Made with Love

‘Need to Do Better’

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 80 percent of people with disabilities are unemployed or underemployed.

“And when you ask someone what they want to do when they grow up, no one says, ‘I want to sit home alone on my parents’ couch.’ So we need to do better,” Dees said.

According to Dees, while many businesses today are inclusive toward those with disabilities, she felt called to create a space primarily for them. The project is close to Dees’ heart partly because of her daughter’s friendship with Keelin and partly because her youngest, Bennett, has Down syndrome, too.

For someone who admits to having no baking ability, Dees said she needed a baker to help her realize the vision. A friend suggested she contact Susan Nikolai, and the two have been working together ever since.

Nikolai is a nurse by trade and has spent decades in the medical field, but she also has been baking her whole life, inspired by her mom.

“I grew up in the kitchen, and it was something I loved to do,” Nikolai said. Before the BFF Bakery, she had a side business selling baked goods to the doctors and nurses she worked with. Like Dees, she personally knows the importance of providing work for those with special needs, as her daughter, Genna, has an intellectual disability.

Open for Business

Nikolai and Dees began an online business in January of 2024, with cookie orders available for local pickup. One of their first goals was finding a physical storefront. After looking at a couple locations, Dees found a recently closed coffee shop that conveniently already had a commercial kitchen. The BFF Bakery formally opened its storefront in that location (527 East Colfax Ave. in South Bend) in September of 2024.

Still, the kitchen needed to be outfitted for its new status as a bakery. The space needed cookie ovens to replace an old gas stove, and also required a commercial mixer – there’s only so far a KitchenAid mixer can get you, Nikolai said. But thanks to the generosity of their growing community, they could buy what they needed.

Nikolai now works as a nurse on Mondays and Wednesdays and bakes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She told Today’s Catholic that she’s learned to bake commercially instead of in a home kitchen as “trial and error.” Besides adapting to batches of cookies that can use 16 pounds of flour per batch, she has continued to tweak recipes and products. For instance, she used to be known for her enormous cookies. But partly, since many people with disabilities have difficulty regulating fullness, Nikolai has toned down her cookie sizes to be moderate for everyone. Other dietary accommodations the bakery provides are that it is nut-free (though some ingredients may come into contact with nut products) and offers gluten-free options.

The BFF bakers make the basics: chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, and snickerdoodle. But the bakery’s most popular cookie is their delicious “Symphony”: a cookie stuffed with dark and milk chocolate chips, toffee and pretzel pieces, and topped with flaky sea salt. Every month also has a seasonal cookie the team dreams up. The special flavor for March is chocolate with mint frosting and Lucky Charms marshmallows on top.

“The nice thing about a really simple baking menu – we usually only have seven cookies – is that we can be really good stewards of our resources,” Dees said. “There’s not a lot of waste.”

The Heart of the Bakery

The heart of the BFF Bakery is its many employees and volunteers, reaching at least 70 people, with about 20 regulars. One of the volunteers is Jared (who asked Today’s Catholic that his real name not be used for privacy purposes). He is passionate about photography and has a soft spot for his Yorkie puppy. The latest employee to join the regular payroll is Zayn, who enjoys anime and is known around the bakery for his great hugs.

If a bakery volunteer is interested in becoming an employee, they undergo job skills training and then have a conversation about how their skills fit at the bakery. Dees is glad the bakery can provide so many people a place to work or hang out, even if for just a few hours a week. Often, a few hours’ activity outside the house is all a family wants for their child with disabilities.

The first employee on the bakery’s payroll was Catie Oross, who is the main baker after Nikolai and comes in twice a week. Oross graduated from Saint Joseph High School in South Bend three years ago. Her mother, Teresa Oross, calls the BFF Bakery a “one-of-a-kind place in our community.” Because of Catie’s physical and cognitive disabilities, Oross is happy that her daughter has found the bakery, where small things like having an oven at her height can create a better work environment. As Oross said, even just Catie’s having a key to the store has caused her to grow in self-confidence. “It’s nice to have someone trust you,” Oross said.

Another frequent presence at the bakery is Nikolai’s daughter, Genna. When asked what her favorite thing to do at the bakery is, Genna responded, “To roll the cookies.” However, that wasn’t always her favorite. When the bakery first began, Susan Nikolai remembered that Genna preferred to stay in the corner of the room rather than engage with the baking. But after becoming friends with volunteers and Dees’ son, Bennett, Genna has warmed up to the bakery. Now she often greets customers from the table where she sits with her Bluey toys, letting her mom know when someone comes in.

Catholic to Its Core

For a couple of moms who both work elsewhere (Dees has a full-time job in the Alliance for Catholic Education at the University of Notre Dame), Dees and Nikolai are grateful for all their support for the BFF Bakery. From Notre Dame cheerleaders who have featured bakery content on TikTok, to students from Saint Joseph High School across the street who volunteer, to all those who have helped with nonprofit formalities or donations, community members have helped the place thrive. As a recent example, Nikolai mentioned how a relative had noticed how expensive grocery staples were and had sent a surprise donation especially earmarked for eggs.