In this episode, discover the fascinating story behind Evva Fenison’s name and how a serendipitous meeting with filmmaker James Cameron led to a name in ‘Avatar’. Explore Evva’s entrepreneurial triumphs and the unforeseen life trials that resulted in breast cancer, a divorce, and a career upheaval. Despite it all, Evva emerges with a narrative of strength, resilience, and the profound belief in seizing one’s calling with unwavering faith and disciplined action. Don’t miss out on her forthcoming book ‘Evvalution’, a testament to lessons of serendipity, courage, and coming of age.
Welcome, everyone, to The Calling’s radio show to all the dreamers. I’m your radio host, Chrysandra Brunson, founder and CEO of The Calling. And it is such an honor to be with all of you today. You know, at The Calling, we have realized that so many people are afraid to go after the dreams that God has put inside each one of our hearts because they are afraid to fail. And that’s just plain wrong, because if God has given us a dream and we’re not living it out, We are wasting it, and we do not want to die with regret. That’s why we love to inspire, empower, and equip people to live out God’s dream on their lives to reap the best kind of harvest of long-lasting legacy and have immediate impact on themselves and their families. We love to do this through having custom programs and tools from conferences, seminars, global conferences, as well as this incredible radio show to all the dreamers and having world-renowned, truly world-renowned today, you guys, guests on this show. And we have the one and only Evva Fenison. And Evva, thank you so much for being here. This is so special. Thank you so much for inviting me.
EVVA FENISON :
Thank you for inviting me. This is wonderful.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
This is so special. And Evva, we just love your name. It’s iconic. And we were just sharing, you were sharing where that comes from. You said it’s very Polish.
EVVA FENISON :
It is. My family is Polish. They came from Poland to Canada. And Eva is one of the most common names in Poland. It’s like Kathy or Mary. It’s very common. But legally, it’s spelled E-W-A. Okay. In Poland, E-W-A is Eva. But of course, I come to Canada, where I’m originally from, and all the kids would call me Ewa. Okay. E-W-A. And I was like, no, it’s Eva. It’s Eva. Which actually leads to a very funny story that I’ll tell quickly about James Cameron. I was sitting next to James Cameron on a plane about 20 years ago and he was writing down my name. He’s like, oh, the kids called you Ewa and your name is spelled E-W-A. And he’s writing all this down. Well, lo and behold, many years later, I go see Avatar and Yes! What is the name of the goddess in Avatar? It’s Ewa. I bump into James Cameron at a dinner in New York and I asked him, I’m like, where did you get the name for your tree of life? And he said, it was from you on that plane. Oh my gosh.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
It came from Eva. It’s Eva.
EVVA FENISON :
Cause all the kids see, it’s like, I look at it as a blessing because the kids in school would bully me. They would bully me. They would tease me. I would come home crying when I was six years old. I’m like, they’re calling me Awa. It’s Awa. And now years later, you know, it’s a blessing now that, hey, my name is in a major motion picture.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
That is the best legacy you could ever, that is incredible. And it’s not just like one like movie. It’s like, it’s an iconic movie as well.
EVVA FENISON :
It is the number one bestselling all time movie of all time, I think. So yeah, I’m, I’m blessed. Absolutely. A negative turned into a positive.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Yes. Yes. Well, that just leads to your incredible story and your legacy that you’re having on the planet. I mean, you are a world shaker and I am just, we’re just so honored to have you on today and to be able to share your story. I mean, can you just share some of the roles that you play right now in humanity? Yeah.
EVVA FENISON :
I guess some of the roles that I’m now looking at is inspiring other people. I would like to say women, but I think all people to just inspire them to be able to get past adversity and trust themselves and to have faith. It’s very important. I’ve been through, you know, a lot in my life. And I think the first half of my life, I thought, you know, was blessed and wonderful. And I was just given so many blessings. And it’s interesting, you know, my life was unstoppable. Until it stopped. So you know, I had a few challenges that now I’m through the other side. And I realized that I could really help other people that might be going through those challenges currently. And I find that I’d like to just inspire people.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Wow. Well, you’re already doing that. And to see that come alive in a whole nother way in this season, it’s going to be so exciting. Yes, it is. You are you’re a world renowned entrepreneur. Can you share some of the entrepreneurship roles that you’ve played as well?
