This morning I made my way to Doughnuts Delights off of Dunn Road in Florrisant to meet up with the first of two interviews I was doing for the day in regards to my #ShowYouSTL project. As I was parking I received a message from Tiffany informing me that she was inside and I responded back that I would be in just shortly.
As I was making my way into the establishment I noticed her immediately at the counter and she greeted me with a hug. She asked if I would like a doughnut and I politely decline and then she asked about a coffee and I said yes to a decaf with sugar and cream. I also noticed that she had also paid for the breakfast of another customer. When he found out he had the biggest smile on his face and thanked her and added a hug as well. He even thanked me and I had not done anything.
Tiffany explained to me that she makes it a habit to pay for at least one other customer's breakfast as a way to pay it forward and show kindness. We find a spot in the back of the Doughnuts Delights and she informs me that she has been coming here since she was a little girl. She tells me that her dad used to bring her and her siblings and they each would receive one doughnut.
So we settle in and she explains that the drive behind her business is to remind people that there are still good people in the world. She started her business around 14 years ago, and it just happened because she wanted a source of income but also wanted to be a stay at home so she could spend more time with her son. So she started to do event planning for family and friends. While running her business she said she asked God for direction with her life in regards to what her path was for her life and her passion.
So she decided around 2 years ago to take a year off from any type of event planning to have God show her what to do. She debated between ministry, event planning, or taking a job at her church. She had her hesitations because she didn't like the politics of church. She wanted to be able to serve people but she didn't want to deal with the business side of church. She feels that offering your 10% is more than just putting your tithes in a collection plate. You can give back to your community and serve God by various acts of kindness. It can be by feeding the homeless, buying doughnuts, or dropping off dialysis patients as just a few examples.
So she decided to do events at homeless shelters free of charge such as holiday parties or trivia parties and she would supply prizes as well as food for about 6 months. She relaunched full force this year as Tiffany-Paige Events (formerly Invite Me Events) which includes weddings, corporate parties, and anniversaries are among some of the event planning options.
She also has another business called Faith Tees which has had for two years. Her shirts are in various styles with different messages but they are all united by their theme in reminding people that God is good and remind people to keep the faith. Part of the proceeds from the shirts go towards various homeless shelters.
We talked about how some people come into their purpose in life either early or later on down the road. Whenever you knock on the door of your purpose, open it. Your gift will make room for you.
Please go over to #SHOWYOUSTL to read more on Tiffany and her connection to the STL
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| Treats that she made for Valentine's Day, photo by Tiffany |
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| Photo by Tiffany |
