Spark the flame
October 19 - 21, 2026
HALIBURTON, ON
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A three-day retreat for non-profit pros responsible for events, marketing, sponsorship, and everything in between — from across North America.
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Here's what most people don't realize: the events people can't stop talking about aren't created on event day. They're built through small, thoughtful moments across the entire journey — from the moment someone registers to long after they cross the finish line.
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Most of us spend 95% of our energy on what must work, and skip the 5% that creates the magic people remember.
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The problem? You already know this. You've been to conferences, taken notes, had the insights. But somewhere between the last session and being back at your desk, those ideas get buried — and everything you learned becomes a nice memory instead of real change.
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This isn't your average conference.
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This is the retreat where you stop collecting notes you'll never look at and start building the strategy you'll use on Monday morning.
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Camp Beyond is different. We translate knowing into doing.
That's the knowing-doing gap. It's what Camp Beyond exists to close.
This is three days where you work on YOUR events with expert guidance, build relationships with people who become your support system, and leave with completed work — not a long to-do list.​​​​​
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This is for you if...
You work on events at your non-profit — any title, any size of organization — this retreat was built for you. Come alone or bring your team.
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You're a leader tired of the frustration cycle: last-minute changes throwing off your plan, difficulty keeping sponsors engaged, board members making demands that quite frankly don't make sense—and you're ready to take back control.
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You're an event manager or coordinator who knows deep down your events could be better—and you're done watching other organizations create buzz while your registration page feels like a ghost town. You want events people genuinely want to be part of.
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You don't give yourself—or get—the time to plan ahead between events, which means you're constantly reacting instead of leading. You're ready to get clear on the WHY of your event so every decision becomes easier.
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You're willing to step away from the daily chaos to do the strategic work—because when you grow personally and professionally, your events transform, and your mission wins.
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We promise, you'll leave different than
when you arrived.
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Peer-to-peer campaign volume grew 18% in 2025.
But the average raised per participant dropped from $308 to $244.
If this trend continues, your events work harder and raise less. Your team burns out. Your mission suffers.
You can't fix that with another list of ideas you never implement. You need guided action — and time away from the daily chaos to do it.
Here's the reality: You have two choices.
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Keep running your events exactly as you are — reacting to last-minute changes, buried in the day-to-day — and watch revenue per participant keep dropping.
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Or step away for three days, do the strategic work you've been putting off, and evolve your events into the ones people can't stop talking about.
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The question isn't whether you can afford three days away.
It's whether you can afford another year of the status quo.
What Successful Non-profit
Events Actually Need
Your non-profit pro community gets built here.
Maybe you're the only person at your organization focused on events. Maybe you have a team stretched across ten other priorities. Either way, you're expected to be a community builder, a copywriter, a marketer, a strategist, and a miracle worker on a limited budget.
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At Camp Beyond you're surrounded by people who speak your language. Who understand why you panicked when registration was slow. Who've cried during set-up day. Who celebrate when it all comes together. These are relationships that impact your events and your career for years.
Step away from the daily chaos—and into the clarity your events deserve.
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You can't see the forest when you're standing in the trees. Stepping away isn't indulgent—it's essential for growth.
It's where you ask the harder questions:
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Why is your event structured the way it is?
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Why did you choose that format, that timeline, those components?
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Are you designing with intention for YOUR mission, or copying what feels safe?
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Why are you doing THIS specific event versus something else?
Camp Beyond gives you time to think strategically, collaborate without deadline pressure, and refine your approach without the noise of operations.
And here's what makes it different: you don't just listen. You DO.
And here's what makes it different:
You don't just listen. You DO.
Personalized expert guidance,
built around your specific events.
This is where you'll work with me and a group of camp counsellors—experts from the non-profit field and beyond—who will look at your specific events and give you personalized feedback based on what you actually need for a profitable, high-retention event.
We'll dig into your registration experience, your event-day moments, your participant communications, and your follow-up strategy. You'll identify exactly where small, intentional details create disproportionate impact—the touches that make participants stop and think, "Wow, they really paid attention."
Here's what most people miss: your event doesn't begin at the start line. It starts the moment someone registers — the confirmation email, the countdown, the arrival, the follow-up that keeps them connected. That's where you create the moments that make people laugh, cry, and cheer.
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We'll build it all—together.
Get Clear on Your WHY
Why do you do events? Not the surface answer — the real one. Then go deeper: why THIS event, structured this way? When you're clear on the WHY, every decision gets easier — including how to push back when a board member wants something that doesn't serve the mission.
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Build the Relationships That Fuel Your Work
This isn't networking — it's community building. The people you meet here are the ones you'll text when registration is slow and celebrate with when you crush your goals.
And here's why we chose camp: you park the car, step into nature, unplug, and remember what it feels like when an experience moves you. That's what makes events unforgettable. YMCA Camp Wanakita is a non-profit, so you're supporting another mission-driven organization while you're here. Consider it your case study in real time.
