-time finalist for the upcoming Southern California Journalism Awards, including recognition for both my podcast, my Jet Set TV segment on Icon of the Seas and I am a finalist again for Online Journalist of the Year! Winners will be announced in June.
Print features included not one but two stories in Pasadena Magazine—one on my Antarctica adventure with Quark Expeditions and another on my Churchill Wild walking safari with polar bears. I also had the chance to speak at several events, from Frequent Traveler University in Dallas, where I met the legendary Tom Stuker (24 million miles!), to Brandeis University’s alumni spring luncheon in Marina del Rey and a Hadassah New Orleans Zoom gathering, where I had the honor of sharing the message behind BRAVE-ish.
I’m excited to share that my YouTube channel has now surpassed 2.4 million views. And I continue to be inspired by the people I meet—Hoda Kotb on the red carpet at a QVC and TikTok event said she’s going to read BRAVE-ish, and Tiffany Haddish’s Soul Train Prom benefiting the She Ready Foundation for foster youth was amazing. I also attended a powerful Gala for the Organization for Social Media Safety, supporting crucial work that protects young people online.
This month’s “Make Your Own Map” podcast featured Ryan from Quark Expeditions, who was expedition leader on my Antarctica journey, and author Tara Schuster, whose insights on journal writing and self-discovery are soul-shifting.
Feeling honored, humbled, and ready for what’s next.
Pasadena Magazine: TWO PRINT STORIES in the May/June 2025 Travel issue
Thank you Malina Saval and Pasadena Magazine for publishing my Quark Expeditions adventure in Antarctica — in print! From stand-up paddleboarding with seals to helicopter landings on the ice, it was a journey of a lifetime. Grateful to share the magic of the White Continent with readers back home.
Travel All-Stars at FTU 2025 — What an inspiring weekend with legends like Rudy Maxa, Tommy Danielsen, Peter Greenberg, John Ryan, Jamie Larounis, and the incredible Tom Stuker—who’s flown over 24 million miles!
I have events nearly every month–hope to see you at a live event soon–and you can invite me to speak at your conference, library, bookstore, book club live or on ZOOM!
I have students in 9 countries so far:
Australia, Canada, India, Italy, New Zealand, Philippines, Portugal, Thailand, USA!
Join us on the adventure of travel writing!
THANK YOU for watching my award-winning podcast, Make Your Own Map: Are YOU ready to be BRAVE? It has now been seen and heard in 59 countries on 7 continents.
Here is the link to my video channel on YouTube where I now have over 2.4 Million views on YouTube! (now at: 2,400,200).
Thank you for your support! Are you one of my 4,600 subscribers? I hope you will join me and subscribe! For more We Said Go Travel articles, TV segments, videos and social media: CLICK HEREFind me on social media with over 150,000 followers. Please follow me on social @LisaNiver TikTok, X Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube,LinkedIn, BlueSky and at LisaNiver.com.Do you LOVE my book BRAVE-ish? PLEASE WRITE A REVIEW!! Click here to go directly to rate or review BRAVE-ish on Amazon (now at 61 reviews. Help me get to 75) You can find my book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Simon & Schuster, Post Hill Press, Target, Walmart, BookShop, BAM! and wherever you get your audiobooks!
People always ask me where is it best to buy my book. I recommend you go into or call your favorite local book store and ask them to order it for you and pick it up IN THE STORE! You never know what other treasures you will find. Any bookstore can order my book because my publisher is Post Hill Press and it is distributed by Simon and Schuster. My book is now in the library on Quark Ultramarine and in the store at Dubray bookstore on Grafton in Dublin, Ireland! Brave-ish is available all over the globe!
When we teach our children, the lesson they glean should be sharp and clear enough, so they feel anchored by our tradition and confident in our values.
The Israeli singer returns the Saban Theater in Beverly Hills on Oct. 11 with “One More Night,” bringing the mix of Ladino, flamenco and Middle Eastern music that has defined much of her work.
