Aspiring Plastic Surgeon is a Grand Master of the Oven

Entrepreneurship has, over the years, become more commonplace among the younger local generation, particularly with the launch of the Junior Achievement Programme in 2012. While this effective programme helps to foster young, creative, business-minded people, 14-year-old Jordyn Desir needed no support system other than her own to kickstart her initiative. As part of the recent Arts Village, which was a component of the 2016 Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival at the Massav Park at Choc, one distinct booth stood out; it was Jordyn Desir’s. She is a young woman who is more than just a high school student, but a big dreamer and, more admirably, a big thinker and grand doer.

Jordyn’s stall was distinct not merely for the fact that she was the only recognizable young person who was directly responsible for the eye-catching and mouth-watering displays in her booth but also for the fact that she was the only Saint Lucian vendor at the atelier operating as a sole entity.

Jordyn is a Form Four student at the St. Joseph’s Convent. All cakes and confectionery displayed and available for purchase at her booth were baked by the young lady herself including an assortment of cheesecake, banana bread, pumpkin bread, carrot cake, brownies and chocolate mousse.

The STAR, in awe of her work, sat with Jordyn to discuss what is for her ‘just a hobby’. She told the STAR, “I have been baking since I was young, I was seven or eight. I used to bake boxed cake, but I realized it was boring and I wanted to try new things and use new flavours. I went on to start experimenting with a variety of cakes, cheesecakes, cup cakes, breads, anything that would come to mind.”

The talented baker went on to share, “I knew the organizer Dahlia Francois and I used to do fund-raising outside JQ Mall to raise money for my Spanish class to go to Marguerita.” According to Jordyn, Francois, one of the organisers of the Arts Village, saw her work and decided she would be great for this job.

When asked whether this was a field she intends to pursue as a full-time career, Jordyn revealed that she would like to become a plastic surgeon. Currently in a science class she admitted, “It actually helps me get away from everything. Usually when I get home, even when I am tired, rather than reading a book or doing something else, I head to the kitchen to bake something.”

According to her proud mom Roberta Nadia Polius, one recent triumph of her daughter was when her school’s Spanish Club went to Marguerita and Jordyn managed to raise funds through bake sales to pay for her ticket. While she admits to being no cook, she says that her daughter has ultimately been self-taught and self-motivated. As she related, it all began with an Easy Bake cooking set that Jordyn received as a present as a child. From there she began trying out cake mixes, then moved on to experiment with her own unique recipes, trying various ingredients. According to her mother, she has progressed and improved through trial and error. “I think she is where she is today because of her love for science; her scientific mind which leads her to always experiment with new things,” she concluded.