Eastbayri.com

When someone feels strongly about the good work being done by a nonprofit group, they usually donate either a few dollars or commit some volunteer work for the agency.

That wasn’t enough for Barrington’s Cindy Elder. She donated her business.

Bristol Harbor Homemade, a business that produces handcrafted baking mixes that Ms. Elder built from scratch and ran single-handedly for six years, is now the property of Amos House in Providence. The social service agency in South Providence works in collaboration with other groups to address issues of hunger, homelessness and poverty.

Staff members at Amos House are used to seeing random acts of kindness, but they couldn’t recall a time when someone actually signed over their business as a donation.

“I have never heard of it,” said Michael McCarthy, business manager for Amos House WORKS, an umbrella for the agency’s different jobs programs. “She gifted us this business and what a beautiful inspiration that is.”

“It’s very unusual for somebody to gift a business,” added Eileen Hayes, chief executive officer at Amos House, who said the venture will allow people who had been previously struggling earn an income and gain valuable work experience.

The business was donated last December and after spending nearly a year training staff members, working on a business plan, attracting vendors and designing a new label, Amos House will officially launch the product Tuesday, Nov. 8. A cocktail reception to launch Amos House’s Bristol Harbor Homemade will be held Tuesday, Nov. 8, from 5:30- 7:30 p.m. at Friendship Café, 500 Broad St., Providence.

Started as a fund-raiser

Ms. Elder first started selling her baking mixes — for cookies, scones and other treats — seven years ago as a fund-raiser for the independent Gordon School in East Providence. She made a couple of hundred mixes — similar to what she had been making for her family for years — and they proved to be popular.

“After that, people kept coming up and saying, ‘Could I have a little bit more of that cookie mix?’ I said at some point I have to start charging for this because this is going to get out of control,” said Ms. Elder.

Despite working for 20 years in the communications industry, she wanted to try something new and started up Bristol Harbor Homemade the following year without much of a road map to follow. Ms. Elder dove head first into her new venture, becoming a certified food safety manager and learning the necessary health regulations.

“As my husband said, I got the real life MBA,” she said. “I learned how to do it from scratch and did everything myself. I created the recipes, I worked with an artist to design the logo. I got retailers in line. I made the product myself, I packaged it, I labeled it, I shipped it, I delivered it, I did accounts payable, accounts receivable ...”

In other words just about everything, although she also found support from people in the local community. Kate Conlon, owner of Kate & Co. in Bristol, was her first customer and someone who helped Ms. Elder with logos and overall guidance.

Time for someone else

She found success with her business, but it was hard work. Finally, at 51, Ms. Elder said she “thought it was time to stop lugging 50-pound bags of flour over my shoulders.” Not wanting to end the business, she looked for someone to take it over. But whom?

“To me it was more important doing something meaningful with it because it was my baby,” said Ms. Elder, who was familiar with the work of Amos House because she’s tuned in to social services. (She’s since returned to her roots and is director of communications for the R.I. Community Food Bank.)

“Given that I had been doing everything myself, I was running out of me to do it, and yet I loved the project,” she said. “I looked at what they had here — a pool of people who were learning important skills, that they had the ability to utilize that wonderful labor force as a teaching tool and at the same time accomplish the goal of producing this product that I was ultimately having trouble doing myself. Amos House is a model for teaching people job skills and to get them out in the work force. I looked at my work and said, ‘This is perfect for them.’”

She had to talk her husband into it, however. “‘Really? Give it away?’ was his initial reaction,” she said. “The best part for me was that I always felt that this was my baby. And now I’m the grandma. I get to visit and then say, ‘OK, have a nice time. I’m going away now.’”

Eight years ago Amos House started up a culinary training program to prime people for the agency’s catering company. “The baking mix is just another part of our catering company business,” said Ms. Hayes, adding that The Friendship Cafe opened last year.

For this particular project, however, the five women who took over Bristol Harbor Homemade are from Amos House’s mother-child reunification program. “They all have various levels of job experience and we felt this was an opportunity for them to learn a skill, gain some employment and earn some income,” said Ms. Hayes, adding that the culinary program will be involved in the business later on.

Amos House also has a carpentry training program for its Amos House Builds business, which offers general carpentry, painting and weatherization.

Not as simple as it sounds

Ms. Elder’s been working closely with Amos House over the past year, teaching them the ins and outs of the business.

“She taught us exactly how to make each mix with all the ingredients, she got us all the list of suppliers and has been introducing us to all her customers. She’s been very involved right from the start,” said Ms. Hayes.

Although more people are involved, the method remains the same. “They’re doing the mixes the same way I did, with 24 stainless steel bowls lined up,” said Ms. Elder. “This is an artisan business. Everything is done by hand and there are no moving parts. That’s the beauty of it.”

Mixing is a very precise skill to master, she said. “It may sound very simple, but it’s more than just scooping a cup of flour. There’s a difference between measuring salt and measuring baking powder,” she said, noting that salt is very granular, while baking powder needs to be packed a certain way.

Getting the mixes from the bowl to the bag is also tricky, while labeling may be the hardest part. “Anyone who’s in the food business will tell you that labeling is a bear,” said Ms. Elder.

Speaking of labels, the name remains the same but the bag design has been tweaked a bit. “We wanted to maintain the integrity of the Bristol Harbor name because Cindy had done such a great job in building a following, but we also wanted to communicate that it was an Amos House business name,” said Ms. Hayes, adding that the formerly blue bags are now red.

Packages range from 16 to 23 ounces, depending on which of the five mixes you choose: Chocolate Chip Bakery Cookies, Dark and Stormy Ginger Cookies, Mom’s Apple Crisp, Blueberry Scones and Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. You can buy the mixes at all Whole Foods, Dave’s Marketplace, Kate and Co. in Bristol and Blount Seafood in Warren. More varieties and vendors are on the horizon.

Grateful for the opportunity

All profits from the business will go back into Amos House’s culinary training program, according to Ms. Hayes, who said the five women producing the mixes are excited to be part of the new venture.

“They take it very seriously,” she said.

Three women in the child-mother reunification program were at the Friendship Cafe last week, mixing it up and sharing laughs.

Twenty-three-year-old Diamond Hanson, who has a 4-year-old son named Jonathan, just started with the business and said she likes sealing the bags the most. “I like to make them look pretty for display,” she said.

Leighann Dutra, 25, has an 11-month-old son, Tony. She called the job “amazing and fun.” Her favorite part?

“I like mixing the ingredients — the smell afterwards.”

Tara Antonuccio, 36, said the women are grateful for the opportunity Ms. Elder has given them.

“It feels really good because this is actually the first job in eight years that I’ve had,” said Ms. Antonuccio. “I have a 7-month-old son (Dominic) and I feel it’s helping me get back on my feet. It feels good to be a part of it, to know that we had something to do with it."

For more information about Amos House, visit www.amoshouse.com.