One dozen winners later and we are still receiving nominations for our HWLT HEART campaign. We are so grateful to be part of such a loving community. Where else would we be able to continuously support restaurants in need? And it looks as though Arizona isn’t going to get tired of sending in nominations any time soon!
You can imagine how excited we were to reach the very important milestone of twelve winners. All of our winners have been grateful to their patrons for the support, and this holds true for Dedicated, a gluten-free café and bakery in Tucson. Gluten-free baked goods often have the reputation of being lackluster, but we have to say that you haven’t tasted perfection until you visit Dedicated.
But we decided to go beyond Dedicated’s delicious baked goods to understand their origins with its founder, Rebecca. Originally an accountant, Rebecca told us that she had always loved baking. She began to experiment with gluten-free products in the confines of her own kitchen, slowly perfecting her recipes. Her friends, blown away by her creations, encouraged her to start her own bakery. And thus, Dedicated was born.
Rebecca originally had a very specific marketing plan in mind for her café. She assumed it would be difficult to get the word out and was ready to sweat to get her first few regulars. As it turned out, she didn’t have to. Once the people of Tucson tasted her creations, they came running back for more. Soon word spread and Rebecca had a new challenge on her hands: keeping up with the demand.
Even after all the hard work and much-earned success, Rebecca says that what she enjoys most is making a difference in people’s lives. Finding a delicious treat when you are gluten-free is a big challenge for many people, and Rebecca loves that she gets to help make someone’s day that much easier. When we picked Dedicated as our twelfth winner, we knew we were making a great choice. Rebecca has proven that to us ten times over.
Dedicated opened up its doors on Friday, May 29th, ready to greet the customers waiting to get their baked good fix. After hours of filling orders and baking new batches of cookies, cupcakes, and other wonderful treats, the café had a total of over 150 transactions and a line of customers waiting even up to two hours after closing. Needless to say, Dedicated went well over the $4,000 goal. Rebecca excitedly told us it was as busy as the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, which is usually her busiest day of the year.
Thank you to everyone who joined us in supporting Rebecca, her staff, and Dedicated. They are all incredibly thankful for your help, and so are we. If you would like to help support your favorite Arizona restaurant, fill out a nomination form on our HEART page. We cannot wait to pick our next winner!