Shortly after Edmonton couple Nancy Gordy and Cory Johnn started dating, Gordy moved to Jasper for a job opportunity. Just like anyone who has experienced a long distance relationship will tell you, the challenge came with its ups and downs.
To help with the lows, the two decided to start a unique project that would help keep them connected. After hashing out a few ideas, was born, the couple鈥檚 very own children鈥檚 book.
鈥淲ell, I鈥檓 a writer and I鈥檝e always had this dream to write a children鈥檚 book and Cory is a photographer so we thought we could put those things together,鈥� Gordy said. 聽鈥淲e also have a lot of friends that are having kids and we wanted to do something for them.鈥�
Over drinks at a local coffee shop, the two brainstormed ideas until they came up with their main character Olen鈥攁 young boy from the Prairies who decided to go on an adventure like no other in the Canadian Rockies.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 know where the name came from, but we wanted it to be a young boy simply because Cory鈥檚 lifestyle has kind of been like what we want this book to encourage.鈥�
It wasn鈥檛 until Gordy moved to Jasper that Johnn, a born and raised Edmontonian, had actually made the trek to visit one of Alberta鈥檚 most famous mountain towns.
鈥淲e have all this epic scenery and all these great adventures just waiting to be had in our very own backyard,鈥� said Gordy, adding that she recently moved back to Edmonton. 鈥淯nfortunately now that I鈥檓 moved back to the city I鈥檓 starting to see less of that drive to get out and explore.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just a whole different part of life and we hope the book encourages people to go out and have adventures of their own鈥攖o get out of the city and see something new.鈥�
The children鈥檚 book combines Gordy鈥檚 words with Johnn鈥檚 photographs, which are mainly shots of the couple鈥檚 own adventures throughout Jasper National Park.
鈥淎lmost all the pictures in the book are of Jasper,鈥� Gordy said. 鈥淯ltimately if a parent is reading this to their kid at night then it becomes more of reality with these photographs鈥攊t allows them to see what these places actually look like as opposed to a regular kids鈥� book where it鈥檚 mostly illustrations.
鈥淚 think the real pictures make it just a bit more unique than your average children鈥檚 book.鈥�
To make the book really come to life, the couple contacted Calgary-based artist Tara Put to come up with the design for Olen, a simple stickman-like doodle.
鈥淎t first I wondered if it would work鈥攎ixing the illustrations with the photographs, but Tara did an amazing job of really incorporating Olen into the pictures.鈥�
Now that the last of the pages have been completed, the couple is looking to print around 400-500 copies of their project. To help offset the costs, Gordy and Johnn launched a Kickstarter campaign on Sept.12. The couple has until Oct.12 to raise $12,000.
As of press time they were just over the $3,000 mark.
鈥淯ltimately we鈥檙e not super concerned because our goal here isn鈥檛 to make a profit鈥攊f we don鈥檛 make our money then we鈥檒l try another day,鈥� Gordy said. 鈥淥ur goal is to break even and get the message out to encourage young families and kids to get out there and explore Alberta.
鈥淥ur province has a lot to offer.鈥�
To support Olen鈥檚 Adventures head to: www.kickstarter.com and search for
If all goes well, the couple is hoping to have their book out by the middle of November.
