Gather your eggs, butter, flour, sugar, milk, baking powder, salt and vanilla extract. Follow the recipe, mix it all together and put it in the oven. Can you guess what will come out? A fresh treat ready for the ninth grade bake sale.
The ninth grade hosted a bake sale in the courtyard Friday, Jan. 23, to raise money for their semi-formal dance that took place Friday, Feb. 6. Many freshmen pitched in to create an array of sweet treats ranging from cupcakes to cookies. Their goal was to raise between $500 to $1,000, which was dependent on the rest of the community purchasing their homemade and store-bought baked goods.
Overall, the ninth graders produced over 30 different treats which, according to ninth grade student council representative Sienna Gray (‘29), is a huge accomplishment for the grade’s first fundraiser in upper school.
“Everyone brought in a ton of treats,” Gray said at the fundraiser. “We were very excited that we had this much of a turnout, and so far, it seems to be doing pretty well.”
Ninth grade student counsel representative Harley Nichols (‘29) said she is very proud of all the bakers. Nichols herself contributed to the bake sale by making chocolate cupcakes and mini chocolate chip cookies.
“We have so much participation from our grade, and the whole school is supporting us,” Nichols said. “It’s really amazing.”
After the bake sale concluded, Ninth Grade Dean of Culture, Community and Belonging Stephanie Ferri said she was impressed with the ninth graders’ effort, as they raised $1,518 in total, surpassing their original goal. Ferri said all bakers stood out to her, including Violet Broock (‘29) who made 40 pumpkin cream cheese muffins.
Broock has been baking since she was young, and she said her favorite part is the creative aspect. The first time Broock made pumpkin cream cheese muffins was in November when she made a batch of 90. Broock said they are her favorite item to bake and that she loves decorating her baked goods.
“I love to bake, it’s my favorite thing ever,” Broock said. “I can have fun with it, but I also like pairing new things with others.”
Bake sale baker Amanda Argiropoulos (‘29) also supported the fundraiser by making brownie cookies, red velvet loaf cake and caramel cheesecake bars. She said baking is a huge part of her life.
“Oh my God, I bake so much — I bake on the weekends,” Argiropoulos said. “If I get bored I just get up and just start baking. I bake anything.”
Argiropoulos described baking as complex. On top of the other extracurricular activities Argiropoulos does, she said she enjoys baking because it provides a way for her to express herself.
“It’s my own art, and I can create new things,” Argiropoulos said. “People can try it and tell me if it’s good.”
