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Grace Guest House staff honors first responders with cookies

The staff baked 1,000 cookies for first responders and health care workers on Thursday.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Grace Guest House in South Buffalo isn't allowed to be open to help families of those staying at the hospital right now.

But on Thursday, the staff got together to help thank the people who are keeping all of us safe during the pandemic.

The staff wanted to make their signature cookies to hand out to health care workers and first responders to let them know they're appreciated. They spent the morning baking 1,000 Gracie's (chocolate peanut butter cookies) to drop off at police stations, fire houses, and hospitals.

"It's such a little thing to do, but to give somebody something sweet. Like when we pulled up, we saw some doctors out in the sort of break area outside, and I'm like, 'Oh, they're going to be able to have a cookie on their break, you know?' It's just it's a little thing. It's just, it's a gesture. Exactly. So, yeah, it felt good. It felt great," says Cindy Battista, Founder of Grace Guest House.

Usually, Grace Guest House hosts families who have loved ones staying at hospitals for treatment. Even though there's a need right now, the New York State PAUSE order has Grace closed.

"Emotionally it's been, it's been tough. You know, I think all of us feel so happy just to be back at the Guest House today. Even though we're not doing what we normally would do, it's just a really great sense of coming home to it once we're able to reopen, and I'm not sure if we're Phase 2 or Phase 3 yet, but we're going to do it on a limited basis initially so that only the bedrooms that have a private bathroom will be allowed to be utilized. So, that leaves just two bedrooms. So, the other, the seven that we have available, there'll be five that will be available to families," says Battista.

If you would like to volunteer when Grace Guest House reopens, you can contact the staff now to sign-up.

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