2012 Media Relations Summer Camp
The Hamilton Spectator 44 Frid Street
We were honoured to be selected among an incredible group of non-profits and community groups in the City to participate in a Media Relations summer camp, hosted by Mohawk College and The Hamilton Spectator. Our fellow campers included: Hammer City Roller Girls, Hamilton Arts Council, YMCA of Hamilton-Burlington-Brantford, Habitat For Humanity, Living Rock Ministries, Centre Francais Hamilton, The Hamilton/Burlington SPCA, Dr. Bob Kemp Hospice, The Hamilton Academy of Medicine, Stolen Sisters / Sisters in Spirit Action Committee, Hamilton Safe Communities Coalition, and Community Living Hamilton.
We were really excited to be there at The Hamilton Spectator, let alone to have the opportunity to meet some amazing people and learn as much as we did. Making this a full circle affair, this tour stop to The Spec happened a year later, almost to the day, from our feature in the paper last summer.
Jay Robb of Mohawk College and Jane Allison of The Hamilton Spectator were our fearless camp leaders for the two-day session and led us through a crash course in media training. We were joined by even more camp counsellors, comprised of PR experts, to help us learn how to polish and pitch our stories. Among the camp counsellors was our friend Chris Farias of Kitestring, who also gave a stellar presentation on social media to wrap up our time at camp.
In was a fantastic experience for all of us campers to pitch our stories to a panel of writers from The Spec – Editor-in-Chief Paul Berton, Emma Reilly, Susan Clairmont, Rick Hughes, and Howard Elliott. No pressure at all. The panel did not hold back and gave some really valuable and constructive feedback, leaving us with a lot of think about. All of the campers stepped up to the plate and did such a great job; I think we’re all bonded now from the experience!
We thoroughly enjoyed our time at this summer camp; it was truly inspiring to be there. For a more detailed recap, check out Jay Robb’s blog post.
As a sidenote, and another serendipitous moment, The Playlist 1.0 got a mention in The Spec that week!
– Kristin
