Angel Chiu grew up surrounded by creative people. At first she found her own expressive outlet through painting and sketching but her newfound passion is edible art.
鈥淚t鈥檚 visually appealing and it tastes great,鈥� she says of what attracted her to cake decorating after training as a pastry chef in Paris and with Thomas Haas. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very similar being a sculptor; you just use a different medium.鈥�
An event planning assistant at Culinary Capers, Chiu dreams of one day opening her own cake decorating business. Never did she imagine that a group of other women would step in to help her make it happen.
On Monday night, Chiu was one of 28 recipients of $25,000 in scholarships from the B.C. chapter of She plans to use the money to study cake decorating for two months at the renowned Bonnie Gordon College of Confectionary Arts in Toronto later this year.
鈥淭his is a hard business and without encouragement you could lose your way and lose your focus,鈥� says Annette Rawlinson of Front of House Consulting. 鈥淵ou need someone to challenge you, too. It鈥檚 all part of growth.鈥�
Rawlinson is the co-chair of Les Dames' B.C. chapter, 鈥渁 leadership culinary organization composed of women who have not only achieved success in their professions, but who contribute significantly to their communities.鈥�
It hosts two major events a year to raise money for the annual scholarship, which were presented April 3 at the headquarters of Savoury Chef Foods, a local catering and events company: a gala dinner in the fall and Summerdine when restaurants across British Columbia provide a four-course meal for tables of two to 10 people.
The members are all very attached to the fundraisers, Rawlinson says, and, on top of their already busy schedules, volunteer a lot of time to pull off such an organizational feat.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not about our success as individuals; it鈥檚 about our combined success as Les Dames,鈥� Rawlinson says of the group鈥檚 ethic.
The concept of women helping other women, even in such a competitive industry, comes naturally to the members, she says. Everyone knows how tough it is when you鈥檙e starting out in what can still be a male-dominated field. A gesture of support can make a tremendous difference and help keep young women motivated.
Les Dames helps them overcome some those challenges, says member Leann Froese, co-owner of Town Hall Brands. There鈥檚 the aspect of networking and making connections and also a one-on-one mentoring program. 鈥淲hen they receive scholarships,鈥� she adds, 鈥渢hey get an idea of where they can go in the business and shows them encouragement.鈥�
鈥淚t means a lot,鈥� says Chiu. 鈥淚 never knew I鈥檇 be encouraged to learn more things. The program is very supportive.鈥�
Scholarships range from $500 to $6,000 thanks to the support of Cacao Barry, Chef John Bishop (Bishop鈥檚), the 麻豆传媒映画Pastry Training Centre, Pacific International Culinary Association (PICA) and Northwest Culinary Academy of Vancouver.
The 2017 scholarship recipients are Angel Chiu, Ashley Sparks, Danielle Felix, Dawn Schultz, Emily Poisson, Evelyn Grant, Kaitlin Dunn, Karin Kallio, Kelcie Jones, Kelsey Kwong, Kristina Marinska, Kimberly Vy, Liliya Zhekova, Mackenzie Irvine, Madison Whale, Maryke Vandermarel, Melissa Masters, Melissa Lu, Miriam Popma, Nicole Taylor-Sterritt, Nina Hendricks, Paola Bonifacio, Robyn Sigurdson, Shanyn Ward, Sirpa Puolitaipale, Stephanie Lavoie, Tina Tang, and Victoria Cole.
Chef Robyn Sigurdson of Kelowna and line cook Emily Poisson of Victoria also were awarded the Service Excellence Scholarship in Memory of Chef Tina Fineza. Co-sponsored by Two Rivers Specialty Meats, this scholarship provides an opportunity to learn more about the humane treatment of animals and the sourcing of local, sustainable ingredients. The four-day experience starts with a trip to Cache Creek, finishes in North 麻豆传媒映画and includes a farm tour, slaughter demonstration, stage of a nose to tail butchery, and tastings.
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