Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 5-7-21

Feature
Baker Honors His Mother By Continuing Her Recipe
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
Anthony Lewis began baking cakes to help his mother pay for
her chemotherapy treatments.
A Tampa man is honoring his mother by continuing the recipe she started a few years ago.
Anthony Lewis started baking cupcakes to help his mother pay for $200 a week (with insurance) chemother- apy treatments. Because of the treatment she received as a pa- tient, he began donating $1 of every cake he sold to the Florida Cancer Specialists Foundation, “in honor of my mom for all they did for her.”
Lewis, 34, a single dad of 11-year-old, Caleb, eventually founded Selina’s Red Velvet to honor his mother, Selina Elaine King. Currently, she’s in remission, but he’s still bak- ing - fulltime, being off on Mondays and Tuesdays.
It was in June, 2018, when Lewis and his 5 siblings learned that their mother had Stage 2 breast cancer. The
Baker Anthony Lewis with a tray of the cupcakes.
family had to get in motion to get Mom where she needed to
be.
But the story that led
Lewis to this point goes back a few years. He spent about 10 years working for a popular bank in its Fraud Dept. With the company, he and his son moved to Georgia. But, he had an issue with a superior and went to HR. In less than 30 days, he was terminated.
That meant he had to come back home and get reestab- lished. He took on 3 jobs so that he could “make ends meet,” he said. He worked for Uber, Amazon and a call cen- ter.
His mom had been a baker of Red Velvet cakes that every- one loved. “I had tasted many, but none tasted like hers – it wasn’t traditional,” he said. He had the idea to bake the cakes as a means of helping his mother.
After getting her recipe, he soon learned that if he didn’t follow the instructions specifi- cally, the cake would be ru- ined. It took him a few tries before finally getting it just right.
Working at the call center was a perfect place for him to take samples and share for free. He ended up taking sam- ples all over Tampa, which led to many orders being filled. Between October and Decem- ber 2018, the orders skyrock- eted.
During the pandemic, Selina’s Red Velvet did contin- uous business. “That period was good for the business. So many people did not want to get out. I had all of the safety precautions and I delivered.”
Selina’s Red Velvet is found in Konan’s Bar-B-Q, Blue Flame Soul Food Restau- rant, Tim’s Cuban Sandwich, and Sweet Tee’s Soul Food truck. Buddy’s Home Furnish- ings in Seffner carries samples on Fridays.
A graduate of Armwood High School, Lewis furthered his education at Warner Uni- versity. When time permits he enjoys spending time with his
son and his son’s brother – taking them to theme parks and sharing other events.
“It was heartbreaking to lose the job, but the way things turned out, I’d probably do it all over again. It had to be God orchestrating this.”
To learn more about
Selina’s Red Velvet, check the social media sites.
Anthony Lewis honors his mother, Selina Elaine King, with Selina’s Red Velvet.
PAGE 2-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY FRIDAY, MAY 7, 2021