EVVA FENISON :
Many years ago, when I was 24 years old, I started a little company and we did franchise development. We would sell franchises and set up franchises across Canada, which then turned into across America. And that company became extremely large and ended up selling it 24 years later. Wow. So that’s what I’m talking about. When I was talking about challenges, I had kind of three challenges happen all at the same time about about 10 years ago now. And one of them was selling the company. So it’s how do you go from being this world class entrepreneur to now? My identity is not that anymore anymore. So it’s a challenge. Okay, well, you have to have faith in what am I going to do next? And everything happens in three. So at that time, I also got breast cancer. which is a big one to, you know, overcome. And unfortunately I got a divorce after 20 years of marriage. So those three things of selling your company, getting a divorce and getting breast cancer kind of threw me into, wait a second, what happened to my perfect blessed life? So I really had to do some soul searching and a lot of praying and realized that I, I just, I have to get my confidence back and I am back.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
She is back. You guys, you should, I mean, Emma, you have been able to travel the world and be with world leaders on a daily, weekly basis because you, I feel like God has just entrusted you with so much, but you were able to take those challenges and be able to captivate it and not allow it to stop you, but to launch you. Yes. Very profound.
EVVA FENISON :
And that’s something that I would really, I see so many people, especially right now, you know, after COVID and with everything that’s happening with the economy, there’s a lot of people struggling right now. And I would love to just be that little ounce of, inspiration that tells them you can get to the other side of breast cancer. You can get to the other side of the divorce that there is light at the end of the tunnel. You just really have to kind of call in your angels and pray. And I have my angel sweater on.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
It’s beautiful. That’s amazing.
EVVA FENISON :
And it’s just being able to show people that might be struggling that there is light. Believe me, there is light at the end of the tunnel.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Right, right. So how are you able to take that? Well, first off, are you able to share what company you did start?
EVVA FENISON :
Yeah, I had a company called Evro International.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Wow. And you just had this idea. It was this calling in your heart to start.
EVVA FENISON :
I’m not sure if it was a calling in my heart as much as it was being guided kind of from above. It just happened. It wasn’t something that I set in motion. It’s something that was kind of happened by accident. I was in the right place at the right time. And an unfortunate thing happened when I was 24. The company that I was working for that I was national marketing director and thought I was the bomb. And that company ended up going under.
EVVA FENISON :
A very long story. We went public. The CEO ended up in prison for stock manipulation. And I’m like, whoa, I’m 24. I don’t understand any of this. But what I do know is I’m out of a job now. So at that point, we had different contracts. And I walked into some of our contracts and said, I’d like to take over. And I’m thinking I’m asking for a job. And they said, sure, we’ll give your company the contract. And I’m thinking, I need a company.
EVVA FENISON :
So it really was something that I’m very grateful that I was chosen for that role. And it really worked out quite well.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
And you were 24.
EVVA FENISON :
Yeah. I didn’t know what I didn’t know. I didn’t know, you know, I just knew that I had to have discipline. I had to move forward and work really hard. So that’s, you know, to achieve any kind of success, you have to have, you have to have the discipline and you have to have the willingness to go all in and work hard. Right. You know, and then throughout the years, yeah, I have met many world leaders and many celebrities and many great people. And I just somehow I end up my friends always laugh. Their their line for me is ever she leads a charmed life. And it’s, I believe in angels that I am often asking them for guidance. And somehow I get myself into places that there’s a lot of powerful people. And yes.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
And can you just give us like, just list off a few people that come to mind that you’ve been encountered.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Pardon me? And just become friends with just over. Exactly. They’re literally world changers.
EVVA FENISON :
Yeah. There’s people that, uh, that I’ve really enjoyed becoming friends with. I was able to go to Windsor castle and had dinner with Prince Edward and
EVVA FENISON :
I did. Oh, my gosh. I did. And from that encounter, ended up going for the weekend with Prince Edward and his wife Sophie to the Cayman Islands and was scuba diving and spent the weekend with them and ended up doing a tour of Buckingham Palace with them, which gave me full access, which was just… otherworldly. I’m walking around, I’m on the balcony at Buckingham Palace going, what am I doing here? I’m a little girl from Canada, from Prince Edward Island, the tiniest of little islands on the East Coast. And I’m thinking, you know, my grandmother would be so proud right now because she came from, you know, war-torn Warsaw in Poland. And she actually wrote a book as well. She wrote a book called From Poland to PEI, which kind of inspired me to write my book. but all these different, um, people that I’ve met, I’ve realized they’re really just, we all put our pants on, you know, one leg at a time and everybody has different souls. And I really connect with people that have great souls, um, I’ve just noticed there are people that have great souls. And I also have realized there are people that unfortunately have evil souls and I need to stay away from those. Yeah. So I’ve developed friendships with different people from world leaders to billionaires to people that have started incredible companies. A dear friend of mine is Elena Cardone. Elena and Grant lived here in San Diego and then have since moved out to Miami. And she is just an incredible friend, mentor, business leader, and her and her husband are just creating a movement on this planet, which I’m happy to help with.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Oh, that is fascinating, Eva. Wow. Well, I think it is like God just like he connects us to who we’re meant to, but to have that discernment of, you know, who to go to, who not to. Eva, we need to take a short break, but we’ll be right back. We thank everyone for tuning in to all the Dreamers radio show. We’ll be right back. Hi guys, this is Crisandra Brunson, host of To All The Dreamers. I am so happy to introduce personal training, nutritional guidance, and behavioral change coaching. Healthy, happy, and heavenly for your wellness, spirit, soul, and body. Contact Mimi Kroger at healthyhappyandheavenly.com.
