Quotes From the Author


 

Advance Praise

“I have known Susie Levan for twenty years as a highly credentialed executive, innovator, publisher, pastoral counselor, healer, and accomplished facilitator of women's personal and professional growth. Her book proves that overcoming unimaginable obstacles is not a cliché. With the right framework and tools, life on earth can be pretty close to heaven.”

Romero Britto

World Renown Brazilian Artist, Painter, Serigrapher and Sculptor

“Susie's book, written from the heart, is a powerful reminder that each of us has already been given abundant passion, strength, vision, and love—enough to live rich, productive, joyful lives if we are fearless in our efforts to do so, as she was.”

Joan Borysenko, Ph.D.

New York Times Bestselling Author

“Susie Levan’s raw, insightful, penetrating account of the fallout from her kidnapping, near-death experience, and a life obliterated by these experiences—then painstakingly stitched back together in the aftermath—is riveting.  I love how she is able to heal and synthesize everything into a platform to empower all women to be the masters of their own lives.” 

Janet Bray Attwood

New York Times Author
The Passion Test — Your Hidden Riches

“Susie Levan teaches all of us how to live in the present moment and appreciate the blessings of life.  She reminds us that human suffering at any level can be overcome and teaches us that a life of peace and joy is out there waiting.  Read this book and discover the power within yourself. It is a gift.”

Rikki Klieman

Attorney and Legal Analyst

“In her book, Getting to Forgiveness, Susie Levan embodies what it means to be a phoenix rising from the ashes with grace and gratitude.  Her story of love, success, extreme loss and ultimately finding love within herself is a beautiful message for anyone who has struggled with their own life’s purpose and belonging.  It is a compelling reminder of the power of forgiveness and what it means to choose the path that ultimately leads to wisdom.”

Lisa Lutoff-Perlo

President & CEO
Celebrity Cruises

"Very few are chosen to enlighten the path of humanity in a meaningful way. Susie is a living example of the even fewer who have accepted this calling. Her loving, giving nature, her fierce determination to win over life’s obstacles, her indisputable resilience, and the powerful wisdom bestowed upon her from above, are her trademarks in each chapter of this book. Her message is profound, impactful, thought provoking and divinely crafted to inspire and ignite one’s purpose in life. It has been an honor to know her and to partake some of life’s experience together. Susie is a true blessing in my life and in the lives of countless others.  The path to forgiveness is a road less traveled; but she reveals how this path leads travelers to true freedom. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone that seeks spiritual and personal growth. The lessons are a divine revelation of what it takes to undergo a real transformation; emerging from darkness and allowing one’s soul to be awaken for the true meaning of life. May the journey of forgiveness, peace and freedom begin, for each reader of this life-changing book!"

Giselle Cheminand

President & CEO
GCI Worldwide Corporation

“Susie Levan radiates light — both in person and through her words in this book. She is a teacher through and through - constantly sharing her light. We are blessed that she has found the incredible courage to share her journey with us and the precious lessons she has discovered along the way, from the heart shattering lows to the moments of radical amazement.  These lessons, they are what have brought wisdom into Susie’s life. They make her light shine brighter. Thankfully, she has the incredible ability not just to tell her story, but to share her wisdom, her light, with us in a way that touches our hearts and souls. By sharing her story, Susie gives us gifts — tools that empower us to grow as spiritual beings, in doing so, she adds light to all of our lives.”

Andrew Jacobs, Rabbi

Ramat Shalom Synagogue
Founder, ISH

“Levan is a survivor on too many levels to mention, and, yet, her message isn’t about HER, it’s about US...you and me! It’s about how the most earthshattering experience in our lives can be our soul’s salvation. How can a person wrap their head around devastation and death and come out the other side to find forgiveness, love and purpose? Well, I guess you’ll just have to read the book to know...”

Melinda Lee Foster

Author, Host, Spokesperson

“Susie Levan has transformed her trauma into action.  She lives and breathes with gratitude and forgiveness, knowing them as gifts that come with loss, pain and suffering.  There is no other woman I know on this planet who so lovingly and unconditionally gives of herself to inspire others, especially women, to be fearless and to fulfill their soul’s purpose.     I have known and worked side by side with Susie Levan for over a decade and can unequivocally attest to her carrying a unique and special light and love that clearly, is from heaven above. She has truly accessed the depths of her soul and lives as an extraordinary woman — who deeply touches and indelibly inspires everyone she meets.” 

Liz Sterling

Author, Broadcaster, Motivational Speaker and Blogger

“I had the great fortune of meeting Susie when my consulting business was just getting started many years ago.  I was a guest speaker at an event, and Susie approached me after my talk and said to me that I had great energy and asked what she could do to assist me.  Since that time Susie has helped me personally as well as my consulting business in more ways than I could have ever imagined.  She has been my trusted mentor, coach, and invaluable advisor.   As a consultant for some of the world’s most prestigious organizations and an executive coach to highly successful executives, Susie has been my go-to coach.    She is such a special person who generously shares her priceless business and life lessons to those who know her.  She simply makes the world a better place, and I will be eternally grateful for having Susie as my mentor, coach and cherished friend.  In Getting to Forgiveness, she shares her wisdom and messages to help us remember our soul.”

