Welcome to mental health in Minnesota podcast produced
by Nam Minnesota multicultural young adult advisory board.
This is a podcast series that centers
education, empowerment and engagement surrounding mental health within
communities of color.
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Motivated by the critical need for mental health
support, doctor Alt tricia Foster emerged as a
passionate advocate for transformative healing.
As a public health practitioner and author, to
recognize the gaps in available resources and founded
the Cake Therapy
Foundation.
The initiative is devoted to empowering women and
girls impacted by the justice
and foster care. Doctor Foster vision is to
create a safe and nurturing space where the
therapeutic art of baking becomes a powerful catalyst
for personal growth,
resilience and community connection.
Her mission is to reach shape narratives and
provide essential life skills, fostering an environment where
every baked creation
represents a step towards a brighter, more empowered
future.
Hi. Thank you for having me. I'm Alt,
the president of the Cake therapy
Foundation. And I own sugar spoon dessert. So
like, it's a local bake bakery plymouth.
Awesome. Thank you so much. We are so
excited to
learn more about what the cake therapy foundation
is. So if we could just have you
introduce yourself... Oh, sorry, introduce
how you created the cake therapy foundation. What
inspired you? Yeah. Thank you for asking.
So for me, the Cake therapy Foundation is
very
personal. It's a personal journey.
And,
the inspiration behind that is it's stemmed from
my own deep passion for both baking and
mental health.
When I found baking,
a couple of years ago, I I found
the kitchen to be my my own personal
solace. Mh, where the process of mixing ingredients
and creating something beautiful and delicious, actually provided
for me a sense of calm, and a
sense of accomplishment.
Thank you so much. Mh. Was there a
specific, you know, moment in time or experience
that really led you to combine both the
mental health support and the baking?
Yeah.
Because, like, over the years, I noticed that
baking was not only therapeutic
for me, but it was
super powerful. It's a powerful way of bringing
people together. So I thought through...
What could this possibly mean for others, has
it was, you know, playing an integral role
in my own life.
So after giving birth to my second child,
I went through a period
of postpartum of depression.
And I actually
baked through it. You know, Also so during
that challenging time,
I turned to baking as a coping mechanism,
the rep repetitive motions of baking, the tech
sure that... So I actually baked through
postpartum, and I realized that it was super
effective. And I told those stories
in my book cake therapy how baking changed
my life because it really has played a
monumental part.
Wow. That is really powerful. Thank you for
sharing that. Yeah.
So, you know, the kick Therapy foundation, I
understand that your...
You know, your main goal is to assist
women and girls, particularly involved with justice a
system Mh. Or foster care. So how does
the Cake therapy foundation assist women and girls.
Yeah. So we not only focus on those
2 modalities, we focus on girls who are
being displaced as in out of home placement
as well. So any girl that's been
impacted by any form of system.
Welcome... Is welcome into the Cake therapy
foundation. So
At cake therapy, we provide a safe space.
It's supportive,
where women and girls can actually express themselves
and build their own confidence through baking.
We recognize
that those involved with the justice system
or foster care often 10 face unique challenges,
and we wanted to put in place
vocational modality to respond that. Right? So our
programs actually tailored to address the specific needs
by offering life skills,
workshops, 1 and 1 mentoring
therapeutic baking sessions. And for instance, through baking,
participants learn to set their own goals,
follow steps, and see a project through to
completion, which can actually translate
problem solving.
I love that. And those are all like
you said, life skills,
and we'll talk a little bit more about
what those life schools are later. Yeah.
But, you know, a typical baking therapy session?
Mh. What can participants expect?
Yeah. So our baking
sessions really focus on providing structured,
yet creative activities.
So we aim to foster the resilience, build
self esteem and offer constructive outlets for emotions.
So during our,
the participants can expect a warm and welcoming
atmosphere to begin with because we are we're
intentional about setting the space for trust building,
truth telling,
and I'd... I'm not promoting
only a safe space.