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CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
We are back. Thank you for tuning in to all the Dreamers Radio Show. We have Eva Finneson on with us, upcoming author and, well, current author. It’s going to be releasing very soon, as well as world changer. And we were just listening to how Eva was acting. having dinner with Prince Edward and just such a great example of how God opens up the most incredible doors to be able to be connected to the right people for the right opportunities when we’re able to step out in faith and go after what God We’re able to and called to and overcome those challenges. And you’ve overcome you said breast cancer and then also just selling a very successful business and having to not have your identity in that and then overcoming divorce. And those are three huge life changing factors. And I like that you brought up that they come in threes. because that does happen it’s like whenever one thing or two things happen i’m like where’s the next one and i don’t know if that’s a superstition but uh yeah that’s how it happens oh well and i wanted to just if people missed the first part of our show that you were saying james cameron who is the director of avatar heard your name on well first at the airplane and then you guys ran into each other in new york and he said that you were the inspiration of awa yes oh my gosh that is so powerful so you guys just that’s just a little snapshot of how powerful this woman is and um her incredible inspiration in humanity and We haven’t been able to hear too much about your incredible book that is going to be coming out. Can people order it yet?
EVVA FENISON :
Not yet. I’m just putting the final touches on it. But I’ve named the book Evolution. What is it called? It’s called Evolution. Wow.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
I love it.
EVVA FENISON :
When I look at life, I think it is an evolution of our souls to really gain knowledge and be able to put into our mind better information. Our minds are always in formation and we need to be working on that knowledge. So the book is called evolution and it’s a life inspired lessons of serendipity, courage and coming of age.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Wow. Well, I want to be the first one to get a copy.
EVVA FENISON :
I will send you a copy, my dear. The minute it’s out, you’re the first one.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Oh, I would love that. And then I want to buy one too to give away to our guests that are tuning in. And I just know, like, Emma, for you to… We don’t come across, you are like royalty in my eyes of just seeing a great influence and having these experiences to be able to take and then want to give back just such a golden heart and appreciate your influence so very much. And what would you say has been one of the biggest, how have you been able to overcome one of the biggest challenges in fulfilling your calling in these different seasons?
EVVA FENISON :
I think it really goes back to childhood and I was raised by my grandparents. So when I was a baby, my mother unfortunately had drug and alcohol addiction issues and passed away of those. So I was raised by my grandparents who came from Poland. They led a very aristocratic life in Poland. My grandmother’s father was the governor in Warsaw. And until she was 16 years old, this girl had, you know, private chauffeurs and the opera Saturday night. They had chefs. They had a summer home. They lived a very aristocratic life in Poland. And in one moment when she was 16, the war broke out. So now you have the Russians in one side, the Germans in the other side. And the first people, the first person they went after was the governor. So they killed her father literally in front of her. Now she’s 16. Her little sister, Eva, who I’m named after, is 14. So these two girls and their mom end up in a concentration camp in Russia. And I think what most people don’t realize, whenever I tell people my grandparents were, you know, in concentration camps after the war, the first question they ask me is, oh, are you Jewish? I’m like, no, there were five million Polish Christians who were put in the concentration camps during the war. Wow. My grandparents, very long story, ended up from Siberia in concentration camp, getting married in Beirut, Lebanon. They had their first child in Egypt, who was my mother. They had another child in England. And then they went to Canada, to Prince Edward Island, where they had their third child, my beloved Aunt Anna. And she was born in Prince Edward Island in Canada. And when I look at this young couple who had to go through all these different countries and make their way there, You know, mom was still with them. And I look at the perseverance, the determination, the ability to overcome obstacles. I mean, can you imagine you and I being sent to China? Like you don’t speak the language and you’re meant to start a new life. And you’ve got three kids and a mom traveling with you and on your back. My grandparents are incredible and they raised me. So they really taught me the lessons of gratefulness and being aware that we live in such a great country. But anything can be taken away from you in an instant that we all have to be very, very grateful. And we need to be grateful. aware of what is happening in the world so my grandmother when she was 86 she wrote a book and her book is poland to pei i actually have my little copy here my grandmother my grandfather that’s my mother who at that time was eight less was four and anna was just born So here’s this young couple that is now starting a whole new life. And then, you know, years later, in comes a granddaughter that now they raise. And I just learned so many lessons from them that I admire and I want to be able to show the next generation. So this book really, it’s not so much to sell as much as it is for, it started off for my family. It was going to be for my little, you know, my nieces, my nephews that, okay, they’re little now. I have five. I have Xavier, Cecilia, Everett, Lucia, and Kasia, all Polish names.
