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Knaresborough's 'cake lady' raises £1,000 for St Michael's

Thursday, 6 March 2025 07:44

Karen Ibbotson, Knaresborough's 'cake lady', has raised £1,000 for St Michael's Hospice.

A baker from Knaresborough has raised £1,000 for St Michael's Hospice after 5 weeks of bake sales.

Karen Ibbotson, affectionately known by residents as ‘the cake lady’, has been baking every week since 21st January to raise money and awareness for the hospice.

As a carer, Karen was inspired to start her campaign after a lady she cared for sadly passed away following a battle with cancer.

She vowed to raise £1,500 for the hospice throughout the year - and has already raised more than £1,000.

Karen told Your Harrogate:

“I have a couple of people I look after and sadly one of those ladies lost her fight with cancer, so she was my inspiration.

“It’s just such a good cause. St Michael’s are excellent and I’m sure there’s lot of people that have had loved ones pass on at the hospice.”

Baking at her home on Trinity Fields in Knaresborough, Karen has been taking her cakes and scones to local businesses and advertising them through Facebook.

She’s had help from a number of businesses, including weekly donations of ingredients from her local Lidl supermarket.

And Karen’s husband, Kevan, works at Vantage Toyota in Knaresborough, where the staff have become regular cake sale customers.

Karen said:

“I used to bake when my children were very young! My grandma, my mum and my aunt were always very good bakers.

“I had a stall on Knaresborough Market for many years too.

“It makes me so happy that I can use the skills I’ve got, both on the caring side and the baking side, to do what I enjoy doing.”

Having donated £868 to St Michael’s Hospice last weekend, Karen has raised £150 so far this week.

She’s vowed to continue baking and intends to beat her initial target of £1,500.

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