Icing Smiles, an organization that provides custom cakes for critically ill children, will be highlighted at The National Capital Area Cake Show at Fairfax High School.
The event will be held Saturday, March 29, from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday, March 30, from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. The school is at 3501 Rebel Run in Fairfax; ticket information is at www.cakeshow.org/.
A national nonprofit, Icing Smiles has been selected as the show’s featured charity. The organization brightens the birthdays of children fighting cancer and other critical illnesses by providing custom-made birthday cakes for
them and their siblings.
During the two-day show, there’ll be classes, demonstrations and contests open to the public. The competitions include an "On Broadway"-themed wedding cake contest and a "Head to Toe" category. And for its first time, Icing Smiles will work with the show’s host, the Virginia Chapter of the International Cake Exploration Societé (ICES), on the live cake challenge.
All four competition cakes will then be donated to local hospitals, and an Icing Smiles child will take part as a judge to select the winning cake.
Since delivering its first cake in 2010 to Violet, a 6-year-old girl battling brain cancer, Icing Smiles has provided cakes to more than 3,500 children throughout the U.S.
"We understand that the simple things, like a birthday cake, are luxuries to a family battling illness," explained Tracy Quisenberry, founder and executive director of Icing Smiles. "What we provide is so much more than cake – we serve up a reason to smile."
Icing Smiles works with a national network of specialty cake bakers and matches them with eligible children in all 50 states, Canada and Holland. Its goal is to offer – through a cheerful cake, beautifully decorated with representations of what makes each, particular child happy – a temporary escape from the worry of illness.
Seeing, for example, their favorite playthings, sports heroes or cartoon characters on a cake, enables the recipients to just enjoy being children, instead of patients. The cakes also create a positive memory during a difficult time for a family.
Basically, said Quisenberry, "Memories have magical powers. Long after the cake is gone, the memories linger – memories of the kindness of a stranger, the art of the design, the sweet smells of a special treat, the smiles and laughs – a normal, childhood experience so often stolen from these children. [So] we are baking a difference."
For more information, go to www.icingsmiles.org.