Sweet deal: Group bakes birthday cakes for needy families
A volunteer group in Winnipeg is baking up a sweet idea: Baking cakes for families who might not have the means to provide one for their birthday celebrations.
Christy Rogowski and Wendy Singleton of North Kildonan formed Cakes for Kids, an idea Rogowski says she came up with when she was beginning to learn how to decorate cakes.
"I've been a cake decorator for about 10 years and it's a pretty big community," Rogowski told CBC News. "As bakers we love to practise — test out recipes, try out new techniques — and we kind of thought that there was a big group who would like to do something."
Singleton, who has "worked for years both in child welfare, community development and the child welfare system," said those experiences allowed her to "get to know different communities in Winnipeg."
"We've connected with newcomers, kids involved in the criminal justice system, and there's just a lot of need for kids to feel special out there," she said.
The group is entirely voluntary and they'd like to keep it that way, said Singleton.
"What we've done is put the call out to the community and said 'Come in and volunteer with us.' To date, we have 37 volunteer bakers who have signed up."
The bakers are matched with a local community organization that pairs them with a family who has made a cake request. A co-ordinator works out the details, and the bakers provide a cake or a dozen cupcakes for the birthday party.
'It's a beautiful idea'
The group started two weeks ago by partnering with the Elmwood Parent Child Coalition.
"We come across a lot of families that are too, I guess, humble, too proud to ask for help," said the coalition's Leilani Esteban.
"This is just an easy way for them to get help without getting stigmatized or being judged or anything like that. It's just a cake for your child on his birthday or her birthday, no questions asked. It's a beautiful idea."
Singleton said they then added Child and Family Services and the North End Family Centre to their list of partners. Within two days, 20 volunteer bakers had come forward.
"Now, as of yesterday, we have enough bakers to provide 188 cakes so far this year," he said.
Rogowski says the group would welcome more volunteers, and they don't need to be professional bakers.
"We're looking for bakers of all skill levels," she said. "We're kind of going by, if you're happy and proud to serve it at your family birthday party, then we would welcome you.
"We've had some people come forward and say baking is their therapy — they love to share their baking. We've had somebody come forward and say they didn't have birthday parties as a child and they would love to give back to the community."
The group began on a Facebook page, and has a website as well. Anyone interested can contact the group through either site for more information.
