Ice Cream for a Cause

April 14, 2021

What started-off as a hobby has now turned into a full-time business with the desire to reinvest into the region, and the lives of the children and youth of Southern Alberta.

From conception to reality, in only a few short months, Camp Ice Cream (Camp) launched with 19, unique hand-crafted flavours of ice cream.

Having only just relied on word of mouth and social media, Camp, announced they would be offering drive-thru service on opening weekend in October 2020.  

“Cars lined up down the street and around the block,” says Kyle Church, marketing and communications manager. “Medicine Hat was ready for their own local ice cream brand. We sold out in one weekend - it was the best problem to have.”

Camp’s name and brand alignment started with a desire to reinvest into the children and youth in Southern Alberta, and the places that make their summers special.

“Summer camps are a real treasure to communities and play a big role in shaping kids,” says Church. “They are often forgotten about as far as funding goes so we wanted to create a brand that could give back to camp initiatives across the region.”

For every pint of ice cream sold, $1 is donated to kids camps across the Southern Alberta region.

Camp has enjoyed collaborating with the local business community and most recently collaborated with four local coffee shops: Station Coffee, MadHatter Roastery, Zucchini Blossom and Café Verve, creating the Café Series.

Using a signature beverage from each of the cafes, Camp recreated the drink as an ice cream flavor and encouraged the community to vote on their favorite.  

“Partnerships like the Café Series allow us to help promote other local businesses like ours,” says Church. “We are big fans of our local coffee shops, and wanted to create ice cream inspired by the flavours our city loves.”

Camp also hired local artist, Teanna Church, to re-invent their packaging, partnered with Medicine Hat Brewing Company to create a stout seasonal flavor, and sources their merchandise with local business Motiv Custom Apparel.

Camp offers a variety of unique flavours that are made with real cream, locally sourced ingredients and contain zero preservatives.

“We were all so amazed that even through a pandemic, the community has been so incredibly supportive,” says Church.  “Even in January, when we had the coldest week of the season, people were lined up buying our ice cream. Medicine Hat is wildly supportive of local businesses.”

Camp Ice Cream is located at 1870 6 Ave SW Bay 1; products can be purchased online at CampIceCream.ca.