The beautifully crafted cakes that entrepreneur Michele Kilborn bakes are as sweet as her sunny disposition – but they also represent so much more.
The Cakes by Birdie owner said she wouldn’t be where she is today if not for the support of her parents and the Hendrick Home Family Care Program, which helped her get back on her feet after escaping what she called a “tumultuous” marriage.
“In December of 1998, I was leaving Odessa, running from my ex-husband, and I literally ran out gas in Clyde,” Michele said. “We were married for 10 years, and he became a drug addict and was in jail, which made the last years hard.”
Hendrick Home Family Care
“The following year, as I was in the process of divorcing my husband, someone mentioned the Hendrick Home Family Program, and after going through the application process, my three children and I moved in January 2000,” she said.
While not quite there a full year, Michele said she briefly went back to her husband, but after only two months he was “gone for good,” at which time she was invited back to the Family Care Program.
Designed to help single parents and their children by providing them with a temporary home on the Hendrick Home campus and offering both general and financial counseling, Michele said it was through the connections she made that she rediscovered her self-worth.
“It was a sanctuary, honestly,” she said. “Our living arrangements consisted of floors with shared kitchen and living areas, which allowed me to really connect with the other residents and the couple who were in charge of our floor.”
Michele added that at Family Care she met “all kinds of moms and dads in all different circumstances,” and said that when her family rested their heads at the end of the day, she and her children were not only physically safe, but had their most basic needs met.
“I wasn’t sleeping on a floor or in a car and didn’t have to worry about rent, or utilities or even food, thanks to their food pantry,” she said, adding that “everyone had a role” in the day-today workings of the residence, including completing chores and preparing meals.
It Takes a Village
As important as having her and her children’s needs met, Michele said it was being surrounded by encouraging people that was a true godsend.
It was these people, she said, who believed in her so that she could believe in herself.
“Hendrick Family Care was such a sanctuary for me,” she said. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without these other people. The relationships I made helped me see my self-worth and I realized that I could go on and thrive and become a working part of the community. They push you and encourage you to not want to hide away.”
Saying that “it takes a village to raise children,” it wasn’t only Michele who benefitted from her stay at Hendrick Home. “My kids were able to feel safe in their own home and in their own skin,” she said.
While only at Hendrick Home for less than a year, Michele said not only were the children provided with the basics of daily living, they also were exposed to fun activities that allowed them to simply be kids, like playing softball, going horseback riding and even taking a trip to Six Flags.
Michele said during that time of her life, she was “starving for support,” which she received from her loved ones, but at the same time was determined to make it on her own.
“I couldn’t have gotten through this without the backing of my best friend and my parents,” said Michele, adding that her mother also served as an example of the importance of community involvement.
“My mom was such an example to me,” Michele said. “She was active in so many organizations in Odessa, and that’s a huge reason I got so involved in the Abilene community.”
Not Just Surviving, But Thriving
Saying that “sometimes a handout can give you a leg up,” Michele likens her journey to what she calls the Mountain Goat Theory, with different “plateaus” along the way.
“Hendrick Home was the beginning plateau,” she said. “I learned from my experiences there and was ready to move on to the next step.”
While Hendrick Family Care had given Michele the support, confidence and tools needed to thrive, it was now up to her – and thrived she has.
The Odessa High and Cisco College graduate, Michele initially wanted to be a freelance writer. But it was her job at Baskin-Robbins that set her on the path as a successful entrepreneur.
“After a month at Baskin-Robbins, I was offered a dollar raise if I learned to decorate cakes,” she said, adding that she enjoyed the managerial aspect of business and her experience in food service “grew from there.”
While at Hendrick Home, Michele had a full-time job at Snowhite Bakery, while also catering part-time.
In 2012, Michele got remarried and the support of her husband, Casey, was just the thing she needed to pursue her dream of starting her own business.
“I had worked for United (Supermarkets),” in Abilene from 2006 to 2011 and until 2015 worked in insurance, which I left to pursue a business opportunity that fell through,” she said.
It was at that point that Casey – whom Michelle describes as a “vital part” of her success – encouraged her to follow her heart.
Cakes by Birdie
So, with the affirmation and support of her husband, Cakes by Birdie was born.
“People always ask about the name,” Michele said, explaining it comes from a not-very-kind spirited moniker given to her by the ninth-grade football team at the school’s annual sports banquet.
“I got an award in volleyball and wanted to wear yellow, since it was my favorite color. When I walked up to receive my award, the team all yelled ‘Go Big Bird,’” Michele said, explaining that “Big Bird” became “Birdie” when she was expecting her first grandchild.
“I’m not a ‘Nana,’” she said with a laugh. “My son suggested Birdie, and when my granddaughter said the name as clear as could be, that’s what I became.”
When it came time to decide on a name for her business, she said she thought about Cakes by Michele, but when a friend suggested Cakes by Birdie, she said “but that’s my grandma name.”
To which she told Michele, “But who wouldn’t want their grandma to make their cake?”
Initially marketing Cakes by Birdie via Facebook, Michele garnered over 1000 “likes” in just a couple of months, and in 2017 she was honored by the Abilene Chamber of Commerce as the New Small Business of the Year.
Creating Joy and Smiles
Her creations are as diverse as her customers and Michele says that she’s not just baking cakes, she’s “creating joy and smiles.”
Whether it’s a multi-tiered, elegant work of art (or “edible art,” as Michele says), to a fun, whimsical-themed cake for a child’s birthday, Michele says she loves being a part of people’s memories.
As she said in a 2018 interview with Texas Country Reporter, “I love it when people send me pictures from their parties…it’s the memory, and what is the best thing to capture memory and that’s a picture…I’m always going to be a part of that memory.”
And that, Michele said, is what it’s all about.
“Baking is my happy place,” she said. “Because who wouldn’t be happy knowing they’re making other people smile.”
Michele’s journey has truly come full circle. In 2018, she was honored at Dancing with the Abilene Stars and last January she provided the desserts for Hendrick Home’s annual fundraiser, that since its creation has raised over $5 million to support HHC’s mission of helping children and families.
Reflecting on her success, Michele says it is her faith that has gotten her through some of life’s darkest times and continues to guide her success.
“If there is anything I truly want people to know and understand is how – no matter the circumstances – my faith in God pulled me up to be able to stand and be proud of the life I have built,” she said. “I never thought years ago before and during my stay at Hendrick Home, that I would be able to own a business, get a higher education or build such a beautiful life after so many heartbreaks and trials.”
By Molly Hill
Photos Courtesy of Michele Kilborn
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