I'm asking girls to be brave in the
space. So in those sessions,
they have bacon activity,
they have clear, guided instructions in in that
space. They get to learn new recipes and
techniques,
which not only enhance their baking skills, but
also boosts their confidence.
Thank you. Mh. So what key life skills
do those participants develop through your program?
Yeah.
So we're intentional in the foundation to
start our groups with centering
and end them with a group discussion where
everyone can reflect on what they've learned, how
they feel fostering a scent itself a accomplishment
and community.
So our participants will develop a range of
key life skills
through the program. Baking requires time management end,
attention to,
which helps improve focus and discipline.
Process of,
I believe from start to finish really does
enhance someone's problem solving abilities, and it's a
group in some case, it's so that... Therefore,
it promotes collaborative
abilities and collaborating skills.
We do
unlimited capacity
promotes
you know,
emotional,
intelligence.
So, we're asking girls to recognize their own
their own emotions on how to manage their
own emotions in the process. And through these
activities our participants learn to manage their own
stress and build their own self forth in
the completion of a project.
Thank you. Yeah. Building. I think building girl
self confidence and women's self confidence is so
key. So I love that it's a way
where it's not
confrontational where. Sit down and listen to me
talk to you. Absolutely. But it's... Let's kind
of get our hands into some thing and
see what you can create. Yes. And yeah.
Confidence for a girl is is important, You
know, I think a a young girl at
any age if they lack. Their self esteem
esteem is low. Their confidence is low, then
you see where their growth is stunt, and
their own personal and emotional development suffers.
Alright. So doctor Alt can you tell us
how baking has transformed your life?
That's a a very deep question for me.
Baking has been a formative journey, it has
provided a creative and therapeutic outlet.
During some of my most challenging times. It's
really helped me.
III mentioned briefly before that I wrote a
book. And as I was dive you know,
taking a deep dive into the things that
happened to me as a kid, I had
to bake through to really start centering myself.
So baking actually began as a way to
cope with the part and depression as I
mentioned.
And it's
I would say meta emphasized until
the thing that I do to help with
my own childhood trauma,
it's allowed me to channel my emotions into
something,
I would say more constructive
nourishing
Right? Good nursing nourishing.
And I've I've found... I truly found a
sense of peace purpose
accomplished meant, and I hadn't ex... You know,
I hadn't experienced anything like that before, and
it's gradually became an integral part of my
home personal healing process. This.
I love that. And I appreciate that you
talk about baking as a way to center
yourself. Mh.
Doing it just for you. I love that.
It's all about me when it comes still
dealing with my own personal issues because I
have to, you know, I have to find
a tools to be able to to feel
me, you know, so mh. Mh.
And so you mentioned authoring a book? Yeah.
What can readers expect in your book? And
how do you address coping through baking.
So in my book, again, it's, like, all
of this baking and cake stuff it's
personal to me. You know, it's almost like
my shoes.
Right? Mh. And
in the book cake therapy, how baking changed
my life, I I took a deep dive
in my own personal history and trauma.
It's... It looks at my own personal journey
of healing through baking. In fact.
In the book, I've shared intimate stories of
my own personal struggles
and how the simple out of baking actually
provided solace and a sense of control. So
the book talks about my background going up
in Jamaica.
A single parent household
in an impoverished village impoverished village.
A single mother who barely made it out
of high school. But then had bigger dreams
for her daughter
than she had for herself. And and I
do see myself in in a lot of
girls in the community,
because I needed to tell the story that
they too can.
So I took that deep drive in the
book.
It talks about... It actually chronic my own
experiences,
but it also offers practical call, advice and
coping strategies.
The readers can expect. I would say a
blend of heartfelt
anecdotes, my own personal. I would say,
Practical baking tips I have recipes
embedded
and in the in the stories, at the
start of each chapter I have a recipe
that reflects the moment and the emotions.
That I experienced as I baked them and
how they've actually helped me to cope.
I love that. I love that. And I
also appreciate that it goes back to kind
of your own cultural background, you know, of
of what you experience in the kitchen. Mh.
