Nick Stentzel, a California native and Altadena resident since 2013, is a certified Grief Educator and grief coach focusing on widowhood. He also serves as a group facilitator and journey sitter, supporting individuals through transformative experiences.  

As an award-winning documentary filmmaker and photographer, Nick has worked around the globe capturing stories that highlight culture and humanity.  In 2019, Nick experienced the profound loss of his partner of ten years, Travis McDaniel, following a two-year battle with leukemia and a bone marrow transplant. Serving as Travis’s primary caregiver during this time deeply shaped his perspective. His ongoing photography project reflects on queer identity and the layered experiences of grief and loss.

Through his volunteer work with Soaring Spirits International, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit connecting widowed people, Nick provides leadership and education. He serves on steering committees and frequently presents at national workshops, covering topics such as creativity and healing, love after loss, men’s grief, and support for the newly widowed.

Nick is the owner and Chief Creative Officer of The ATS Team, a multi-national television production company headquartered in Los Angeles, California. His global perspective is partly shaped by his fluency in Portuguese and ongoing connection to Brazil.  He holds dual BAs in Film and Photography from Brigham Young University and an MFA from Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film & Media Arts.

Today, Nick is building a family with his husband, Jonathan, and their dog, Jeb.