Camp HEartbreak
In the summer of 2019, it seemed like every friend in my friend group had gone through a breakup. As a friend, there’s only so much support you can provide by being a should to cry on and always having ice cream on hand. I thought, there’s got to be something more. Then the idea of Camp Heartbreak hit me!
Concept
Our mission was to create a weekend retreat where young women could take designated time to process heartbreak, be guided through meaningful reflection, and build a community they could lean on. The retreat is inspired by summer camps, but with more good food, listening to Lizzo around the campfire, and personal growth.
I created this logo to look like a badge you might receive at camp or as part of Girl Guides/Boy Scouts.
Me wearing our Camp Heartbreak pink long sleeves everyone received upon arrival.
Outcome
We held a successful weekend retreat at a luxury cottage in early November 2019 in Canterbury, Ontario. 10 participants paid a $200 participation fee and were provided food, drinks, workshop supplies, a long-sleeve t-shirt, and a heartbreak survival kit. The schedule consisted of a session with a personal trainer, a session of embroidery, creating a vision board, and various workshops on topics relating to understanding common relationship problems, how to improve communication styles, how to heal from heartbreak, and more.
Team
My role:
Project Management, Social Media, & Workshop Design
Laura McLean:
Logistics, Scheduling, & Finance
Alex Leroux:
Photography, Research & Sponsorship
Mary Paquet:
Outreach & Materials Collection
What I’d do differently…
- Work with a professional and do more significant research so I know more to support people’s unique experiences.
- Establish an entire visual identity, dynamic logo, and website.
- Prioritize the inclusion of different gender identities and sexualities. Shift focus away from cis, heterosexual relationships.
- Establish ways people can discreetly excuse themselves from activities they don’t want to participate in or if someone feels emotional.
What I’m proud of…
- We provided a really nice experience and gifts for the cost.
- The schedule, food preparation, and planning went really smoothly.
- We created a really positive group dynamic and safe space.
- As a team, we worked well together and had strong communication.
- All of our photos marketing the experience were very cute.
Experience
We had high hopes of repeating Camp Heartbreak again, this time equipped with all we had learned from the first round. I envisioned expanding the program and holding the retreat in various locations. Unfortunately, the pandemic brought those plans to a halt and now we’re all on our own paths pursuing individual projects, school, and careers. However, I personally learned so much about the process of bringing an idea to creation and how to create a meaningful experience people feel is worth spending money on.
I created several illustrations that we used throughout promotional and retreat material. Early on, I selected pink, orange and white as the colours as the combination evokes happiness, playfulness and good vibes.