Interview with Dana Perella
Cookies4Cures
Dana Perella - Founder at 7 years old
Colorado, USA
Dana Perella is a 9-year-old girl with a dream: to help those with rare diseases by funding life-changing research. This research has seen breakthroughs in the community around her and undoubtedly has a ripple effect, benefitting the world of medicine and health. Her baking for non-profit business, Cookies4Cures has seen Dana develop a love for helping others and for dessert-making also. This passion match made in heaven means Dana continues to bake, with the help of family and friends, making an immeasurable difference in the lives of others.
In awe of Dana’s philanthropy, Kebloom delved deeper:
1) How would you best describe Cookies4Cures?
Cookies4Cures is the non-profit organization I founded. It’s run by kids and for kids. We fund research into rare paediatric diseases by selling cookies. When a kid has a rare disease with no cure, research is hope. Cookies4Cures funds hope, one cookie at a time.
“I started baking and selling cookies to help fund research to save the life of my friend, Mila.”
2) Where is your business based?
Cookies4Cures is based out of my tiny kitchen in my home in Boulder, Colorado.
3) How old were you when you founded your company?
I started Cookies4Cures on my 7th birthday. I’m now 9 years old.
“Really, research is hope, and I love that I get to be a part of that hope.”
4) What passions inspired Cookies4Cures?
Cookies4Cures wasn’t inspired by a passion, exactly. I started baking and selling cookies to help fund research to save the life of my friend, Mila, who has a rare and fatal disease called Batten. When I started, I’d never baked cookies before. Now, Cookies4Cures has baked 17,000 cookies and I have developed a deep passion for baking and for helping kids with rare diseases. But in the beginning, I just wanted to help save my friend.
5) Who supports you with your business?
My whole family supports my business by buying my baking supplies and helping me set up cookie pop-ups. I do a lot of baking with my mom and we figure out new recipes together. I also have about 100 families that volunteer to help with baking and selling cookies.
6) What advice would you give to social entrepreneurs/inventors?
When I began, I didn’t know I was starting a non-profit. I just kept doing the next bigger thing and my organization kept growing. My first goal was $1000. I kept setting bigger goals and now I’ve raised over $100,000 for research into rare diseases. I think if I’d known what I was getting into, it would have seemed impossible. So, I actually have two pieces of advice.
Number one, believe in yourself. You need to believe that if you set a big goal, you can reach it.
Number two is just start. This is the hardest part. Even if you don’t know exactly how everything is going to work out, just start and keep going, no matter how hard it is.
7) To what extent would a platform like Kebloom have helped your achieve your dreams?
I never really had a path and it would have been nice if I had some guidance on my journey.
8) What has been the best part about running your business?
The best part is seeing your friends who have rare diseases get better. My friend, Mila, got a brand-new treatment named after her, called Milasen, and it stopped her seizures. My friend, Ben, is now taking a new treatment called Spinraza that is also helping him. Research leads to new treatments and these treatments can help kids with rare diseases live better lives. Sometimes, the treatments even save their lives. Really, research is hope, and I love that I get to be a part of that hope.
9) What has been the most challenging part?
The hardest part is that I have so many friends who are really sick. When you work in the rare disease community, lots of your friends have it really tough. I’m so lucky that I get to meet such incredible people. I really hope that the research we fund helps them get better, but there are no guarantees.
10) What skills do you feel you have developed since becoming a business owner?
I’ve learned a ton about cookie baking, of course. I now know how to bake around two dozen different types of cookies and I’ve even invented some of my own recipes. I’ve also gotten really good at talking to people. In the beginning, I was super shy and now I’ve given speeches in front of thousands.
…and anything else you’d like to add!
Please find us on:
Instagram at @cookies4cures_kids
Facebook at @cookies4cures
Twitter at @cookies4cures.
You can learn more about Cookies4Cures at our webpage, www.cookies4cures.com.
You can learn about our latest project, Cookies4SMA at www.gofundme.com/cookies4sma.
About the Author:
Ellie McRae is the blogger, interviewer and content creator for Kebloom! When she’s not writing kick-ass articles, you’ll find her studying marketing and drinking copious amounts of coffee. Find out more about Ellie here.
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