from the heart
retreat for moms
Next:
February 26-28, 2027
“You have given me a space that feels like the comfort of coming ‘home’ - where you curl up in your sweats, are fed so well and are just loved for who you are. I have never felt so accepted and welcomed into a space and into the lives of others. After Mom and Kids Camp, I knew we had a new family tradition. I wasn't sure why I didn't think 'From the Heart' wouldn't be the same thing. I had in my head that it was something to experience once (like a workshop) but silly me - it's a Fircom experience - one to return to and feel things that are new and familiar each time. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the most magical weekend!”
- Danielle, November, 2023
This retreat is a special weekend created for moms and caregivers, offering a chance to pause, reconnect, and simply BE.
Since our inaugural From the Heart retreat in September, 2022, we have welcomed moms to five deeply nourishing weekends, filled with connection, reflection, laughter, and renewal. We’re delighted to bring this retreat back in February 2027, with an invitation to:
relax - revitalize - renew
This will be a time for moms and caregivers to pause, reconnect with themselves and one another, and enjoy the natural beauty of Camp Fircom.
Pajamas all weekend? No problem! Bring your coziest clothes and give yourself permission to slow down. This restorative retreat will be a chance to pause, connect to our hearts, laugh, fill our cups, and simply enjoy being together.
The weekend will include nourishing conversations, yoga, creativity, self-reflection, meditation, a campfire, and stargazing. With our retreat taking place in late winter, we hope for good weather to enjoy sunset at Campfire Rock, wander through the forest, and soak up the peaceful beauty of Gambier Island.
Your retreat package includes return water taxi transportation between Horseshoe Bay and Camp Fircom, delicious and healthy meals and snacks, all programming, and cozy accommodation in Cottage.
Bring: waterproof hiking shoes, a yoga mat, comfy clothes, a journal or doodle book, a lap blanket, warm layers, and a waterproof jacket.
There will be a creative art project on Saturday. Details about what to bring for this project will be included in the preparation email sent 2–3 weeks before the retreat.
RELAX
From the moment we travel from Horseshoe Bay and settle into our accommodations, the invitation is simple: slow down, get comfortable and breathe. Friday evening will begin with an opening circle, followed by charcuterie, appetizers and time to connect before ending the day with a peaceful yoga practice.
REVITALIZE
Revitalize your energy through meaningful experiences that awaken creativity, encourage connection and nourish the soul. Saturday offers a thoughtful balance of movement, creativity, connection and personal choice. Begin with a guided morning groove, followed by breakfast, a time for inspiring conversation and a body movement practice. After lunch, enjoy unstructured time to relax by the fire, hike, try archery or explore your creativity. The afternoon and evening will include an art project, a gathering at Campfire Rock, dinner, and a guided meditation to close the day.
RENEW
Renew your perspective, strengthen your spirit and carry the gifts of the weekend back into everyday life. Sunday morning provides a gentle transition back into daily life, beginning with coffee and conversation and a continental breakfast. After packing, participants will gather for a heart meditation, followed by brunch and a meaningful closing circle. The weekend will conclude with the return boat trip to Horseshoe Bay, leaving participants refreshed, reconnected and ready to move forward with renewed energy and a fuller heart.
Happy Memories
Details
The Details
2027 Prices: $500 - double occupancy in Cottage.
Maximum 12 participants.
Program fees include the $90 return water taxi fees from Horseshoe Bay, all meals and snacks, accommodation and programming.
Photos of Cottage Accommodation
Water taxi times, February, 2027:
Check-in at Horseshoe Bay on Friday, February 26: 4:10 pm. The water taxi will promptly depart at 4:30pm.
Check in will take place at the Public Dock in Horseshoe Bay Village. We ask that you arrive early to find parking and meet the group. Please be on the dock with your luggage no later than 15 mins prior to boat departure.
Check-out at Horseshoe Bay on Sunday, February 28: 2:20 pm. The water taxi will depart Camp Fircom, Gambier Island at 2:00pm.
Activities:
The weekend’s activities will be designed for everyone to participate, although some adjustments can be made based on each person’s needs. Programming may include meditation, a creative art project, gathering circles, and these physical activities: gentle yoga, active meditation (all bodies can be accommodated), paddling & hiking (in warmer weather). Please bring rain gear and appropriate footwear for walking in the forest, and wading into the ocean. We ask that if you are attending this retreat, that you participate in the programming and engage with others as this experience is community building. A glass of wine (or non-alcoholic beverage) may be offered on Friday evening during dinner.
