Oh-so many weekends ago (my how time flies!)… I had the unique and most wonderful opportunity to head over to the Seattle side and join in on the first stop of King Artur Flour’s Bake for Good Tour.
Since the early bird gets the worm, we met early in the morning on a Saturday, and headed to Le Cordon Bleu Seattle where I joined a handful of other lady bloggers and we learned how to bake bread.
And pie crust.
The purpose was two-fold. We learned the art of baking bread and pie crust making because that’s just awesome to know. But there was more to it… it was a bit like that old addage, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”
King Arthur Flour brought out Amber, one of their very own bakers, to teach us. She was an excellent instructor. We then used the skills we learned to make bread and pies to take to Union Gospel Mission to feed homeless women and children.
We didn’t only make bread and pies to take to Union Gospel mission… On Saturday, we spent most of the learning and baking, and then Sunday we prepared chicken, macaroni-n-cheese, and salad to also serve to the women and children staying at Union Gospel Mission in Seattle.
We all know homelessness exists. I picture homelessness in my mind a unshaven man sitting on the sidewalk, asking for spare change.
I had a real reality check on Sunday when we moved our things into the shelter to get ready to serve. We were given a tour and a clear picture of what homeless mothers and children face.. The experience helped me realize that even on my worst day… my children do not have to look for a place to sleep nor depend on others for food.
For whatever reason, I am living on the other side of the story… set squarely in a life where I have resource.
Which also means I can help. I can do something.
How can I help? How can those of us with any resource (big or small) help? Sometimes we need to think outside the box. We one takes a moment to consider the need that is beyond our front doors, or just outside our neighborhoods, it can be overwhelming.
And there is no way any one of us can meet all needs.
So I suggest – let’s start small. Consider bringing a meal to a family that has a new baby. Perhaps it’s just bringing cookies to a friend who has had a hard week. Or providing lunch for groups like Habitat for Humanity. Maybe you know of a youth group… teens love cookies.
Teacher or staff appreciation.
A barista that seems to be having a tough day.
Even the gal who seems to have it all together.
Need is everywhere. The opportunity to bless and give is everywhere.
I left Bake for Good feeling challenged to look for ways to Bake for Good… the simplest being giving a loaf of bread to a neighbor… to exploring areas of need to meet hunger needs in my own community.
And then there’s that old Proverb, “”Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” As I started baking beautiful loaves of bread on my own, and showing off my new skills in pictures on Instagram and Facebook, I started hearing many of my gal friends say, “I want to learn how to bake bread!”
You know what? I JUST LEARNED HOW TO BAKE BREAD! I CAN TEACH OTHERS!
Yeast and cold butter at room temperature are not as scary as they seem.
Bake for Good. How can you bake for good?
I can help one person get a good start! Thanks to King Arthur Flour, we have a nice little bread baking starter set! 2 bread pans, a 5 lb bag of King Arthur Flour, 16 oz Bakers Dry Special (dry milk) and the bowl & dough scraper I use and will never make bread without!
Please leave a comment telling me how you might Bake for Good using your new baking supplies! It’ll be a great to read about your ideas! I am using Rafflecopter for this giveaway so please look there for other entry options as well! The contest starts June 16 and runs through 11:59 p.m. PST on June 23, 2014.
Who will YOU bake for?
*I was not compensated for this post. King Arthur Flour invited me to be part of the tour and I wanted to share the story with you. And I hope you will be inspired to Bake for Good and make a difference…big or small.
