Kansas City, MO - It was nearly two years ago that Jerry Wilkinson suffered a heart attack why delivering mail on his rout. Thanks to the quick action of the fire department, where he stopped to rest, he's here today. But the medical issues keep coming and with that, the mounting medical debt. His wife, Angie Wilkinson says it was clear that something needed to be done.
"I've said you can be many things in this world, but don't be middle-class, blue-collar, and have health issues. So, last October he ended up in the hospital again and that's really when everything started falling apart for us," says Angie.
The Wilkinson's went from being debt-free to upwards of 20-thousand dollars in medical debt, so Angie decided to use her passion for baking to help out by establishing 3 Monkeys Bakery, named after her own three, not so little monkeys. Baking was nothing new for Angie, but baking for others to earn money was.
"You know it's been so interesting," explains Angie, "It's been such a growth process for me, because you have to learn to believe in yourself. That part has been really interesting for me as a middle age mom, and then just to be able to connect with people that I wouldn't have met otherwise.
The business is thriving and it's slowly chipping away at the medical debt, but Angie says the end goal, is to always please the Lord, and also the comfort it brings her husband that she's taken care of, if something does happen, is priceless. The dream: She hopes to have a retro camper food truck where she can continue to serve treats and smiles on the move.
It's something Angie says she wouldn't have done had they not encountered the setback, but it's been a growing experience for everyone and she feels she can serve her purpose by serving others with a plate of cookies and a smile.