Meet Alison Lemarechal

Behind the Sugar: Blog Edition

As another year passes, we must not forget to thank our Sugar Angels who provide many “smiles” and countless hours of dedication to our organization and mission. To usher in the New Year, today we spotlight Sugar Angel Alison Lemarechal with Alison Elle Edible Art in Lake Orion, Michigan.

“I first discovered the organization a few years ago when I saw a beautiful cake on a baking website, which the blogger indicated, was an Icing Smiles donation. I searched for the Icing Smiles website, and immediately submitted an application! As a mother of a child with autism, I understand how important it is for families with special needs to build positive memories when we can. I love our organization’s mission to provide families with a temporary distraction from the stress of living with illness,” Alison said when asked how she learned about Icing Smiles.

When she receives the opportunity to design a cake for one of our children, she considers it a privilege and very rewarding to participate in those celebratory moments. Alison received another one of these opportunities, when she was contacted to create a dream cake for 2 year old Greyson who was born at 28 weeks weighing 1lb. 13.7oz. Before being released from the hospital Greyson spent a total of 197 days in the NICU. He had several surgeries including surgery on his heart to close a valve, double hernia repair, and a tracheotomy. Unfortunately, his parents were unable to have a big first birthday for him because his health was so fragile at the time. His mom says, “He has had to overcome so much in a short time, but he is a fighter and has been fighting from the start! We are so proud of him and he is currently taking trials off of his ventilator. ”

When asked how she came up with such a creative design for Greyson’s cake Alison said, “When I learned that his family was planning a Sesame Street party theme, I asked if Greyson had any favorite characters he would enjoy seeing on his cake. I found out that he loved Big Bird and Elmo, so I made sure they were the anchors of the cake design. Along with their response, Greyson’s family also sent some adorable photos of their sweet boy coloring pictures of Sesame Street characters. He is just precious, so I couldn’t resist including a little fondant Greyson sitting with Big Bird!”

Alison used the Cake Stacked support system to construct her cake. The armature allowed her to create the offset structure in a secure and stable manner. It also made it easy to assemble as the cake stood about 2 feet tall. She said, “I actually completed stacking the tiers at Greyson’s home! I brought a little bag full of fondant corkscrew “confetti” with me, which Greyson and his big brother, Landon, used to embellish the cake base.”

Alison estimates she devoted about 25 hours of work to her “smile” for Greyson. “I was overjoyed to be a part of their special day,” she said. The response she received from the family made every second of her time worthwhile. Greyson’s mom shared that Alison was “absolutely amazing.”

Thank you Alison for bringing a BIG smile to Greyson’s face! We are so excited to have you as a Sugar Angel and look forward to seeing more “smiles” in the future. To view more of her wonderful creations, visit her Facebook page.