Patiently Building a Bakery

and a list of items we are hoping to find

Hi bread friends! 

This morning I have two things to share with you. The first is an update, the second is an ask - and they are both related to the bakery construction project. 🥖👷😎

This is the first time our family has taken on a home remodeling project. It is an exciting endeavor, and a real privilege to be able to invest in a project like this. We're grateful and excited… and tired.😅 At the start of this project, Melissa and I were committed to not complaining about the process. We figured... we signed up for a project which naturally will involve inconvenience... so the least we can do is practice patience throughout the process. 

Side note: “practicing patience” is something that I talk to my kids about all the time. Whenever we're in a situation that calls for patience, I attempt to model it, and also acknowledge it by saying to them in a cheerful tone, "Oh! This looks like an opportunity to practice patience." I’ve used it so often that I accidentally created a classic dad phrase. Now when I say, “Oh kids, what is this an opportunity to do?”, they will reply, “Practice patience” with a bit of a sigh. As a teenager, the eye-roll was a tool that I wielded frequently and rather aggressively. So I’m praying they don’t learn about that tool anytime soon.

All this to say – this basement project is a supreme opportunity to practice patience. Currently, construction is about a month behind schedule. I do not have a meaningful update for when the bakery will be operational. I’ll just continue with the belief that the bakery will be up and running sometime this summer.

I remain excited for the bakery, though! And every time someone asks me about it on the bus, at school drop off, in an email or DM - it reminds me how excited this community is to see Bread & Justice grow into its next chapter of life. Thank you for your enthusiasm. It’s deeply uplifting.

Speaking of uplifting… I do have some photos that I can share of the progress over the past few months. Things really are coming along 😎

As I’ve mentioned in the past, beyond building a bakery room in the basement, I have a modest list of equipment needs that will facilitate Bread & Justice’s evolution from a kitchen endeavor to a full cottage bakery.

First, I want to celebrate the items that are already on the way! We have a dedicated commercial sink for doing dishes and a dedicated refrigerator for cold fermenting the dough. My household is so excited that making a few dozen loaves of bread will no longer require us to re-arrange the family fridge.

Plus, I shared in a previous message that a good friend donated a pre-loved bread oven to us. This is a remarkably generous community, and the oven donation was a boost of support. Their act of kindness was a meaningful impetus for us to feel inspired that it was the right time to invest in building out our little bakery on a mission.

Many of you have similarly asked how you can participate in supporting Bread & Justice during this moment of growth. There are a number of additional items we’ll be getting for the bakery. I’ll share that list below. If you have a connection who you feel might be inspired to donate any of these items - please forward this email to them, and encourage them to reach out to me. As with the oven, we are happy to take items that are pre-loved in good condition.

And certainly - if you feel inspired to support the purchasing of any of this equipment, my Venmo is still @BakingMo - or you can simply reply to this email. I’ll be checking with local restaurant stores this week, and plan to have everything ordered by the end of May.

Thank you all! I can’t express how eager I am to get back to baking for you all and donating to awesome causes together.

Cheers!
Mo Cheeks