High school seniors typically do not usually have “start a business” on the top of their to-do lists, but this was not the case for RoseMary Stanchak, who won last year’s High School Pirate’s Pitch.
As a senior in high school, Stanchak entered the competition with her cake pop business “Fresh Baked by Rosie.” She was chosen out of more than 250 applicants to compete at Seton Hall for the live presentation round where she took home first place.
“It was such an amazing experience because I was a high school student here at Seton Hall competing, having professors, professional entrepreneurs, and other college students watch me,” Stanchak said. “It was very nerve-wracking at first, but once I got on stage and was presenting my ‘Fresh Baked by Rosie’ idea, I was having so much fun.”
Stanchak’s baking career began years ago, her hobby blossoming into something more freshman year of high school. It began one day when she was making cupcakes out of a premade box mix, deciding that she wanted to learn how to make them from scratch. When she got the hang of it, she began to bake all different types of desserts from scratch to taste the difference.
Stanchak Stanchak made white cake pops with blue sprinkles for Alpha Kappa Psi’s autism awareness fundraiser.
Stanchak began making cake pops after one of her dance teammates requested them. After a few trial runs, Stanchak perfected them. They were a hit with her dance team and the girls asked Stanchak to make them more frequently.
Her teammates liked them so much that other people started to ask Stanchak to make cake pops for their birthday parties, sweet sixteens and weddings. The demand for cake pops is what drove Stanchak to create “Fresh Baked by Rosie.”
Since Pirate’s Pitch, Stanchak, a freshman biology major, has continued her work for “Fresh Baked by Rosie.” Although Stanchak is a commuter, she said she is able to balance baking and studying. After winning the competition, Stanchak said she has received more cake pop orders. The competition especially helped to open doors for her at Seton Hall as students and clubs have reached out to her.
The most recent order Stanchak completed was for the business fraternity Alpha Kappa Psi. They asked Stanchak to make cake pops for their autism awareness fundraiser. Stanchak made white cake pops with blue sprinkles, adding a puzzle piece ribbon as a finishing touch.
In the future, Stanchak said she would like to make more cake pops for charity instead of profit.
“I want to contribute more to fundraising events because it is a great way to give back to all these causes,” Stanchak said.
Stanchak’s selflessness does not go unnoticed by her friends.
“I think it is so great that RoseMary volunteers her time to make these, along with balancing her difficult schedule,” Natalie Stefanelli, a freshman in the physician assistant program, said. “She is probably one of the most selfless people I know at Seton Hall.”
Along with being a selfless person, her friends confirm that Stanchak is a great baker. Mojisola Adesanya, a freshman biology major, said, “So far I’ve only had her vanilla cake pops, but they taste great. My favorite design has been her pink cake pop with white sprinkles.”
Brooke McCormick can be reached at brooke.mccormick@ student.shu.edu.
