Helping to Bake a Difference

Baking is definitely one of my favorite stress relievers. Throughout quarantine, I baked for my family every weekend and would try out every new dessert recipe I could find. Once I started to embrace my love for baking, my parents would have me bake whenever they had people over, and they would always volunteer me to bring desserts to whichever gettogethers we attended. I loved it so much that I wanted to think of how I could expand baking to reach people who might not have the privilege of receiving homemade baked goods. I brainstormed ideas on who could be recipients of these and originally thought about people who were going through or had just finished chemotherapy treatment.

However, I later realized there was so much more potential for this initiative to reach a greater number of people by donating goods to homeless shelters,baking for people who have experienced a major accomplishment/milestone, and also for people who have dealt with hardships.

After receiving advice from teachers, parents, and lawyers on how to establish this initiative, I reached a conclusion to have volunteer bakers and myself bake for organizations that help individuals. We could then coordinate drop offs to deliver the baked goods. I decided to call this initiative “Cakes for Care.” I reached out to various organizations that could help us accomplish our goal of making a difference in people’s lives through baking.

Among these, I found Family House – a lodging facility for families receiving medical care in Pittsburgh. Once I learned about what they do and their amazing project, I immediately sent them an email asking how we could

By Laila Golla

collaborate so that our baked goods could go to people who are experiencing hardship in their lives. We currently have a baking day set up in which Cakes for Care volunteers go to Family House and bake in the kitchen for the families and patients that have returned from the day’s appointments. I am so excited to make these days more routine so that our impact is maximized and I feel as though Family House is the perfect recipient for our project.

Through my research I also discovered the Children’s Institute, an incredible organization that provides various services to children, including behavioral, autism-related, educational, and physical health services. I recently just facilitated the first drop off to their building, and hope to make this more routine as well. I am planning on having biweekly drop offs there so that we can help as many kids as possible. On another note, I am so grateful to the countless number of people who have supported me from the very beginning and I cannot wait to see this play out and “bake a difference” in people’s lives. If you are interested in helping us with baking, transportation, or have any suggestions - please let me know! I welcome any and all feedback as I truly want to make this the best initiative it can be. (email: golla_laila@ student.faced.edu)