Nebraska woman to appear on reality TV show

As she was sitting in the waiting room of the hospital, Joy Huber couldn't stop thinking about how she might die.

"I wasn't ready to die because I hadn't fully lived," Huber said.

There was a distinct possibility her doctor was going to tell her she had months to live.

At just 33 years old, Huber was diagnosed with Stage 4 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Fourteen years later, Huber is using her second chance at life to help other women live their lives with no regrets.

"I'm very aware that we're all a heart attack or car accident or diagnosis away from a completely different life," said Huber, who lives in Milford.

Over the years she has spoken at events, written a book and started a podcast about her outlook on cancer and solo traveling. But she wanted to do more.

"My cancer, what I had to go through, face, my diagnosis, catapulted me into realizing, being acutely aware, that the clock is ticking," Huber said.

Before her diagnosis, Huber spent a lot of time solo traveling. She refused to let life pass her by just because she didn't have a husband or kids.

"I would travel on my own, and I just had a ball," Huber said. "Because what I discovered is, you go wherever you want, you do whatever you want, when you want. And it's just so freeing."

After the COVID-19 pandemic, Huber wanted to help women who had been cooped up start traveling. She created a guide, individually coached women, hosted webinars for small groups and spoke to large groups. Huber also started posting advice on her social media and offered free tips for women looking to solo travel.

But her "pie in the sky dream" was to host a TV show where she could coach new women every episode and offer her guidance as they began their journey traveling alone.

Huber, with the help of University of Nebraska-Lincoln broadcast professor Laurie Thomas Lee and her students, created a sizzle reel, a short video showcasing the idea for her TV show.

Then when Huber saw an ad calling for 'all entrepreneurs' while scrolling social media, she clicked on it not knowing what it was. It was a form people could submit for the chance to be on a TV show for entrepreneurs.

Huber filled out a form detailing who she was and why she became an entrepreneur. She explained her idea to start a business where she could coach women in solo traveling, acting as their emotional support and helping them talk through potential fears of traveling alone. Not thinking much would come of it, she went on with her life.

Then, she received a message saying they wanted to get to know her more. She made a video answering an interview question.

"Honestly, I thought, don't get your hopes up," Huber said. "You know, you kind of get excited."

They came back. They wanted Huber to participate in a casting call.

Then she got a message: she was invited to participate in season 15 of "The Blox," a competition-based reality TV show that teaches entrepreneurship while making participants compete in games. The top three winners receive a cash prize.

Huber spent the summer filming in Tulsa, Oklahoma, alongside nearly 100 other entrepreneurs. The new season is set to premiere at the end of this year.

"What I've learned through this whole show experience this year in learning entrepreneurship is, of course, you have to crawl before you walk, you have to walk before you run, you have to run before you do a marathon," Huber said.

After filming wrapped up, she launched her website for Travel With Joy TV.

She said it was because she was cast on "The Blox" that she really learned how she could grow her business and get in a manageable place to start pursuing her dream.

"This was a life changing experience," Huber said.

She said she was grateful to represent Nebraska in the show, and she will take what she learned and apply it to Travel With Joy TV to continue helping women.

Huber was professionally trained as a coach through Coach U and is working toward her travel advisor certification.

She said she lives life confident that if she were to die at any moment, she would have no regrets.

"I feel like I have this ticket to freedom for so many women and I have to share it," Huber said.

Reach the writer at 402-473-7248 or .

Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly!