Minor Setback, MAjor COmeback

It was early 2022 when my co-worker and friend Chivonne Rush, learned life-altering news: she had breast cancer. She immediately requested no one at work make a fuss around her diagnosis, however she would be thrilled if our flower brand, High Minded, named a strain after her.

Then one day she had a highdea... If cannabis helped her, it could help others in more ways than one. What if we grow a special strain, rebrand it to spread awareness about breast cancer and the benefits of cannabis, AND give a portion of the proceeds to a local nonprofit? This idea became Crush OG, a pack that gives back. 2024 is the 3rd October that we have grown and sold Crush OG and so far we’ve been able to donate $12,000 to Angels of Hope Michigan to help families navigate the physical and emotional toll of cancer.

Chivonne’s motto through cancer was “minor setback, major comeback”. She officially beat cancer this year, so now it’s all about the comeback. I wanted the Crush OG promotional video to feel gritty, hopeful, and cathartic for Chivonne as she retells her story in between some rounds with the punching bag. We set the scene in an old pole barn, with the punching bag hung from the ceiling and Chivonne wearing pink boxing gloves. Video produced by Antix Creative. Photography by myself and Joe Becker.

Chivonne loves Social Distortion and her skull-patterned vans, and dislikes the stereotypical “pretty in pink” breast cancer awareness merchandise. I wanted to create packaging that reflected her badass personality so I looked to old punk rock posters for inspiration. The Crush OG logo was drawn in Procreate and layered with gritty texture and type in Illustrator.

Left: We were able to donate $4,000 to Angels of Hope Michigan with sales from our 2025 release of Crush OG. Right: All retail employees got special Crush OG t-shirts based on the packaging design to help promote the strain’s third year.

Crush OG was promoted on billboards all across Michigan during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.