Patricia D. Sadar, CEO

People2Strategy

“To express in words the immeasurable totality of all that I have learned from Susie Levan, may take many pages.  Before I started attending Susie’s Women’s Wisdom Circle, I felt overwhelmed by the magnitude of personal and professional responsibilities that I had in my life.  After participating in several of her workshops and bi-weekly group coaching sessions, I saw my life changing and progressively growing free from anxiety and stress while being able to focus on the issues that needed to be resolved, effortlessly. I hired her to become my personal Life Coach.  Through her wisdom and guidance, I was able to make major life decisions that allowed me to continue to grow and evolve in every aspect of my life.  She is a remarkable spiritual teacher that has impacted my life in an innumerable number of ways. Her guidance and support have profoundly affected my personal spiritual growth, vibrant health and inner peace.  In her book, Getting to Forgiveness, you will discover how to awaken to your highest potential and access the strength, love, and wisdom found within your soul.”

Marta M. Sastre, CLU

Regional Sales Coordinator
AFLAC

“Getting to Forgiveness shares Levan’s story of courage and strength in a way that each of us can relate.  From her near-death experience to her struggle with post-traumatic stress, Levan offers hope and a path toward personal growth.  As someone who has empowered other women during her journey through life, Levan encourages readers to be fearless in finding their soul’s purpose as she has done.  This insightful memoir leaves readers equipped with the inner strength to forgive and the inspiration to find fulfillment.”

Cindy Krischer Goodman

Journalist

“As Susie reminds us no one leaves the planet unscathed.   This book insightfully describes her journey for self-discovery, while gently inspiring us to take on new challenges while digging deeper to conquer our own fears and self-doubt.  As you begin to read you will hear a soft, sweet voice that speaks to you intimately about taking the journey towards believing in yourself. Susie lovingly reminds us that we are never alone on our pathway to enlightenment, love and inner joy.”

Dina Bellows-Levine, CPA, CFE, CFF

Bellows Associates P.A.

“Getting to Forgiveness is one of those books you will read over -and over-again. Starts out with a tragic experience that you usually see only in movies, that Susie Levan transforms into a life-changing, inspirational, spiritual, and metaphoric journey for herself and her daughter, and then pays it forward to others for 31 years and running.  Susie Levan taught her daughter to LIVE as if she is going to die tomorrow and, LEARN as if she is going to live forever. Through Susie, Lauren lives forever, especially in her teachings, that started on that horrific but miraculous December day in 1988. A must read!”

Cindy Kushner

Tax Partner
Crowe LLP

“From the moment I first met Susie Levan, 10 years ago, I knew she was extraordinary.  I saw the strong, confident, and well put together woman she presented on the outside but more importantly, I sensed an inner strength that drew me in and made me want to know her more.  It is said that it takes courage to walk through this life.   Susie shares her courage and shear grit in her uniquely personal book Getting to Forgiveness.  This work is brave, its honest and it is transforming.  Her experiences would have crippled the strongest amongst us but Susie has instead allowed them to transform her. I am honored to call Susie my friend and hope that by reading and sharing in her incredible story we will all learn to walk with courage and grace as Susie continues to do each day".

Cathy Donnelly, Director - Community Relations

Castle Group

“Getting to Forgiveness is a book of love and loss, of an awakening, a quest and journey on the road of life where Susie, through her unique and soulful perspective, shares wisdom and understanding with the reader.  This knowledge helps and inspires the reader along their own life’s path. It teaches the lesson that we are spiritual beings having a human experience. That the human experience has many obstacles which are initially experienced as “bad” or “sad” in time, unfold into lessons that nourish the soul when viewed from the correct perspective.  Thank you, Susie for sharing your experiences, insights and wisdom.”

Eric Radzwill, OD

“Hopefully none of us will have to live through anything like the kidnapping and near-death experience that has long defined and reconstituted Susie Levan's life. Her book, Getting to Forgiveness: What a Near-Death Experience Can Teach Us About Loss, Resilience and Love, is a powerful reminder that each of us already possesses the passion, strength, vision, and love required to live rich, productive, and joyful lives, if we are fearless in our efforts to do so. This is an important book about perspective and courage; Susie shares her unique, heartfelt insight into those topics masterfully.”