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Build THE STRATEGY You Can Actually Execute
Working sessions where you apply what you're learning directly to your events. You'll write communications, map your participant journey, build systems, and get feedback from experts and peers who've been in the trenches. You walk out with your strategy complete — not a to-do list and good intentions.
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This is how knowing becomes doing.​​
Meet your Head Counsellor
Amy Milne
I've been in the trenches for over 20 years—I see you.
I know the pressure of putting everything into an event and still wondering if the results justified the stress. That was me over 20 years ago, and I promised myself there had to be a better way.
THE NUMBERS:
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$500M+ Raised across three countries
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20+ years of experience
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12.6M+ Raised through events our team has evolved
I helped bring a new model of peer-to-peer fundraising to Canada with The Weekend to End Breast Cancer. I produced The Ride to Conquer Cancer across seven cities and two countries. At SickKids Foundation I built The Great Camp Adventure Walk from scratch — 1,000+ participants, $1.3M in year one — and evolved Scrubs in the City from 225 participants to 800+, tripling revenue.
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But here's what gave me the real edge: years in hospitality, where I learned that while logistics matter, the magic happens in the small, intentional moments that make people feel something.
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Eleven years ago I founded Beyond Fundraising Inc. Since then we've supported 50+ non-profit organizations — changing how they think about events. Not as logistics projects. As experiences that transform communities.
And I host Real Talk for the Non-Profit Event Pro Podcast, where I have honest conversations about what works: the marketing, the sponsorship, the peer-to-peer fundraising strategies, the moments that matter.
Here's my commitment to you: your journey starts the moment you register, not when you pull off the dirt road at Camp Wanakita. I've lived the loneliness of non-profit event work. I want to be here for you — cheering you on, problem-solving with you.
Camp Beyond is the retreat I wish existed. It didn't — so I built it with you in mind.
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Because you shouldn't have to do this alone.
Meet your Camp Counsellors
You'll be guided by a well-rounded group of experts from the non-profit field and beyond — your Camp Counsellors. They're not here to present at you. They're here to work alongside you, around the fire.
Joanne Stencell
Strategic Partnerships
Corporate Sponsorship
COMING SOON
Another Good Human to be announced soon!
What you'll Leave with
Your event strategy, complete.
Not someday. Not notes about what you should do. Your participant journey mapped from registration through follow-up. Communications written and refined with expert feedback. Systems you can use across every event you run this year.
Confidence that comes from clarity.
You've stress-tested your ideas with experts and peers who've been in the trenches. Your WHY is defined, so every decision gets easier. You stop second-guessing and start leading.
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A community of non-profit event pros who have your back.
The people you meet here aren't just contacts—they're the ones you'll text when registration is slow, call when you need a reality check, and celebrate with when you crush your goals.
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The calm of a leader who actually has a plan.
No more reacting. No more reinventing the wheel. You'll have systems that tell you exactly what to work on, when, and why — frameworks that work whether you're running peer-to-peer, galas, golf tournaments, or all three.
Here's the Real Talk You Need to Hear
Camp Beyond closes the knowing-doing gap.
Between knowing what you should do and doing it.
Between collecting ideas and building systems.
Your events can be the ones people talk about years later. But that takes action — and action happens when you have guidance, community, and space to do the work.
Three days. Real work. Real progress. Real transformation.
It starts October 19, 2026.
Need to Get APPROVAL FROM YOUR LEADER?
Most Campers do.
Here's the case, in your leaders's language.
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This is a working retreat, not a conference. Your team member comes back with completed strategy work — participant journey mapped, communications written, systems built — not a notebook and a stack of business cards.
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Peer-to-peer volume grew 18% last year. Revenue per participant dropped from $308 to $244. The organizations reversing that trend are the ones investing in how their events are designed, not just how they're executed.
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The skills apply to every event you run. Peer-to-peer, signature, third-party, galas. One investment, applied across your entire portfolio.
It's all-inclusive. Accommodations, meals, programming. No expense claims, no receipts to chase, no surprise line items.
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Retention is the real return. Event staff turnover costs more than any professional development budget. People stay where they're invested in.
Jen, PLAN CANADA
"I loved the opportunity to connect with other passionate fundraising professionals and be inspired by their unique & innovative approaches to the fundraising world."
Tash, Cystic Fibrosis
"I loved the innovative ideas shared & thinking critically about event fundraising. Being here with these incredible people was so energizing and reaffirming for me."
Allison, Ausome
"It wasn't one fire, it was tiny little fires throughout our time together. Lots of little important lessons and perspectives. Thank you for helping me build little fires everywhere."
October 19 - 21, 2026
YMCA Camp Wanakita | Haliburton, ON
Your investment is $1297 all-inclusive
Everything's included. Accommodations, all meals in the Mess Hall, programming, evening events, adult beverages, camp swag, and a few surprises we're not spoiling.
Everything for only $1297 until August 15th, 2026.
After August 15th - $1697
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HAVE QUESTIONS?
Drop us a line.
We're excited to hear from you!
416-694-3740 call or text
