Where Every Story Begins
Campers arrive from different communities and backgrounds, but quickly become part of a shared experience built around hockey, independence, and friendship.
The Heartland Legacy
Our Story
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More Than a Camp. A Place Generations Call Home.
For more than four decades, Heartland has shaped hockey players, staff members, leaders, families, and lifelong friendships. Many of the people guiding Heartland today first arrived here as campers.
Built Through Generations
A Legacy That Continues to Grow
Heartland is built on relationships that last well beyond one week of camp. Campers return as junior counselors, coaches, directors, parents, and supporters. Many who were once dropped off young players now return as parents of the next generation of campers.
01
Arrive as a Camper
A player arrives ready to improve, try something new, build confidence, and experience life away from home.
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02
Return as Staff
Former campers come back during high school and college to mentor, coach, lead recreation, and create the experience for someone else.
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03
Grow Into Leadership
Staff members become trusted coaches, department leaders, directors, and stewards of Heartland’s culture.
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04
Bring Back a Family
Former campers return as parents, sharing the place that helped shape them with their own children.
Heartland Hockey Camp
A family vision carried forward through generations.
"Build a place where players can grow in the game, enjoy being kids, and become part of something bigger.''
Where the Story Began
Explore Coach Steve’s Story
Steve and Sandy Jensen
Heartland began with a belief that hockey development and personal development should never be separated.
Steve and Sandy Jensen built more than a hockey camp. They created a place where players could work hard, develop confidence, build friendships, enjoy the outdoors, and feel part of something larger than themselves.
Steve brought experience from the Olympic stage, professional hockey, international competition, coaching, and officiating. Sandy helped establish the care, hospitality, family atmosphere, and personal attention that became central to the Heartland experience.
Together, they created an environment where campers were known, encouraged, challenged, and welcomed back year after year. Their influence can still be felt through the traditions, standards, relationships, and people who continue to guide Heartland today.
38
Years of Founding Leadership
438
NHL Games Played
1976
United States Olympic Team
What We Pass Forward
The Values Behind the Heartland Experience
Facilities, programs, and training methods continue to evolve. The values at the center of Heartland remain constant.
Work Hard
Growth comes through effort, discipline, repetition, and the willingness to keep going when something is difficult.
Have Fun
The best development happens when players are engaged, encouraged, challenged, and excited to return each day.
Build Friendships
Teammates, roommates, coaches, and staff members often form connections that extend far beyond the camp week.
Lead With Care
Every camper deserves to feel safe, known, supported, and valued by the people responsible for their experience.
A Place That Stays With You
The Campus Is Part of the Legacy
Heartland’s private northwoods campus creates something increasingly rare: the opportunity to step away from everyday distractions and become fully immersed in hockey, recreation, friendships, and personal growth.
164
Acres in Minnesota’s Brainerd Lakes Area
40+
Years of Heartland Traditions
One
Self-Contained Camp Community
The People of Heartland
Every Generation Leaves Something Behind
Heartland’s story is carried forward by people who understand the experience because they have lived it themselves.
Creating the Next Experience
Many staff members understand exactly what camp means because they once slept in the dorms, trained on the ice, ate in the dining hall, and spent evenings at recreation themselves.
Protecting the Culture
Leaders who grew up through Heartland carry first-hand knowledge of its standards, traditions, expectations, and impact.
Sharing Heartland Again
Former campers return years later with children of their own, continuing a connection that can now span multiple generations.
"The true measure of Heartland is not only the players who improve here. It is the people who leave, grow, and choose to come back.''
Honoring the Past. Building the Future.
The Next Chapter of Heartland
Heartland continues to grow, improve, and welcome new families while preserving the relationships and values that have always made this place special.
New programs, facility improvements, and expanded opportunities are part of the future. The commitment to personal care, meaningful instruction, hard work, fun, and lifelong connection remains the same.
Our Promise
Every camper becomes part of the story.
Whether they attend for one summer or return for decades, every person who experiences Heartland contributes to its legacy.
Begin Your Heartland Story