Role
Creative Director + Illustrator
Project
Campaign Development
Animation + Video
CRM Studios
Years Active
2020-2025
+ KIDS HEART CHALLENGE
+ CAMPAIGN DEVELOPMENT
+ KIDS HEART CHALLENGE + CAMPAIGN DEVELOPMENT
Overview
For nearly 50 years, the American Heart Association’s Kids Heart Challenge (KHC) has partnered with schools to promote heart health, teach lifesaving skills, and inspire active habits for kids and families. As Acting Creative Director for the School Engagement team, I led the creative vision across print, digital, and product design, collaborating with executives and marketing leads to shape yearly campaigns.
Approach
I directed campaign creative across all channels, from educational print to interactive digital content and introduced fresh concepts each year to keep the program exciting. I illustrated new characters and designed new Thank-You Gifts that strengthened connections with kids, and streamlined school materials to be more modern, engaging, and easy to use.
Impact
The Kids Heart Challenge reimagined how health education could be both fun and meaningful. Under my creative leadership, the program:
Increased student engagement through exciting characters and thank-you gifts.
Introduced Mystery Gifts resulting in a nearly $22M year-over-year increase in revenue.
Strengthened brand consistency across digital and print touchpoints.
Reinforced AHA’s mission by empowering kids and families to build heart-healthy habits and lifesaving skills by increasing recruitment of over 3,500 new schools.
Join the KHC Lifesavers League
2025–2026 brings the launch of the Lifesavers League—a team of super pups inspiring kids to build healthy habits. From choosing water over sugary drinks to getting families moving, the campaign makes daily wellness fun and engaging. Partnering with the NFL Foundation, this year’s Kids Heart Challenge adds extra excitement while driving real impact in schools and communities.
Let the Games Begin
2024–2025 kicked off with the launch of Life’s Essential 8 for Kids, turning assemblies into high-energy game shows—part Family Feud, part Double Dare. Students tested their heart health knowledge, tackled quick physical challenges, and explored new Thank-You Gifts. The result was learning, laughter, and plenty of movement.
KHC Celebration
2023–2024 marked the American Heart Association’s 100th anniversary, celebrating a century of lifesaving research and impact. To honor this milestone, the Kids Heart Challenge brought commemorative kickoff assemblies to schools nationwide, where students and educators celebrated past achievements while being inspired to carry heart health and scientific progress into the future.
Be the Torch
2022-2023 year’s campaign carried a spirited message: Be the torch! Students were inspired to practice heart-healthy habits and spark positive change, while School Engagement Directors fueled the excitement with inflatable torches for early registrants. The simple, low-cost idea became a must-have—and drove record-breaking registration for the Kids Heart Challenge.
Jump on Board
After the long pause of the COVID era, people were more than ready to get out of the house and reconnect with the world. So, we dreamed up a surreal adventure—one that let students and educators travel through the open roads of our beautiful country while picking up powerful tools like mindfulness, breathing exercises, and the magic of kindness along the way.
