Ready, set, bake!

Riverview

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This article was published 04/06/2025 (265 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A group of Riverview youngsters are once again baking up a storm — for a good cause.

On Saturday, June 7, Riverview Community Centre (90 Ashland Ave.) will host its annual community-wide garage sale, which acts as a fundraiser for the centre. And, while folks will be scouring the club itself, as well as dozens of related garage and yard sales across the south Osborne neighbourhood, one group of friends will continue its own tradition of offering passersby a variety of tasty, homebaked treats, with the proceeds going to charity.

“The first year, we were raising money for cancer research,” explained 11-year-old Emily Sobkowicz, one of the organizers of the annual bake sale, now in its fourth year. “We change what we raise money for every year. We just wanted to have a community bake sale, with so many people coming by the club all day.”

Since its inception, the group of friends, all of whom attend École Riverview School and play a variety of sports together, has raised between $300 and $400 each year for various organizations, including CancerCare, Riverview Health Centre, and Riverview Community Centre. This year, the girls will split proceeds between the community centre and the fund for Riverview School’s Grade 6 graduation party.

“Usually, each of us chooses two things,” Sobkowicz said. “One of my friends is gluten-free, so we do gluten-free, and my sister is allergic to nuts, so we do nut-free options. Usually, we do cookies and banana bread. I’ll probably do Rice Krispie cake, and I might do imperial cookies.”

While Sobkowicz admitted some grandparents don’t mind lending a hand with the baking, the bulk of the work is shared between the youngsters.

“It started with us, as parents, doing a lot of the organizing, but now it’s a real group effort now from all of them,” said Kristin Shiach, Sobkowicz’s mother. “They all play their parts. It’s a great collective effort.”

The days leading up to the event, and the day itself, end up being jam-packed, Shiach added. But, Sobkowicz said, it’s all worth it in the end.

“It’s been really fun. It’s always nice to hang out with your friends and raise money for the community,” Sobkowicz said. “This year there will be quite a few of us, so we’ll do shifts. Last year, we didn’t really plan out the shifts. Some of us will work cash and some will handle the food. Last year, we did lemonade, but this year one of my friends will be doing a lemonade stand right beside us.”

“Every year it’s gotten bigger,” Shiach added. “It’s easy to get caught up in how busy you are day to day, but when your kid says they want to do something like this, you stop and realize this is what it’s all about.”

The Riverview Community Centre community garage sale will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 7. The bake sale, which is cash only, will be ongoing as long as supplies last.