Good Bitches deliver home-baked treats to Whangārei charities

Head bitch Cheree Morrison, centre, Jeanine Davey, left, and Alisha Harper are spreading some kindness in the Whangārei community. Photo / John Stone

Whangārei has joined a nationwide mission to make "Aotearoa the kindest place on earth" by showing some kindness to people going through a rough time in the form of a home-baked treat.

Launched in 2014 by two Wellingtonians, Good Bitches Baking has now reached the North, where more than two dozen local volunteers are delivering home-baked cakes and other goods to three different charities.

After being in the works for a few months, the Whangārei branch officially launched with three big Christmas bakes in December last year.

Currently, the group counts 30 Good Bitches who bake five big batches monthly for Kind Hands, which offers respite care for children with disabilities, Women's Refuge and Age Concern.

"Good Bitches Baking is for people who need a bit of kindness and sweetness in their life. We don't judge why people have a tough time or how tough it is," Cheree Morrison, Whangārei head bitch, explained.

"We do a lot of baking in our family, so I have always taken it for granted, but not everyone does. Good Bitches Baking creates a real good community feel and brightens everyone's day."

She said the initiative was completely volunteer-based and the more people they got on board, the more charities they could supply.

Since its inauguration, Good Bitches Baking has been taken up by groups across the country and now has more than 2100 volunteers – and they are doing more than just baking.

After last year's Christchurch Mosque shootings, the organisation sold "Kindness for Christchurch" T-shirts, raising $40,000 for the victims.

The Wellington group also launched a project in Rimutaka Prison where the Good Bitches visit pre-release inmates and teach them how to bake and giving them an opportunity to be kind. Their baked treats are then given to some of the local women's refuges.

The Good Bitches Baking Trust has now been nominated as one of three finalists for the Mitre 10 New Zealand Community of the Year awards, alongside Zealandia and the Foster Hope Charitable Trust, which has several offices across Northland.

The name may strike a nerve, but initiators Nicole Murray and Marie Fitzpatrick believe the bold title can be linked to the organisation's success.

"To us, calling someone a good bitch is high praise. It packs a whole lot more punch than 'you're a nice person', and it implies action, hard work and even humility. Put simply, a good bitch is someone who just goes about getting stuff done, no mucking around," it says on the website.

Good Bitches Baking is meant to be gender-inclusive, and Whangārei head bitch Morrison confirmed the local group was diverse and full of energetic members, including men.

"We don't overload people, and nothing is too rigid. It's super simple; the volunteers choose the day of the designated days they want to bake," Morrison explained.

The group is flexible with its roaster and volunteers can also take on delivery tasks, if they don't feel like working in the kitchen.

Fellow Good Bitches Alisha Harper and Jeanine Davey turn their baking sessions into a family activity and get their children to help out.

"I have a 4- and a 2-year-old who are trying to help," Davey said. She had heard about the initiative through social media and found the concept amazing.

For Harper, the baking sessions are a chance to try out different recipes and a great mother-daughter activity.

"I also have a 4-year-old, and she gives me quite good directions about what to make," Harper said.

To volunteer for the Good Bitches Baking Whangārei chapter, contact Whangarei@gbb.org.nz.