Friday Night Wives: 2018–2021

Friday Night Wives (FNW) started life as a blog by Jordan Harrell, a coach’s daughter who grew up to be coach’s wife, but has become a network of support, prayer, and encouragement for the women who lose their husbands to high school sports during season, particularly football. It’s not a site to glorify the lifestyle but rather a place to freely “admit that this crap is exhilarating, rewarding, sweet, and hard.” —Jordan

Members can contribute words of encouragement, a tip for survival, or a story from the sidelines via email and have their down-to-earth, honest, even funny stories become content for the site and Facebook group.

Project conception began in Claudia Roeschmann’s Editorial Design course but morphed into a business pitch and promising partnership. Seasonal mini planners with features like inspirational articles and quotes, places to note gratitudes and milestones, priorities & to-dos, meal planning space, and dotted “blank” pages for notes, sketches, and prayers. This brought about the first 6-month, monthly/weekly planner with similar content, and the 2021/2022 full academic calendar beginning in June 2021. Encouraging and supportive content comes from significant articles, poems, and notes featured on the website.

The final mini planner covers and large planner cover inserts are abstract watercolor patterns of play routes, sport equipment, etc. to appeal to the wife who is dedicated to her husband and his career but isn’t defined by that role.

Art Direction/Design/Publication:  Mikaela Buck
Copywriting: Jordan Harrell