Chocolate-chip cookies are a treat on their own, but what if there was a way to make their meaning even sweeter? Baking Memories 4 Kids founder and Rockland resident Frank Squeo has paved that way, creating a national foundation that provides all-expenses-paid, weeklong trips to every amusement park in Orlando, Florida for very sick or terminally ill children and their families by selling boxes of the tasty treats.
The trips, which include perks like front-of-the-line passes and special character visits, are always a surprise to the children. A cancer survivor himself, Squeo started the foundation to give a bit of joy to those who need it most.
Made with Squeo’s own recipe, the 4.1 million cookies sold since the nonprofit’s establishment in 2012 have funded trips for over 285 families. The number will continue to grow in 2024, Squeo explained, if enough cookies are sold. Boxes can be bought on the Baking Memories 4 Kids website: www.bm4k.com.
“The way people can help is to buy the cookies, because we have to sell about 7,000 more containers between now and Christmas so that we can send more families on trips,” said Squeo.
A Trip for Kayden
On Friday, December 8, three- year-old Rockland resident Kayden Germosen and his family were surprised at the Haverstraw Center with one of Baking Memories 4 Kids’ famous trips.
Born with Prune Belly Syndrome, a rare condition in which the abdomen muscles are missing or underdeveloped, Kayden once had difficulty breathing, walking and even crawling. He showed positive progression before contracting three viruses simultaneously, resulting in his being put on a ventilator while in a medical coma. Kayden woke from his coma in better health but was soon diagnosed with COVID-19, putting him back on a vent for a time.
Inspired by the boy’s tenacity and bravery, Baking Memories 4 Kids wanted to reward Kayden and his family with “the vacation of a lifetime.”
“He’s been doing so well at home,” said Vielka Henriquez, Kayden’s mother. “He’s been trying to walk up the stairs. Sometimes he’ll play with his brother…I want to thank everybody.”
Christine Krasny, Germosen’s previous therapist who also serves as head of a Baking Memories fundraising group, nominated the boy for this opportunity.
“The way this whole family unit came together—they were so supportive when he was so sick,” Kransky noted. “…Kayden is tiny, but he’s mighty. He’s such a strong little boy who has overcome so much. He’s well on his way now in his rehabilitation, and he has a long way to go. But he’ll get there.”
From left to right: Frank Squeo, Jayden Germosen, Kayden Germosen, Vielka Henriquez and Christine Krasny
Baking Memories 4 Kids Grants Special Trip to Boy in Need added by Allison Lax on
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