In a heartwarming display of compassion and creativity, two local children have taken it upon themselves to make a difference in the lives of kids battling cancer. Kate, 11, and Jack, 6, from Spanish Fork are siblings who have embarked on a sweet mission – using their love for baking to raise awareness and funds for children undergoing cancer treatment.
Kate and Jack started the Baking Brighter Tomorrows initiative through Youth-Led Charities (YLC), a 501c3 nonprofit that empowers youth to turn their passions into purpose. Baking Brighter Tomorrows makes it easy and fun for families to spend time together while helping kids with cancer. By simply baking a treat and sharing it with friends and neighbors, families can make a difference in the world by serving together.
What started out as just a simple idea quickly blossomed into something much bigger than Kate and Jack ever expected. Families throughout the U.S. heard about the Baking Brighter Tomorrows program and started to get involved. Within just a few weeks, families in over a dozen different states were baking treats and delivering them to neighbors in a unified effort to help kids battling childhood cancer.
One of the stories we heard about is of Briggs and Keisel, two brothers in Texas, that heard about the program and jumped on the opportunity to help. Their cousins Jaylee battled childhood cancer for many years, so they wanted to do this for her. Briggs and Keisel baked a few plates of cookies and delivered them to friends and family. Their favorite delivery was to Jaylee’s house where they were able to show the family that they’ve joined the fight.
When asked how she feels knowing that the program is inspiring children in other states to get involved, Kate said, “It feels really good. I hoped other kids would want to do it with us, but I didn’t think that kids from all over the country would hear about it and want to help. The more people that do this, the more good we’ll be able to do.”
Baking Brighter Tomorrows was selected as the first Charity Challenge put out by Youth-Led Charities. YLC is based right here in Spanish Fork and publishes a monthly magazine called the Charity Challenger. The publication provides a monthly challenge, or activity, for families to raise awareness for childhood cancer. Each challenge is fun and easy enough that families to come together and make a real difference in the world. Even though each challenge is simple enough for children to participate in, the hope is that even families without children in the home can get involved and join the fight.
Youth-Led Charities provides a unique platform for youth to turn their passions into purpose. Historically, youth wanting to get involved in charitable causes have felt limited to traditional activities like hosting a lemonade stand, or participating in a charity marathon. Through YLC, youth can now easily share their greatest passions to not only make getting involved easier and more enjoyable, but also more effective!
Young bakers, artists, musicians, athletes, mechanics – you name it – now have the ability to share their own talents to make one of the greatest impacts on the lives of families battling cancer. Since these are things that youth are passionate about and doing in their free time, youth are not adding to their already busy schedule to be able to get involved!
We asked Nick Thiele, the Founder and Director of Youth-Led Charities, how youth sharing their talents helps raise awareness for childhood cancer.
Thiele replied, “The mere act of youth doing something to support a great cause is inspiring, and it motivates others to support that cause. Think about a charity marathon. Nothing magical happens when sneakers hit the pavement. People get involved simply because they see that the cause is important to the participant, and that makes people want to support it.”
He continued, “Likewise, nothing magical happens when youth share a piece of artwork, or turn a piano recital into a benefit concert. The act of youth doing something because they want to make a difference in the world is enough to inspire others to join the fight.”
To learn more about the Baking Brighter Tomorrows, and to support Kate and Jack in this great cause, visit youthledcharities.org/bbt.
