The pandemic hit Squamish photographer Rebecca Bundschuh and her family hard in ways she could not have predicted.
Before the pandemic, Bundschuh was busier than ever; with the help of her twin-sister Lindsey, she ran a photography retreat business called .
The business combined their love of photography, travel, surf and yoga and was an immediate hit.
"We had 25 girls sign up for our first retreat from all around the world," said Bundschuh, who has been a photographer for 15 years. "It was kind of like a fake it till you make it situation. And the response was so good we said OK, let's do this."
Soon all of their retreats sold out. The surf-yoga photography retreats had successful trips to Mexico, Bali, Hawaii, Tofino and Norway.
"The beautiful thing about our retreats is we are all photographers and we all post this beautiful imagery on our accounts," Bundschuh said. "This is how we sustain a lot of our retreats; we have sponsors like Canon Cameras, Herschel Supplies Co., Billabong, Roxy, all these brands support us because it's such good coverage."
The pandemic stopped the business in its tracks.
Nordic Retreats cancelled all of their future travel destinations, and Bundschuh's twin sister Linsdey flew to her home in Norway to be with her husband and daughter.
"Lindsey put so much of her heart and soul into these retreats and getting them up and going and running them," Bundschuh said. "It was incredibly disheartening when the pandemic came and everything had to stop."
As a pivot, in April of last year, the pair then launched an online print shop as an extension of Nordic Retreats.
sells prints from not only the sisters, but also from a lot of other talented female photographers.
Last year, Norway was on different terms than Canada in terms of the pandemic and Lindsey was on the high of her life. She was on the road, making more money and doing what she loved.
Then life threw another curve ball at the pair. Lindsey was on a photoshoot when she noticed a lump in her breast.
"Everything went really quickly — she had done a mammogram, MRI and biopsy and by the end of the week, she knew she had cancer," Bundschuh said. "The healthcare system here is amazing. We are so fortunate but I think it was even faster [in Norway]."
Due to how serious and aggressive Lindsey's cancer was, they advised her not to go back to Canada, but instead to start treatment right away in Norway.
Lindsey found out she had cancer on July 1st and Bundschuh flew out to be with her on July 9.
"Her being my twin, I just felt so incomplete and so far away from her in Canada. I just knew I could not sit here and pace in circles; I had to be with her to support her through this journey," Bundschuh said.
Bundschuh says luckily, a girlfriend was able to take the business on while she went to be with her sister.
After sharing the news, funds started to pour in for the family.
"Lindsey had so many beautiful images on the print shop and people came sliding in the print shop to support her. The print sales were going through the roof," Bundschuh said.
Bundschuh stayed with her sister for four months.
"For something so dark there was so much light in the situation," Bundschuh said. "I felt so honoured to be able to go to all her doctor's appointments with her because of the support we were getting back in Squamish."
Included in that support was a yearly golf tournament in Squamish where the golfers unanimously decided that this year's proceeds would go towards supporting Lindsey.
"Everyone in this community and everyone who supported her felt like her medicine; that is what kept her going and fighting," Bundschuh said. "[Lindsey says] she cant wait to get her feet back on the ground and be able to thank everyone who supported her."
Bundschuh says that she and herself are incredibly shocked by the love and support that came from this. After a gruelling year of treatment, Lindsey is set to come back to Squamish next month and is planning to host a retreat in Norway in May.
Find the sisters' business at
