For her culinary talent, current OH sophomore Katelyn Thilk earned third in the state her freshman year. From there, her talent became a passion and a money-making venture.
“Ever since I was a child I would always be in the kitchen with my mom,” Thilk said. Her passion for baking and cooking has always been in her heart since she was little. She enjoys the happiness on people’s faces when they have home-made goods.
Since 2020 when Thilk first was playing around in the kitchen, she has grown so much in her baking business while managing her socials and school life.
However, Thilk did not begin her culinary journey as a baker. In 2022, her freshman year, she competed in a steak competition at OH and placed third in the state. The summer of that year is when her confidence rose, placing high in the contest gave Katelyn confidence in herself. This confidence helped her begin to start baking for the public.
According to Thilk, her biggest supporters are her mom and dad. She uses her parents as advertisers, and they share her business with their co-workers. She has also created her own social media and website named Peanut’s Pastries.
Thilk said her dad is like “her little delivery driver.“ He loves to share her business at his job with business cards.
This October, the OH English department got a chance to taste one of her treats. Thilk brought in an amazing pumpkin spice cake that left the office wanting more.
“I am not a huge fan of pumpkin spice, but it was really tasty and moist and not too sweet, just perfect!” said Ewa Tulak, one of the taste testers and The Reflector yearbook adviser.
One problem Thilk has run into as a student entrepreneur is her sleep schedule. She loves baking, and she uses it to de-stress, but she often works late into the night. Thilk’s mom has helped remind Katelyn not to overload herself and become too overwhelmed.
Something Thilk has run into as a young entrepreneur is her pricing on her work. For a while, Think said she was making lots of goods with no profit. However, her parents have helped her in pricing and valuing her work. Since that time, Thilk has grown and realized her work reflects time and valued enough to build her confidence in establishing a price structure for her baked goods.
By promoting her business in the OH community, Thilk has reached more clientele, which is helping her expand her ideas in the kitchen. Thilk’s promotional site can be reached at Peanut’s Pastries.
I am Nicole Gartner a senior now at OH, this is my second year on our 42Fifty team. This year I have taken a role in managing our social media and keeping our content updated! Outside of school I work at Floods Royal Flush as a receptionist and also love to explore nature and the city with my friends.
Love this! I’m glad this business received the recognition it deserves.