“NAZA: The Real Story” focuses on the IDF’s efforts to avoid civilian casualties while fighting Hamas, portraying an army that takes extensive precautions before carrying out strikes.
“Naza” is not successful on any level as a documentary, but if judged on awards, and getting people who were already angry angrier, it very well may be.
After weeks of holiday feasting and heavy meals, the new Jewish year is a perfect time to reset, to nourish our bodies with food that is wholesome and still tastes delicious.
For Israel, and for everyone who believes that seemingly permanent conflicts need not remain permanent, what is unfolding in the South Caucasus deserves to be recognized, encouraged and protected.
I stood there in awe, my eyes blurring with tears, listening to the hush and experiencing the unnamed. I couldn’t tell which was stranger: feeling the rainforest in me, or me in the rainforest. And then my phone rang.
Following on the heels of his earlier presentations of the Passover Haggadah and the books of Esther and Jonah, Gorfinkel, known to his friends as “Gorf,” along with Israeli illustrator Yael Nathan and a team of specialized artists, have produced “The Koren Magerman Tanakh Graphic Novel: Bereshit Vol. 1,” which renders the first two Torah portions in Genesis, Bereshit and Noah, in dynamically engaging visual narrative form.
More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.
May Milestones: Awards, Adventures & Honored Moments
Lisa Ellen Niver
May News 2025 Niver’s Newsletter 185
May brought a wave of honors and meaningful moments I’m incredibly grateful to share. I’m thrilled to announce that my Ireland TV segment, “Celtic Charm,” on The Jet Set TV won a Telly Award (there were 13,000 entries), and I’m a five-time finalist for the upcoming Southern California Journalism Awards, including recognition for both my podcast, my Jet Set TV segment on Icon of the Seas and I am a finalist again for Online Journalist of the Year! Winners will be announced in June.Telly Award Winner: Celtic Charm Ireland Travel TV Special
Pasadena Magazine: TWO PRINT STORIES in the May/June 2025 Travel issue
Thank you Malina Saval and Pasadena Magazine for publishing my Quark Expeditions adventure in Antarctica — in print! From stand-up paddleboarding with seals to helicopter landings on the ice, it was a journey of a lifetime. Grateful to share the magic of the White Continent with readers back home.Frequent Traveler University Dallas 2025: Finding Joy in Travel
Travel All-Stars at FTU 2025 — What an inspiring weekend with legends like Rudy Maxa, Tommy Danielsen, Peter Greenberg, John Ryan, Jamie Larounis, and the incredible Tom Stuker—who’s flown over 24 million miles!BRAVE-ish at Brandeis University Alumni Books and Authors Spring Event 2025
RECENT EVENTS:
Tiffany Haddish’s “Get on the Soul Train” to Support Youth Impacted by Foster Care
Making Space for Women 50+ to Shine: QVC TikTok Super Brand Day
Thank you QVC TikTok Super Brand Day for all the inspiration!Learn more about my events: click here and my articles here
Want to travel more? I have a Travel Writer 101 class on Udemy. CLICK here for a coupon to take my class for FREE!
Have you heard my recent podcast episodes?
BRAVE-ish speaker for Brandeis Spring Author Event
Tara Schuster Isn’t Afraid to Go There—And You’ll Be Glad She Did
Leading the Way: An Antarctic Expedition with Ryan McDevitt on Quark Ultramarine
WHERE CAN YOU FIND MY TRAVEL VIDEOS?
Here is the link to my video channel on YouTube where I now have over 2.4 Million views on YouTube! (now at: 2,400,200). Thank you for your support! Are you one of my 4,600 subscribers? I hope you will join me and subscribe! For more We Said Go Travel articles, TV segments, videos and social media: CLICK HERE Find me on social media with over 150,000 followers. Please follow me on social @LisaNiver TikTok, X Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, LinkedIn, BlueSky and at LisaNiver.com.You can also find me now on SUBSTACK!
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More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.