Former Foster Kids Cook Up Life Skills

Cafe Classroom preps young adults for life on their own

25 February 2010

At Moxie Bakery and Cafe, Christina Quinn (L) gets advice from Elin Ross on more than how to bake cupcakes

Foster children, who are in state custody because their parents are unable to care for them, can have a difficult time growing up. Unlike children who have a family they can count on if they have difficulty making it on their own, foster children may not have anyone to rely on but themselves. A cafe that opened In October 2009 in Frederick, Maryland, outside of Washington, is helping them get started on the right track.

Serving more than coffee and pastries

Moxie Bakery and Cafe seems like many other eateries that offer coffee, pastries and light meals, but it's much more.

"It's a training ground and a classroom," says Elin Ross, executive director of Cakes for Cause, the program behind Moxie. "Cakes for Cause's role is to provide job training and life skills training to youth who have aged out of the foster care system, who are living in public housing or are otherwise identified as being at risk in the Frederick community."

VOA Photo - S. KosterChristina Quinn, who aged out of foster care, hopes to become a hair stylist after receiving life skills training through 'Cakes for Cause'.

Christina Quinn is about half-way through her six-month apprenticeship. When she turned 18 last year, she says, "I didn't know what to do with my life."