Reader\'s Digest Canada - 04.2020

said that they didn’t have a cake on

their birthday growing up, and they

know how important it is,” says Single-

ton. More commonly, though, they say

they want families in need to know that

their neighbours care about them.

The cake recipients are nominated by

community organizations and Winnipeg

Child and Family Services, which send

Rogowski and Singleton information

about each kid’s interests and favourite

flavours. Designs have included elabor-

ate fondant icing shaped into unicorns,

superheroes or a lemonade stand. All

cakes are provided anonymously,

although the volunteer bakers love to

hear about the look on a child’s face

when they first see their cake.

A child might receive a cake because

of the family’s lack of money—22 per

cent of children in Winnipeg are living

in poverty—or lack of a kitchen in

which to bake. Sometimes a parent or

child is sick, leaving the family too busy

to make the treat themselves.

Cakes also go to children living in

foster care. Jodi Korolyk, a family ser-

vices worker with Winnipeg Child

and Family Services, has so far ordered

birthday cakes for five of the almost

800 kids in their system. “It shows the

child they have a lot of people there to

support them and celebrate them,” she

says. “For most kids, it doesn’t really

matter what the cake looks like; just

getting one is exciting.”

Korolyk sometimes arranges for par-

ents whose children are in foster care

to bring the cake to their kids them-

selves. “It’s a really good tool to help

promote a relationship between them,”

she says, adding that it can also build

the parents’ trust in her.

By the end of last year, Cakes for

Kids had provided over 575 cakes to

mark kids’ birthdays, and the baking

continues. Rogowski and Singleton are

even considering expanding the pro-

gram nationally and also baking for

isolated seniors. After all, there’s no

age limit to the positive impact of a

well-timed cake.

SOMETIMES A PARENT

OR CHILD IS SICK,

LEAVING THE FAMILY

TOO BUSY TO MAKE

A CAKE THEMSELVES.

A Lasting Impression

I’ve learned that people will forget what you said,

people will forget what you did,

but people will never forget how you made them feel.

MAYA ANGELOU, AUTHOR

reader’s digest

10 april 2020