You know? And I always tell,
I'm among women, and, you know, I grew
up with my mom I cooking in the
kitchen, and, you know, and I always said
no 1 makes food better than my mom.
Yeah. Yeah. Of course. And it it always
comes back. To the kitchen really. You build
some of the best relationships in there,
and the conversations are always always great. And
in in that book, I did, I have
included some of some recipes from my own
cultural jamaican personal background.
But then
Out, I make migrated to the states. I
believe in 2001
to start college them I'm actually aging myself
here.
But
I've also included some
international desserts.
Because it shows my growth. And I showed
how my own product grew after leaving home.
So it really an interesting take on the
book yet. Oh, I love that. I love
that.
So I visited your website, the Cake Therapy
found and looks beautiful. Thank you. And you
have several kind of facets of,
programming, including a blog and a podcast. Yeah.
So I wanna ask you kind of You
know, what was your purpose in creating that
blog and podcast? And if you have any
future plans with those?
Thank you for visiting my my my web
side. Hey, guys. Go and check out our
website.
The website took everything out of me because
I wanted to make ensure that the colors
and the representation of it was appealing to
girls
and was appealing to community.
In addition to the foundation's core activities,
we run this blog and a podcast of...
Of course.
Because it helps to further our mission because
when you say,
you speak the word cake therapy.
People say, oh, what's that?
And
the intention around this a short term goal
is to actually
increase knowledge. They taught us this in school.
Right? That
key is the first increased knowledge of something
before it becomes what it should be, and
that is our take on it. So it
was strategic to do the podcast and the
blog together
because I really want it to be a
source
a resource to others to come and tell
stories. So, the blog is serving as a
resource
page to
anyone, mental health, professional,
baker's,
chefs to come tell their own personal stories
in writing,
so they get to author the the blog.
So it's it's serving as a contributor page.
To tell your own stories. And soon some
of the girls who've encountered cake therapy
will be writing those same stories on the
blog. Yes. It is a table for every
and anyone. And
just like the podcast,
We're simply just using different form of medium
to reach the masses.
So the podcast, it's it's a slice of
joy.
And healing. That's my my tag. The cake
therapy podcast is your slice of joy and
healing
because I want you to come and get
anecdotes and listen to bakers because truthfully,
chefs and bakers.
They're really used baking as their tool. It's
their
release valve.
Once you've heard the stories of how
their
their businesses came to be. It's
almost all of them started
baking at the hobby, just like myself. So
I want them to be able to tell
those stories, but not only tell the story
of how their businesses came to be, but
simply telling a girl,
1 of the girls who are participating,
in the Cake therapy foundation how to become
an entrepreneur.
And to tell that girl that, you know,
often, we encourage. We encourage these traditional forms
of on
of work. Right? You have to be a
lawyer, or doctor. Mh. But tell that girl
that you can be both,
you know, you can become a physician, but
you can also bake.
You can become an attorney, but you can
also bake you can do this as a
side business or not. Mh. But I'm also
telling you
that there's nothing wrong with becoming a cake
artist.
What I'm gonna do is tell you how
to become an entrepreneur in your own right,
and I'm also telling you how to help
change
generation. Mh.
Non business owners in your family because you
can be the first. Mh. I love that
and really having a place to build that
generational wealth It's so important Of of course.
And I think a lot of folks might
think, oh, starting a business is risky. Yeah.
Right? And so then folks go on to,
you know, a safe career. Yep. Mh. That
really might not be fulfilling for them. Absolutely
and. And I myself have delved into that.
I'm I'm a vaccine scientist. I'm a public
health practitioner. Mh and it's scared to think
that
I've actually fallen out of love with science
and more in love with food. But then
when you sit back, and this is science.
It is food science. You know what I
mean. So I'm able to merge
both my passions.
To make it work for me. And I
I really want girls to know that it
can work, and our foundation is here to
teach you that skill.
And if you want to in turn, use
this vacation to start your own personal business,
use it. But if you also want to
use it as a release valve
for whatever you're experiencing, and you can go
into that kitchen and big through something, then
here it is also.