EVVA FENISON :
But they are all, you know, eight down, eight years down to six months old. And I think, okay, in, you know, 50 years when they need guidance, Auntie Eva isn’t going to be here anymore. The way I see it is my spirit and my soul and my words can be given to them through this book. That was my initial motivation to honor my grandmother and to be able to have her teachings go down to her great, great grandchildren through her book, through my book as a legacy. But then a lot of my friends have said, wait a sec, this book can inspire so much more than just your family. Yes. I realized, okay, maybe I should make this a little broader and be able to encourage more people.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Oh, well, I’m so glad that they started speaking that into you because I completely agree. And I think everyone tuning in as well. They’re like, yes, we want a copy of this book as well. And it seems like I think, you know, it’s neat to be able to see the best kind of stories almost the touch back on each other. So they start with something and then they end with the same sort of event. And it seems like you are taking your grandma’s legacy and being able to fulfill it. And because she lost, you know, living this life and then being able to have it all taken away. And then, I mean, you’ve been able to just restart that and it just is really powerful to see how
EVVA FENISON :
And she was able to restart it when she came to Canada to Prince Edward Island. She started a tourist resort where she bought five acres of land in the middle of nowhere. And she built one cottage and the whole family would live in a trailer. So like six people in a little trailer behind the cottage and she would rent the, it was on the ocean. So she would rent that one cottage out during the summers, made enough money that year to build a second cottage, then rented the two of them out. In the end, she had 26 cottages and three houses. Oh, my gosh. That is amazing. She is my, I call her Bobby, my babcha. My Bobby is an entrepreneurial icon. And she really taught me everything from a very young age. I remember when I was, you know, three, four years old, she would have me going with all the maids to 26 cottages with a dust rag. At that time, I’m like three, four. I’m like, this is awesome. I couldn’t wait to graduate to the vacuum cleaner.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
I love it. We’re coming towards the end of our show. It goes by way too fast, but we would love to have you back when you’re available. And we, before we go though, we want to hear what you would tell people tuning in. They’re wanting to go after their calling, but they don’t know how, what would be your life giving tip that they would take with them that could change their life?
EVVA FENISON :
I think life-giving tips would be believe in yourself, that you really do have to just say, I can do this. Have discipline. And discipline is something that, you know, it’s getting up in the morning, drinking your water, getting some exercise, just those little things. So you believe in yourself. Once you prove to yourself, you can do little things, then you can do bigger things. I think the last one is just baby steps, right? That you’re not going to accomplish everything in your first week. Take little steps towards your goal. And those little steps add up very quickly.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Yes. Wow, that is powerful. Well, we cannot wait to have you back, hopefully sooner rather than later. And we want to be able to share that for people to be able to get a copy of Evan’s upcoming book, Evolution. Is that right, Evolution? It is, Evolution. It’s perfect. I love it. It’s so powerful. You guys, you guys are going to be able to get one by following Eva and being able to make sure that you follow her and the calling and you’ll be entered into win that copy that the calling will be giving out. And how can people stay in touch with you to cheer you on to be part of this movement? And what is coming up, especially with just getting a copy of your book?
EVVA FENISON :
Okay. Instagram. So I’m on Instagram and I have a crazy name. It’s Instagram Vava, V-A-V-A. So that’s my Instagram. I’m also on Facebook just under Eva Fennison. And then I have a website that is kind of in working. It’s in development at evaj360.com.
CHRYSANDRA (Host) :
Perfect. Well, we are so honored to have you, Eva. And we just we cannot wait for all the other world adventures that are going to be coming and your wisdom and to read your upcoming book. We cannot wait. And we just thank everybody for tuning into all the Dreamers radio show. We we just want you to know that you can go after the dream that is inside of your heart. Our theme question is, what would you do if you knew you could not fail? And whatever that answer is that pops up in your heart, just know you’re meant to do it. You can do it. And we believe in you. There’s free resources at our website. And you can get in touch with Eva and to be able to rehear this show today and to be able to get in touch with her. We love you. We believe in you. Till next time, dreamers. Keep dreaming big.
