Sugar Bakeshop general manager Kat Palmisano and her staff delivered 350 of the bakery’s signature iced sugar cookies to One80 Place on Thursday as part of the “For Goodness Bakes” national program supporting neighborhood bakeries and charitable organizations.
Vermont-based King Arthur Baking Company spearheads the program by working with establishments to purchase baked goods, which the bakery then donates to a local organization of its choosing. Sugar was one of just six bakeries in the country selected to participate in the holiday cookie donation taking place the first two weeks of December.
“I’ve known about King Arthur for a while — they’re in stores, and we actually use their flours here at Sugar,” Palmisano said. “We feel just so honored to have been chosen, especially for this time of year.”
King Arthur specifically asked for Sugar’s iced sugar cookies because they wanted to spread joy and holiday cheer, Palmisano said.
“It’s just a sugar cookie that we ice up and decorate,” she said. “We do them every holiday season and then for Christmas in July too.” The cookies come in five different shapes — there are snowmen, bells, stars, Christmas trees and stockings.
King Arthur launched “For Goodness Bakes” in March as a way to help small bakeries struggling through the pandemic, while also helping contribute to local organizations in need of support.
“For Goodness Bakes was born out of our desire to support bakeries as they face the unprecedented challenges presented by the global COVID-19 pandemic,” King Arthur wrote in an online post. “Bakeries are struggling. Many are having to close their doors temporarily in response to a lack of business, as well as health and safety concerns for both employees and customers, or they’re fighting to stay afloat.”
Despite its popularity, Sugar Bakeshop has not been immune to the effects COVID-19 has had on the food and beverage industry — Palmisano said they “really got by just on locals who made a point to go around the neighborhood” at the onset of the pandemic. Sugar joins other celebrated bakeries that have participated in “For Goodness Bakes,” including Flour Bakery + Cafe in Boston, City Bakery in Asheville and Russ & Daughters in New York City.
The Sugar Bakeshop staff delivered the cookies in compostable bags at 1 p.m. on Thursday. Palmisano said everyone was thrilled to have the opportunity to give back to an essential organization in the Charleston area.
“We picked One80 Place because they do so much good in the city,” she said. “Not only do they take people in and give them shelter, but they help people find long term housing, and they have a culinary job training program. They’re really going above and beyond.”
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