I love that.
And so tell us about your back I
know that you mentioned your public health practitioner.
Mh. So what led you to really create
the cake therapy foundation with your background in
mind. Yeah.
I am uniquely
aware.
Alright?
I am uniquely aware of health inequities,
Mh very much so,
my my public health work has been around
medical
sociology,
but I do a lot of work in
health equity. I've I've led work
to promote vaccine parody, Mh to underserved community.
That's my passion. Like, I wanna be able
to make
help
and anything else equitable
to underserved...
Underserved community. Because I too wasn't underserved girl.
Mh. Right? And I wanna make sure that
access. Everyone has access. Girls like me have
access, and I don't want to make myself
in festival.
So...
Yeah. So
wrote the book told a story. That's my
story. That III was that girl. Right? Mh.
And I needed to to create a space,
a pray... A space from purpose
a space from a gift that I was
given because when I discovered this baking
hobby, this tool,
I was already successful in my own ride
as a scientist as a public health practitioner,
And I've always asked myself like,
why were you given this?
And I felt like,
not only was I called to this.
I was chosen for this. And
and... I'm just simply just walking in that
purpose. And answering. Mh. And just as a
quick follow up, you know, did you face
any challenges that you've experienced, I think about
jumping for being a a scientist write kind
of being a scientist in the kitchen. Yeah.
And so
what were some challenges that you've experienced. Yeah.
I haven't
experienced a lot of challenges
in terms of making the transition because those
who know me, I'm a go or I'm
very, very tough. And once I've set my
eyes and my gold and I've, like, really
created those objectives and the goals to support
it. I'm gonna get it done. But I
think the greatest challenge for me is
raising awareness
for people to see and to begin to
find value in the kitchen. Mh. That a
kitchen is really that place. And I think
for for decades or her brand. And
and our great grandmothers, they survive.
Because they were in the kitchen and as
millennials and gen ears,
we we come out and we're like, okay.
We're no longer wanna be in the kitchen.
Right? So it's actually
I'm encouraging, and I'm trying to get people
to start.
Taking back the kitchen.
That healing is in fact in the kitchen.
And then 1 other struggle that the challenging,
the biggest challenge for us, I think outside
of awareness is funding. For because people aren't
as aware of
the strength
that lies in the kitchen,
they are not quick to fund
such a novel concept.
So I would say, that's been a great
challenge for us. Mh Mh. Thank you for
sharing that. Yeah. And like said, you know,
it's those challenges that make us stronger and
make us more
mission lead. Of course. It has to be
because once you believe in a thing,
and that thing has worked for you, you
are just simply walking around knowing
that it is this 1 thing that you've
discovered that actually is
saving you and has saved you
what else can you do, but share it?
Use it as a tool to save others,
But it doesn't matter how long it takes
for people to start then where this idea
is no longer novel. Mh. And it is
a bang and people are back in the
kitchen. Mh. Mh. I love that. And like
you said, I think, being in the kitchen
is often seen as lesser than. It's inferior.
It's seen as, you know, folks might even
say, woman's work or,
you know, but like you said, there's so
much
community that happens in the kitchen. That's where
all the good gossip is. And that's
it is. Yeah. It really is. Yeah. Yeah.
And we're the ones who bring the people
together. Yeah. You know. So I love that
you're really trying to reclaim the kitchen Yeah.
As a space of... It's it's a sacred
space. Lawyers? It's a space for science since
a space for, you know, community, so I
love that? Yeah.
And moving forward, what are some of the
cake therapy foundation's future goals?
Our foundation. I'm...
You know, I've always dreamt big. I'm a
dream.
You know, I've
Dr...
I I've dreamt for myself so many things
that have come to fruition. I've dreamt myself
out of poverty,
I've dreamt my myself out of my lower
soc economic status. So I dream, and I'm...
I dream big
for cake therapy. I want to... I'm actually
working on
establishing a form of the foundation in Jamaica
right now. So it going to actually start
teaching girls,
aging out of the Foster care system more
specifically there.
