By Robby Osborne
As if a a cake show wasn’t already sweet enough. The National Capital Area Cake Show taking place March 29 and 30 has announced their charity sponsor for this weekend’s show will again be Icing Smiles.
The show is sponsored by the Virginia chapter of The International Cake Exploration Societé which emphasizes “the creative possibilities of sugar.” The ingredients to the show are: three parts classes, two spoonfuls of live demonstration and a dash of competition to keep things lively.
“The NCACS is the second largest [cake show] in the country and we have been their selected charity for three years,” said Tracy Quisenberry, founder and executive director of Icing Smiles. “We work with many through sponsored tables, but this show is unique in that a portion of their proceeds are donated to us.”
Not only that, but Icing Smiles will take part in the main event, a live cake-challenge, where competitors must bake and design their cake from scratch. The charity will help judge which confectionery delight is victorious, and all of the cakes cakes will be donated to local hospitals.
The show will host two days of exciting classes, demonstrations and contests open to the public including
The concept behind Icing Smiles is a simple one, their core desire is to bring smiles to children’s faces. “We understand that the simple things, like a birthday cake, are luxuries to a family battling illness,” their mission statement said. “Our goal is to create a custom cake for the ill child, or their sibling, that provides a temporary escape from worry and creates a positive memory during a difficult time.” Icing Smiles serves their unique cakes to children and their siblings who have a life-threatening medical condition, who require frequent trips to the hospital or who find themselves stuck in the hospital during their birthday.
The cakes can be anything and everything, from Mickey Mouse opening a present, to a hand exploding out of a championship belt. The cakes are limited by a child’s imagination, that is to say they have no limits, even when it comes to ingredients. Icing smiles boasts an ability to provide these cakes to children with the most extreme dietary restrictions, and have not failed to provide a cake to an eligible child in 2014.
Icing Smiles continues to grow with 52 new cake requests and 36 new volunteers each week. Their reach is now international; and by working with hobbyist and professional bakeries in all 50 states, Canada and Holland; they have delivered 4,500 cakes since their first brought a smile to Violet’s face in 2010. As of this article, they have delivered 539 unique cakes so far in 2014, which puts them in their target goal of 2000 for the year.
National Capital Area Cake Show
3501 Rebel Run, Fairfax, 22030
www.cakeshow.org/
March 29, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. March 30, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
General Admission: $12