The COVID-19 pandemic has completely changed students’ school years and athletic programs. But a 10th grader from the Saratoga school district is using this unprecedented year to start a new business venture that’s also helping his fellow teammates.

Caleb Yuhasz has been baking since he was just a child, starting in the kitchen with his father at age 4.

“My dad went to culinary school and was very interested in food in general, so whenever he was doing something, I would come in and help," he said.

What You Need To Know

  • Caleb Yuhasz, 15, began dessert business "Cake Bar Bakery" in 2020

  • The business is run from his family's home in Middlegrove

  • He created a fundraiser, selling more than 1,300 cookies to benefit his cross-country team

Now 15, Yuhasz’s passion has grown into a business, as Cake Bar Bakery is officially open.

The business is run out of his parents’ kitchen in Middlegrove. The process to get it up and running took months and some extra help from his parents and family. Now, with some extra changes and additions to make the business legal, the smell of cookies fill the Yuhasz household.

“When I first started this, I thought I was going to be baking right away, which was not the case. I had to get permits for the water and new water taps,” Yuhasz said.

The 10th grader still has to balance his new career with school work and athletics. He is working virtually this year due to the pandemic, and is a runner on the high school’s cross country team. Obviously, the program looks a little different this year because of COVID-19. However, he says there's still a silver lining.

“I feel that if it weren’t for this coronavirus pandemic, I wouldn’t have been able to have started my business until the summer of next year,” Yuhasz said. “So I enjoyed having the time to do it. Even though there was a lot of negative, there was still a positive that came out of this.”

And while his business was picking up, his cross country was slowing down. The group was unable to hold fundraisers due to social distancing.

“The coach said it was going to be a hard year for the team with fundraisers,” Caleb said.

So he came up with a way to combine his two passions, selling his cookies and donating the proceeds to his team. But it was an undertaking that became a lot bigger than he expected.

Caleb tried to find time to fulfill all the orders, adding up to nearly 1,300 cookies.

I have to do my homework at the right day at the right time, or when I get home from practice I’ll have to start doing this right away,” Yuhasz added. “I was very excited. It was a little stressful, but I was very happy in the end. I felt good, because the sports teams in this time are struggling a bit. So it's good to help them during this time to help with programs and equipment.”

He was able to donate $400 to the team.

“Life should be sweet; that’s like my company motto,” Yuhasz said. “I think if you could make life a little sweeter, then everyone could be more happy, I think, during this time. Everyone could use that.”

But as the fundraiser came to an end, his baking has not. He’s mixing up batches of cookies, ready to box them up, and send them out across the area.

Of course, he has the support system of his cross-country team, behind him for years to come.

“It’s very nice to have people that believe in me. It helps pick me up when I’m feeling down,” Yuhasz said. “I love that people support what I do; it makes me feel really good.”

Caleb hopes to continue to grow his business, and wants to pursue a future in culinary school, perhaps at the Culinary Institute of America.

“Everything I do is just building up to a bigger point. I enjoy doing what I do, because it’s what in life. This is what I want to do when I’m older,” Caleb said.

His sweets – including his favorite, a brown butter chocolate chip cookie – are available for sale and shipped right to your home, through his website.