Baker Spotlight: Meet Jennifer Kennedy

Behind the Sugar: Blog Edition

Today we are excited to share our interview with the talented Jennifer Kennedy of Jenny’s Haute Cakes in Castle Rock, Colorado who donated a cake for 4 year old Piper diagnosed with DIPG.

Fa Mulan may be a Disney Princess, but at heart she is a warrior. Piper Waneka is also a princess in many ways. She is beautiful, smart, creative, and charming and her favorite color is pink. Nonetheless, like Mulan, Piper is also a warrior. Princess Piper battles against DIPG (Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma), an aggressive form of childhood brain cancer.

DIPG tumors invade the lowest portion of the brainstem which is responsible for the control of vital functions like respiration and circulation. There are few potential treatment options often leaving children with a devastating prognosis. The progressing tumor gradually steals a child’s ability to walk, talk, smile, and eventually, to breath. Months ago, in June of 2017, Piper was given 6-9 months to live. She’s been fighting DIPG ever since, yet, still retains her cheerful and imaginative disposition.

When she turned four last December, Piper wanted a “big party,” so the community came together to give her a party fit for the princess she truly is! The party included pizza, photography, and face painting… and of course cake. One of many contributor’s to Piper’s party, Jennifer of Jenny’s Haute Cakes, made an amazing 3D cake featuring Fa Mulan and her pet dragon, Mushu.

Sugar Artist Jennifer Kennedy has been decorating cakes professionally for 6 years. She started as a hobby making delicious treats for her children. After taking many online classes and tutorials, Jennifer’s talent evolved and she also signed up to become one of our Sugar Angels! Jennifer wanted to be able to use her new found skills to make a child happy. This is great, because we contacted her to create Piper’s dream cake for her 4^th birthday.

As soon as Jennifer was notified of the concept for Piper’s cake she immediately started working on the design. Jennifer said, “I was inspired by the fact that Piper wanted Mulan as the warrior. I knew the cake had to be Mulan herself sculpted in cake and dressed as a warrior.”

Mulan was the perfect model for Piper’s birthday cake, encompassing many aspects of Piper herself and being one of Piper’s favorite characters. To build the cake Jennifer first found a photo of Mulan and enlarged it to the actual size she wanted the cake to be. She then built a structure using PVC pipe on a 24” square wooden board. She baked six 9” rounds layers and two 6” round layers to create the body. The head, arms, and legs were molded from cereal treats. Jennifer then carved and ganached the whole structure and covered it in fondant. The sword she used as another structural stabilizer to make the cake sturdier. Mulan ended up being about 34” tall!

Jennifer said, “Piper’s family was such a joy to work with. I felt so compelled by her story. This is one of the largest sculpted cakes I have ever made. The structure, transport, everything was a challenge but it was so worth it! At the last minute I decided to add the two weights on the board to represent Piper’s fight. In the movie, Mulan tries and tries and is finally able to climb a tall wooden post with two weights around her neck.” She also included Mulan’s little dragon Mushu which was created with modeling chocolate and fondant.

Princess Piper battles DIPG daily, but she is not alone. She has the support of her entire community, an ever growing community. You can join Piper’s community by following her blog at the link below or purchasing a “Warriors for Princess Piper Bracelet.” Proceeds from bracelet sales go to The Cure Starts Now to fund DIPG research and give hope to kids like Piper.

To read Piper’s Blog, go to http://warriorsforprincesspiper.com/blog/.

To purchase a bracelet, go to http://warriorsforprincesspiper-com.3dcartstores.com/Warriors-for-Princess-Piper-Bracelet_p_12.html.

Piper also has a GoFundMe page at https://www.gofundme.com/warriors-for-princess-piper.

Thank you Jennifer for bringing a BIG smiles to Piper’s face! We are truly excited to have you as a Sugar Angel and look forward to seeing more “smiles” from you in the future!

Submitted by contributing Blogger Molly Sargen and Communications Coordinator DeAndrea Williams.