The tools, give them the tools to be
able to become
financially sound,
as well. So I wanna be able to
reach
other.
You know, I wanna be national and international.
I wanna be able to hold conference is
where girls can actually brand themselves in terms
of building their own brand,
seeing themselves as bigger you know, than
they're just their comp community, and it's my
hope to say, you know, I'm gonna have
1 of our girls
you know, on a national network speaking
on behalf of of of other girls. Mh.
And and living in their own truth and
being entrepreneurs in their own right.
I love that.
And so what is the mission of the
therapy foundation, and how do you live that
out?
Yeah. I would say,
The mission of the cake therapy
foundation is to actually
foster
emotional, well being
an empowerment through the therapeutic practice of baking.
That is it. Yeah. That is really it
So we are really dedicated to providing accessible
and inclusive baking therapy workshops. Mh that is
pretty much what we wanna do.
And to really end by just creating a
supportive and inclusive community where girls can feel
You know, I... I used to work at
a place and 1 of their mission and
vision was that they want the community to
feel
valued and that they can thrive, and I
do want the girls to feel like they
too are valued, they're they are heard. And
they can actually thrive. Mh Mh.
Thank you so much, After Trisha. Do you
have any last thoughts, you know, or any
anywhere where, you know, folks can
get more involved or even volunteer
or or share, you know, the great mission
of the take care... Well, thank you for
asking.
You could just visit our website at w
w dot, you know, the cake therapy foundation
dot org.
We have or calendar up. We are actively
asking for donors.
The small donations that are coming in are
really helping to keep our programs alive. Right
now we're going to... We're gonna be in
a
middle school on the North side this fall.
And we are trying to be in other
schools,
but we do require the support of the
community right now.
So let's look out for our drives on
our website on our social media platforms because
we actually do need you. Mh. Thank you
so much. Yeah. Thank you so much.
Mh. Yes. Yes. Thank you.
And so how has you're involvement with with
the foundation, both you creating it kind of
its evolution as well, How has the foundation
influenced you both personally and professionally?
Yeah.
The cake therapy foundation is deeply personal to
me.
I'm
I'm from a broken home.
And
when I've discovered this,
the talent or the gift of baking that
actually help to change my life.
III
couldn't understand it in a moment because I'm
new to the space, but then III saw
the miracle that you know, that that happened
to me in terms of
how baking has definitely transformed everything about my
life. So the foundation is definitely
null. I really want it to be able
to impact girls,
and
my personal involvement with the foundation,
it's it's trans formative. That's how I would
describe it. It has deepened my
empathy and understanding
of the challenges faced by women and girls
in ball
situations.
It has also provided me with a sense
of fulfillment and purpose,
knowing that all work is making a tangible
difference in people's lives.
Professionally, for me, I think as I lead
the foundation in has strengthened my own personal
leadership skills and my commitment to
work around social justice and making a social
impact.
And it has pushed me, continues to to
push me to learn and grow and lean
forward
both as a person and as a professional
the experiences
and the stories
shared by the participants or anybody or anyone
that we come in contact with shared the
stories
of
cake therapy
has been incredibly
inspiring, I would say,
people listen. They wanna learn and it does
reaffirm my own personal believe that there is...
Thank you so much.
And for viewers or listeners who are interested
in learning more about either the Cake therapy
foundation or how they can be involved, or,
you know, where can folks find you and
have that further, contact? Yeah. Thank you for
that opportunity. So this work I'm doing...
Is really the cornerstone of who Am and
I'm everywhere with it. It all started at
sugar spoon dessert. You can find me on
Facebook and on Instagram. It's a premier.
Tell everyone it's a premier baking company here
in Minnesota, but then most of all, you
can find us
at b cake therapy foundation dot org.
Or cake Therapy
Foundation on Instagram.
Awesome. Thank you so much for joining. Thank
you for having me. It's been my pleasure.
Nam, Minnesota
multicultural young adult advisory board provides general information
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Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in
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