Perhaps lured by the prospect of free cake, some 30 people flocked to the Flagler County Public Library in Palm Coast on Monday for a free lesson on cake decorating.
Perhaps lured by the prospect of free cake, about 30 teens and adults flocked to the Flagler County Public Library in Palm Coast on Monday for a chance to learn techniques used by professional cake decorators.
Led by decorator Debbye Faison and assistant bakery manager Mary McCartney from Palm Coast Publix store No. 1493 at Island Walk, the would-be decorators showed up to get the scoop on how to create floral designs and specialty borders often used on Publix cakes.
Merair Velez brought her teenage nieces to the workshop, hoping to remind them there is more to the library than books.
“I brought them since there is no school and they’re on vacation,” said Velez. “We thought this would be good, so they wouldn’t be bored at home and have a great time while learning to do new things. Two of them are driving now and have said they didn’t even know the library was offering this, so they’re more interested now, bringing their friends to the library.
"It’s a really good thing for kids staying in the area for the summer.”
One niece said she was inspired by the creativity she saw and is considering expanding her career horizons to include the Florida-based employer.
“One of my nieces didn’t even know it was a skill she could obtain," Velez said. "She did really good the first time. She wants to do hair but might even change her mind now, because she didn’t know she possessed the skill to do the training. Publix doing this stirs up talent in the community that they don’t even know they possess themselves.”
Crafting butter creme daisies, roses, chrysanthemums and hydrangeas, attendees filled the top of a sheet cake with colorful creations before digging into the sweet dessert.
A decorating professional with Publix for eight years, McCartney said she enjoys taking part in the public outreach activities through her job.
“We’re showing the basics of cake decorating to anyone who is willing to learn,” she said. “We want to show the community that we care, that we’re there for them and we want to support them in growing and learning and making Publix possibly a career. I love what I do and it makes me happy to teach people and help them grow.”
The free workshops are overseen by Sharon Fiske, young adult coordinator for the library, who loves being able to interact with teens and their families while providing creative outlets to keep them busy over the summer.
“It’s a little bit more than full,” joked Fiske looking around the room. “I love this, what keeps me going are these teenagers. I know there are adults mixed in, but aren’t we all still young at heart?”
Information on upcoming free workshops at the library is available at flaglercounty.org/departments/library.php or email sfiske@flaglerlibrary.org.