EDITOR'S NOTE: In June 2004 I began a new venture as managing editor of both Northfield News and Faribault Daily News. This column originally appeared in the Northfield News on Jan. 5, 2007.
NORTHFIELD - Megan Durkin never expected to be making another gingerbread house so soon. In fact, to begin her newest gingerbread project on Thursday, she had to dig out her decorating supplies that already had been packed until next winter.
Yet, on Friday afternoon, Durkin was in the beginning stages of making a gingerbread replica of what has become known as a "Katrina-style Cottage" that will be used as an incentive to convince someone to give $1,000 to help build a home in Ocean Springs, Miss.
As she carefully applied frosting to a squared grid that was destined to be lattice work on a window of her gingerbread Katrina home, Durkin told the story of how her latest gingerbread project came about. The weekend before Christmas, Durkin was the focus of a feature story in the Northfield News because she had built a replica gingerbread house of a home in Dundas. To benefit the ARTech charter school here in Northfield, she had volunteered to give the winning bidder of an auction the prize of a gingerbread replica of their home. She also had donated a similar prize for auctions at Prairie Creek Community School, another local charter school. Before that she hadn't baked in 20 years, even though she had formerly worked as a pastry chef to put herself and her husband through college.
Then enters retired pastor Dan Zielske from Morristown, who has been heavily involved in raising money to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina the last couple of years. Zielske saw the story about Durkin's gingerbread house-making talents and he called her to ask if she would volunteer to make a gingerbread replica of a Katrina cottage to help raise money to build a home for a victim of Hurricane Katrina. Zielske has been instrumental in leading several volunteer groups to the Gulf region to help rebuild or do whatever they could to help. Several weeks ago he announced he was spearheading an effort to raise $40,000 to build a small home for someone who had lost their house during the hurricane. The homes are designed to be an alternative to a trailer house that would be provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to hurricane victims. Zielske said some hurricane victims are now paying mortgage payments to own a concrete foundation because their homes are gone and they do not have the money to rebuild. So many organizations are building the small homes that have become known as Katrina-style cottages. At the time Zielske announced his challenge to raise the $40,000 from the region including Northfield, Faribault and Owatonna, he also sought out volunteers who would be willing to bake a cake that looked like a Katrina-style cottage to give to anyone or group that gave $1,000 to the effort. After Zielske saw Durkin's story in the News, he thought someone willing to donate their time to make a gingerbread house for a school fundraiser might also be willing to donate her time and talent to raise money for victims of Hurricane Katrina. He was correct and Durkin agreed.
Zielske will pick up Durkin's gingerbread house this morning and bring it to Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Faribault, where members of the local Thrivent Financial for Lutherans chapter will pick a favorite between it and a Katrina-style cottage cake made by an Owatonna woman. And eventually, Durkin's creation will be given to the next person who donates $1,000 to Zielske's Katrina cottage fundraiser. Zielske said the cake from Owatonna already has been given to a $1,000 donor from Faribault, so today's judges will be working from a photograph of it.
Durkin said Friday that she doesn't plan to make a living from being a pastry chef again, but she was glad to donate one more gingerbread house for a good cause.
"I think the Katrina effort is a great human interest story," she said.
- Devlyn Brooks can be reached at dbrooks@northfieldnews.com or at 645-1116.
Comments