Cancellation Policy:
Once payment has been made, there is a $100 cancellation fee up until 30 days prior to the start of the retreat. With fewer than 30 days notice, there are no refunds. If there is a medical emergency, a positive COVID-19 test, or illness with a doctor’s note with less than 30 days notice, then a camp credit minus a $100 cancellation fee will be applied to the account, to be used within one year.
Retreat Facilitators:
Terra McKenzie
Camp Fircom Executive Director
Terra has always held a special place in her heart for Camp Fircom, a connection rooted not only in fond memories but in a genuine kindness that defines who she is. Her journey with Fircom began at the age of fourteen, when she first participated in the Teen Camp program. Terra’s affection for Fircom grew even stronger when she returned as a mother in 2011, bringing her daughters Isabelle and Jessica to experience the joy and community of Mom and Kids Camp.
A retreat for moms had long been a vision that Terra held for Camp Fircom. In September 2022, she and Neerava brought that vision to life by dreaming up the very first From the Heart weekend.
Roz Phipps
Co-Facilitator
Roz’s passion for community, connection, and leadership began on Gambier Island when she was seven years old. For nearly twenty years, she experienced the magic of Howe Sound at a neighbouring camp, growing from Camper to CIT, Counsellor, Arts and Crafts Director, Music and Drama Director, Out-tripping Director, Camp Director, and eventually a member of the Board of Directors. Camp became her second home and taught her the importance of belonging, service, friendship, and creating spaces where people feel welcomed, valued, and inspired to grow.
When Camp Fircom reopened in 2011, Roz, her husband, and three-year-old son attended Family Camp to experience a new chapter. They were immediately drawn to Fircom’s warmth, purpose, and spirit. The following year, Roz and her son joined Mom and Kids Camp, beginning twelve years as a devoted mother and son duo.
When Terra and Neerava began offering retreats in 2022, Roz eagerly embraced the opportunity to connect with the Fircom community in a deeper way through From the Deep, From the Heart, and, more recently, Moms Alumni Camp. These experiences reminded her that the need for meaningful connection, reflection, and renewal continues throughout every stage of life.
Professionally, Roz has spent more than thirty years working in marketing, sales leadership, risk prevention, and post-secondary education. She currently serves as an Account Director with a national insurance brokerage and as Program Head of the Professional Sales Diploma Program at BCIT, where she mentors the next generation of business leaders. Roz is energized by helping others discover their strengths and achieve their goals. Many of the qualities she draws on today, empathy, creativity, collaboration, adaptability, and a belief that everyone has something valuable to contribute, were first nurtured at camp.
Roz feels honoured to be working alongside Terra and her lifelong friend Missy to bring back From the Heart in February 2027. While Neerava will not be with us in person, her vision and influence remain woven into the fabric of this retreat. Together, Roz looks forward to creating a weekend where women can relax, revitalize, and renew through friendship, laughter, reflection, and heartfelt connection. She can’t wait to see you there!
Missy Christensen
Co-Facilitator
As a certified Embodied Life Coach, registered Science of Mind Practitioner and Yoga Teacher who began in the ashtanga tradition, Missy Christensen also draws on her professional career as an actor and her training in Theatre for Living to facilitate, teach and coach. Her work brings together embodiment, spiritual consciousness practices, mindfulness and transformational play.
Missy is a co-founder of Spirit Circles, a weekly gathering exploring New Thought principles and personal empowerment, and the creator of “Ask a Practitioner”, a weekly advice vlog. Through the Centre for Inspired Living, she offers weekly online meditations and a bi-weekly uplift talk.
Missy’s unique approach has been welcomed at conferences and centres both in Canada and internationally, and she maintains a private practice in Campbell River and online. She loves to work with individuals and groups in creating experiences that invite greater presence, self-awareness, creativity and connection. Whether facilitating a retreat, leading a workshop, offering a keynote or guiding people through rituals and contemplative practices, Missy brings warmth, depth, humour and a lively sense of possibility.
Her work is ultimately about helping people to move beyond simply thinking about their lives and works into a more conscious, connected and engaged experience of them. She is thrilled to have been invited to collaborate with the Fircom family, and overjoyed to be once again collaborating with Roz, one of her dearest friends from way back in high school!
