Baking for a cause – Pink Confetti Bakery
From coffee cake to crispy treats, one local bakery has helped to bring hope to the community in a time where hope has often been in short supply.
Started by sisters Summer (age 10) and Presley (age 12), along with help from their mom Ashley and cousin Katie (age 12), Pink Confetti Bakery has been making sweets to support local charities throughout the pandemic.
“It started with my girls asking to have a bake sale last spring. Our agreement is that when they do a sale, they have to find someone in need to give the money to,” said Ashley Stancil, Summer and Presley’s mom.
“[The girls] ended up raising a good amount of money, so my oldest asked if we could do it online. We did, and let people know we were raising money for local charities. It grew from there, and we got a lot of support.”
Baking is a love that was passed down from Ashley’s mom to her and then down to Summer and Presley. “We like to bake, and we’d like to think we’re halfway decent at it,” laughed Ashley. “And it’s something my girls and I can do together.”
At the beginning of last year, the Pink Confetti bakers raised money to help buy laptops for kids in need to do online school. And they continue to look for places to give their proceeds.
“[During the pandemic] It’s been cool to see how many people want to do things to help their communities. But some don’t know where to start or don’t know what the needs really are,” Ashley said.
“Each month or so we look for a different need in the community. For example, one month we brought treats to healthcare workers in hospitals. By trying to keep our eyes open and ask others for ideas, it helps us to be aware of what’s going on.”
In the past, Ashley and her family have supported Home of Hope’s mission by making meals, sponsoring families, and volunteering, but Pink Confetti has given them new opportunities to give back that they didn’t expect.
“Pink Confetti has given us the chance to do more for Home of Hope than we would have been able to do on our own. And we like that Home of Hope is something right here in our community – it helps Summer and Presley to see that there are needs all around us,” Ashley said. “We sponsored some families for Christmas and Home of Hope sent a [thank you] letter to Pink Confetti – it was exciting to be able to share that with the girls.”
What keeps the Pink Confetti bakers coming back to help Home of Hope? The moms and the kids.
“It means a lot to us to be able to help these vulnerable moms and children, and my girls can truly understand the need. As a mom, I feel such compassion towards these families,” said Ashey. “Thinking about these young families coming from such scary, hard situations just tugs at my heart.”
“The fact that Home of Hope is there for these women, when they have nowhere else to go, is just so important. Home of Hope does such good work, taking care of them and helping them get back on their feet,” Ashley said. “And we really appreciate how kind and appreciative the staff is. You can tell they care about what they do.”
While Pink Confetti has helped and encouraged individuals all over the community, the work they’ve done has also been important to the family bakers as well.
“On a personal level, it’s been especially encouraging to my husband and me to see that there’s still a lot of good going on and good people out there,” Ashley said. “Seeing people’s response and experiencing their support has been my favorite part of doing Pink Confetti.”
While it can be easy to become distracted, the ladies of Pink Confetti see the importance of looking beyond themselves.
“It’s important for us to just not get comfortable with our lives but to remember there’s always people that need our help,” Ashley said. “No matter where you are financially, physically, emotionally – there’s always someone else that needs help.
“It’s something we wanted to revolve our family around – that we take care of other people. It’s easy to be consumed in our own world and problems, but it’s good for all of us to remember that even if we’re going through something hard, there are others that we can still help.”
“You may think ‘I don’t have a lot of money or time to do this,’ but it’s about using what you do have and can do. Even just the little bit you can do can make a difference.”