By Tiffany Chyke-Okpuzor

I really enjoy the youth events, especially the Mother’s Day Bake Sale. This year, we partnered with La Baguette Bakery. We were able to sell Haitian patties at the bake sale. We sold out of almost everything, including the patties!

This event is my favorite because the Friday before Mother’s day weekend, our meeting consists of folding the boxes for the sale.

We also go to the house of either an adult leader or youth ministry member and bake. This year, the baking was done at our co-secretary, Briana’s house.

At the bake sale, fruit cake, plain cake and chocolate cake were sold. Along with those cakes, vanilla cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes, red velvet cupcakes, funfetti cupcakes, rum cupcakes and Oreo cupcakes were sold. The Oreo cupcakes were vanilla or chocolate cupcakes that had an Oreo cookie embedded in it, providing a little surprise.

Brownies and cookies were also sold. The brownies were a big hit with the parishioners and were sold out early. The type of cookies were chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin cookies.

Single patties were also sold. The flavors were herring, chicken, beef, codfish and spinach. We also sold coconut macaroons!

For every purchase, patrons received a free raffle ticket. At the end of all the Masses, we chose two names and they each won a whole cake.

Parish-Wide Participation

We received many cakes from some parishioners to be sold. We ordered pizza for the children for lunch and delivered two pies to the Kevin Keating Men’s Home in Rosedale. We specifically asked a parishioner to bake a cake that we could take to the NYPD Satellite Precinct nearby.

After all the Masses, approximately 20 youth members from both divisions walked to the NYPD Satellite Precinct and delivered a cake. The police officers were very grateful and afterwards we took pictures with the officers.

All in all, the bake sale was very successful!

Ministry is Family

I am grateful for the youth ministry in the parish because being part of the ministry helps me strengthen my faith, by providing services to my church community.

I am also able to make great friends and essentially become part of a second family. The adult leaders are like second parents to me.

All the proceeds from the sale this year will go towards sending my peers and I to the Scranton Charismatic Leadership Conference in August. This will allow us all to deepen our faith, strengthen our bonds with God and with one another.

We would like to thank all the parishioners for their unending support of our ministry.

Chyke-Okpuzor is a junior at Bronx Science H.S. She is also the president of the youth ministry at St. Clare’s in Rosedale.