Ted's Take: It's time to 'let them eat cake'

You've probably heard, "Let them eat cake," with a condescending air more times than you can count.

Well some people - kids in particular - have no concept of the political meaning. They really would like to eat cake, particularly on their birthdays.

But they can't, because of their economic condition.

Impossible, you say?

That's what I said. Surely anyone can buy a cake.

Then my daughter-in-law Laura of Spokane convinced me some families really can't afford a birthday cake.

"We take birthday cakes for granted," she said. "It's just natural for us to go buy a cake for a birthday. But some people really don't have the money."

There are all kinds of family problems, Laura said. Divorces cause difficulty. Single parents struggle. Some kids spend their young lives in and out of foster homes.

And then there is the failing economy. It's hitting some families in ways unaffected individuals can't imagine.

Some families have to chose between a gift or a cake, Laura said. Worse yet, some families must skip the cake and gift all together in favor of paying the bills.

How about making a cake like I did when I was a kid?

Sadly, Laura said, some people can't even afford the ingredients or decorating materials.

"It's really bad for some kids," she said.

Laura became a serious cake baker not long ago. She made a cake one day, just to have something do, and caught the Cake Boss and Ace of Cakes bug. Suddenly, Laura was making cakes left and right.

Laura estimates she made about 40 cakes in a ridiculously short period of time. My son Grover can attest.

"I can barely eat cake now," he said. "I usually take one bite, and I'm done."

Grover and my four grandsons were saved when Laura started making special cakes, like a golf or baseball cake for me. They required more time and limited her opportunity to over-produce.

Then there was another break for Grover and the boys. Laura learned about Free Cakes for Kids Spokane. It was founded by Kelly Eggleston, who got her inspiration from Georgia-based Free Cakes for Kids.

Free Cakes for Kids is a non-profit organization that pairs volunteer bakers with kids up to age 18 whose parents, or themselves, can't afford a birthday cake.

"The first time Kelly delivered a birthday cake to a kid, it was a girl who was in foster care," Laura said. "The girl started to cry when she saw it. Kelly asked her what was wrong, and the girl said it was the first birthday cake she'd ever had in her life."

"Now that is sad," Laura added.

Laura looked into Free Cakes for Kids and realized she'd found  freedom. The freedom to make cakes to her heart's content. She added her name to the list of volunteer cake bakers and is really committed to the cause.

Recently, when Grover showed up at the house with three of his sons on a Friday afternoon, I wondered where Laura and the fourth son were.

Laura would be arriving about midnight with the fourth son, Grover said. She had stayed back to participate in a fund-raiser for Free Cakes for Kids Spokane.

The cakes Laura now makes are Free Cakes for Kids, but they aren't really free. Laura and the other volunteer bakers put up their own money and, sometimes, ask others to help.

The cause is certainly worthy.

When Laura delivered her first Free Cakes for Kids birthday cake, it was to boy of about 10. She could see him at the door with his mother, waiting anxiously, as she drove up.

"He came running out to the car and had this big smile on his face," she said.