GRAND LEDGE, MI — This week's good neighbor is a baker, and like a lot of bakers, she has a special ingredient; love! But what she's doing with that ingredient is something we haven't seen before.
Grand Ledge resident Jill Davy loves to bake.
“I get an inkling to bake a whole bunch and I channel the baking into some sort of pay it forward effort," said Jill. "So, in this case, I felt like making cookies and I sold cookies to friends and family for $20 for a dozen and raised $600. I’m using that $600 to build birthday kits for local food pantries and shelters.”
The birthday kits are basically a party in a box! They come with everything you need including all the ingredients to make a cake – plus the napkins, plates and candles.
Jill says she wants to make sure everyone gets to celebrate their birthday. But she knows for some families that can be difficult.
“This is about $12 (holding up birthday kit) and that may not sound like a big deal to you or me, but you know that might be three or four meals for a family," said Davy. "So, I thought it was a good idea to make sure that every birthday gets to be celebrated.”
Jill made 48 birthday kits with the $600 she raised from selling her homemade cookies.
Jill’s husband, Howard, is involved too. He helps assemble the kits.
“We've been doing things like this since pre-pandemic," Howard said. "But the pandemic was really what inspired us to focus on doing things for people who couldn't come out of the house.”
During the middle of the pandemic, Jill made homemade pies and left them on the porches of neighbors and friends just to let them know she was thinking about them. Jill’s good friend, Kristin Twiss says she isn’t surprised by Jill’s latest project.
“Jill is a Good Neighbor because she is just a genuinely good persons," Twiss said. "She will go above and beyond for anyone. It's just what she does. One of her best friends from South Dakota had cancer and was pregnant and she raised $10,000 with her baking for her cause.”
Jill says she just wants everyone to have a special day on their birthday.
“Everyone has the right to feel special at least once a year, and if you don’t have the means to do it then this is a good way for people to be able to make their child, friend, or even their mom or dad, or whoever feel special," Jill said.
We couldn’t agree more!
We want to say thank you to Jill Davys - Whose love of baking gets passed forward to our community and those she loves.
You are this week’s good neighbor.
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