Can community pride be expressed through cake? asks Jason Slack, this is a question that he’s been pondering on for a couple of days and thought he’d share with you.
A few days ago I was sat in the main communal area of the Hunslet Club, as with most days at this busy thriving youth club it was abuzz with children running around, parents sat chatting and the distant noise of boxing training in the hall, dance sessions upstairs and footballers hard at work outside.
A parent came to me clutching a mobile phone, keen to show me some pictures of their childs recent holiday, but as I flicked perhaps hurriedly and politely through the sunshiney images, one caught my attention, I scrolled back to it, peered closer and got goosebumps….
The picture as you can see, is fairly self explanatory, a birthday cake, shaped and iced to be an exact replica of a Hunslet Club top, the like of which you will see hundreds of children wearing out and about around South Leeds.
So why the goosebumps? In that moment, a number of trains of thought chugged through my mind, firstly, the finely crafted, time consuming attention to detail that had gone into its creation, secondly, the care and consideration of the parent who had got this made and thirdly, the sense of pride with which that child must have in his community club for this symbol of it to be the number one choice for a birthday cake.
It can be all too easy sometimes to take for granted the community activities which become part of the tapestry of a young life, but this proud confectionary symbol of one of them reminded me of the important difference that organisations like the Hunslet Club make for thousands of children and young people in South Leeds.
So that’s got me thinking, what an awesome way community spirit can be celebrated – through cake decoration, art, food and community, all symbolised in icing!
If a community organisation has been symbolised in cake, then it is a truely valued part of that community, don’t you think?
Here’s another cakey example taken last year, created by local cake maker Donna Makes Cakes
Again, exquisite attention to detail, even with club coloured hundreds and thousands and edible club logo.
So here is the gauntlet I throw down, can anyone else email South Leeds Life any awesome cakey symbols of local South Leeds organisations, landmarks and pride? Email your pictures to southleedslife@gmail.com and we’ll put up a gallery of them on here, best one wins a box of fine chocolate, made with pride in Leeds by the award winning chocolatiers at Lauden Chocolate. (They really are rather exquisite!)
(By the way the maker of the Hunslet Club top cake, to give credit where it’s due is Sharlene Laycock, who makes many other splendid styles of cake too, if you are interested in commissioning her for your cake, get in touch and we’ll pass on your details.)
Thank you Jason for a thought provoking piece. It goes without saying that cake is very important. When we opened Hillside we commissioned a cake to be cut by the last Headteacher and shared by everyone at the event (the leftovers went to Cardinal Youth Club). I’ll send a photo.
Less impressive cakes are important too. I’m about to bake a couple of simple sponges for this week’s Bands In The Park event on Sunday. Tea and cake make the event more sociable and are a valuable source of income to organisers, the Friends Of Cross Flatts Park.