Baker Spotlight: Meet Chef Michelle Jones

Behind the Sugar: Blog Edition

Today we are excited to share our interview with the talented Chef Michelle Jones of Donna Belle Desserts in Menifee, California who donated a cake for 4 year old Sydney diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis.

“I had no idea that my first opportunity to be a “Sugar Angel” would hit so close to home. Our families have so much in common including the fact that both of our daughters have Cystic Fibrosis, they were both born in Japan, and both have fathers in the US Navy,” said Chef Jones. In some cases, our Sugar Angels are very much like the families we serve. Some have even faced critical illnesses themselves. But what they all have in common is their wiliness to serve. In Chef Jones’ case, having a child with an illness encouraged her to give back since so many have blessed her family with so much love and support.

Since graduating from culinary school in 2007 and decorating cakes since 2009, she noticed other cake artist posting about Icing Smiles on Instagram. That’s what ultimately encouraged her to sign up as one of our Sugar Angels. It was simply fate that her first call to action would be for a family that shared in so many likenesses.

Chef Jones was tasked to create a Disney themed dream cake for 4 year old Sydney. She said her family was huge Disney fans so coming up with her inspiration wasn’t difficult at all. The cake was chocolate with chocolate buttercream. She baked two 9” cakes for the bottom tier and two 7” cakes for the top tier. The cakes were then iced in buttercream and stacked using straws as support. All of her details making up the design were created using gumpaste.

Her daughter Cheyenne (now a thriving college student) with All Made Ears was even able to make a beautiful matching pair of Minnie Mouse ears to coordinate Sydney’s cake! Both cake and Minnie ears adorned 65 roses. 65 Roses is a term often used by children that cannot pronounce Cystic Fibrosis. That amount of detail is simply amazing!

Sydney’s mom shared via Instagram, “The look on Sydney’s face when seeing this cake was absolutely magical and completely wiped away all of those dreary moments of treatments, needles and meds that she dealt with throughout the year. If you ever felt the need to donate to a nonprofit organization please check out what Icing Smiles does for children.”

Chef Jones said, “The reaction of the client and her mom were the best part, but also talking to others and making connections through this opportunity has been great!” Thank you Chef Jones for bringing a BIG smiles to Sydney’s face! We are truly excited to have your as a Sugar Angel and look forward to seeing more “smiles” from you in the future!