Dorothy Klein, Executive Director

Broward Public Library Foundation

“This book is not just a compilation of Susie's life's experiences, but a must read for any self-evolved  individual interested in improving the human condition and what we can each do to make our own personal imprint around living a life of purpose. Susie teaches us that a life of fulfillment is truly a life of service to others. Susie is and has been an example of how the modern-day woman balances the demands of family, business and community. She is an inspiration to anyone that has encountered a life-altering experience. Susie's book teaches us all that our time here is finite and we must be mindful to leave behind a torch to carry our legacies. Getting to Forgiveness is a work of art!”

Laura Raybin Miller

South Broward Hospital District
dba/Memorial Healthcare System

“The path of spiritual growth and enlightenment is deeply personal, often beginning unintentionally, and with no understanding of where it will lead.  Susie Levan’s unique awakening began with a terrifying event which turned her world upside down and left her doubting what she knew, and challenged her to trust what she did not fully understand.  In her book, Susie shares her ongoing journey in her book with courage, candor, and the understanding that every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives, is the perfect preparation for the future that only He can see.”

Susan D. McGregor, CEO

Bellissima Luxury & Fine Art Services

“Getting to Forgiveness shares a powerful and inspirational journey of a woman who has touched and enriched so many lives. I have known, admired, and loved Susie Levan for more than 15 years, seeing her in action with Balance Magazine, workshops, leading community projects, and supporting women seeking growth and change. She is a role model, a change agent, a beacon of light and a very special soul. To be in her company is to be savored. Her story brings raw and difficult situations to a place we first find commonality and then through lessons we find comfort, forgiveness, healing and strength.”  

Jennifer O’Flannery Anderson, Ph.D.

“I have known Susie Levan initially through membership in The Strategic Forum, a business organization of CEO’s and Corporate Executives more than 13 years ago. I was honored to be a Director on her Board, The Work-Life Balance Institute For Women, that produced her publication, Balance Magazine and to be on the Levan Ambassador’s Board for Nova Southeastern University. Throughout this time, I have seen Susie transform into the spiritual, inspirational, motivational individual that she has become and helped so many others — particularly women grow with her essence of giving and predisposition for gratitude. Her book personifies all the life experiences that make her into the woman she is today. With the knowledge and skills she has gained, Getting to Forgiveness will empower others to find freedom, fulfilment and release for themselves —to be fearless in finding their soul’s purpose on earth. This is a must read.

Sue Romanos, CPC, CTS, CSP

CEO, Emeritus
CAREERXCHANGE®, Inc.

“We spend most – if not all – of our life in the process of discovery. What is the meaning of our individual and collective existence? What kind of life should I live? The answers lead some of us to live intentional lives that align with our values. Others live without thought. Susie’s life has been anything but unintentional. A near-death experience followed by PTSD and extraordinary pain led her on a path to find peace and goodness. It saved her life. None of us escapes the pain of existence but all of us can learn from Susie’s extraordinary journey. Our answers may differ from Susie’s but her key discoveries of how love, forgiveness and reflection can heal the soul are universal.

Josie Bacallao

President & CEO of a Nonprofit Serving Immigrants
Fellow Traveler

“Susie Levan has taught me that forgiveness, especially self-forgiveness, is essential for spiritual growth. Susie empowers us to let go of the past so that we may heal, find peace and reframe our inner narrative to move forward. Through Getting to Forgiveness, Susie provides a compassionate and helping hand through the journey of recovery, discovery and awakening.”

Nancy Thies

Non-Profit Executive

“I know you will enjoy reading Getting to Forgiveness. Susie is a person I admire who has offered counsel and wisdom to many of us traveling through life. She brings a unique perspective sharing her wisdom of how she coped through a near-death experience and through that came out a stronger woman. She has motivated and inspired us to be better women by truly taking care of ourselves in mind, body, and spirit. We will all take away some great tips from her insights.”

Maureen Shea, CEO

Florida/Caribbean
Right Management

About the Author

SUSIE LEVAN

Is a spiritual warrior, author, certified non-denominational pastoral counselor, hypnotherapist, teacher of meditation, life coach, and Reiki Master/Teacher. For sixteen years in a male-dominated NYSE company, she enjoyed a successful career as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Susie was shaken to the core to awaken after her N.D.E. in 1988, and from that moment on, her life’s work for the last thirty years has been teaching the importance of meditation and helping women live their best lives. She channeled two meditations CD’s with Grammy nominee new- age musician, Steven Halpern. She founded The Work-Life Balance Institute for Women (a 501c3 non-profit) and founded and published Balance Magazine from 1999-2009—a magazine for women directed towards personal growth and self-development. For over twenty years, she has facilitated a bi-weekly Women’s Wisdom Circle to empower, inspire and guide women to amplify their greatness, and discover their destiny to create a meaningful life. As a transformational leader and change agent, she speaks frequently on metaphysical and spiritual principals. She lives with her husband and blue-merle mini-poodle—his name is Blu.


If you’re interested in having Susie speak at your next event please email. beehivepublishingsl@gmail.com