Ann Arbor Times

Young adults aging out of foster care and those in need of support have found allies in a local bee population, a University of Michigan doctor, and a chocolate shop. Brian Stork, an assistant professor of urology at the University of Michigan, began beekeeping with his children and sought a unique Mother’s Day gift for his wife, Marisol.

A conversation with Patricia Christopher from Patricia’s Chocolate in Grand Haven led to the creation of a tiny chocolate beehive filled with honey ganache and decorated with 22-karat edible gold leaf. Thus, Stork’s Happy Hive Honey Chocolates was established. After Marisol appreciated the confection, they decided to sell the honey chocolates. To date, more than $10,000 in proceeds have been donated to Step Up in Muskegon.

Step Up was founded in 2015 by Dick Kamps (a U-M Medical School alum) and Lynn Kamps along with members from their church. The organization assists unsupported young adults by providing stable housing, adult mentors, and other services to help them become independent.

“We found that especially kids who are aging out of foster care at age 18 are leaving the system without much guidance,” said Lynn Kamps. “Over 50% have not completed high school. They have trouble managing their finances. Most don’t have a driver’s license.”

To date, Step Up has assisted 45 young men and women. Revenues from chocolate sales support housing operations, driver’s training funds, and a Sunday dinner program that offers family dinners for the group. Graduates are invited back for these dinners to share updates on their lives.

A recent graduate of the Step Up maternity house credited the Kamps and Step Up for her progress from being homeless at 18 to becoming a high school graduate and working mother.

“I was not open to it the first time, but they’ve helped me with budgeting, getting my driver’s license. They helped me finish high school and just really get my independence,” she said. “I don’t have family like that but I know there are other people who are willing to step up.”

During her second stay at Step Up, she had her newborn daughter with her.

“Being at Step Up helped me so much with my daughter. Just having them be there to support me… yeah, it’s scary. Life is tough, but you don’t have to do it alone,” she added.

Stork's interest in beekeeping stemmed from his upbringing on an Iowa farm where his uncles were beekeepers. He started beekeeping about ten years ago and now tends over 250,000 bees during summer's peak season. He estimates he harvests around 100 pounds of honey each fall for use in chocolates.

“One of the great things about it is because you can create so much value by putting the chocolate and the honey together as opposed to selling it in bottles,” Stork explained.

Stork handles harvesting, filtering, bottling the honey before delivering it to Patricia's Chocolate where Christopher transforms it into various products.

Christopher trained as a pastry chef after retiring as a school psychologist and special education teacher; she opened her shop in 2016. For Happy Hive Honey Chocolates, she experimented extensively before perfecting the honey ganache recipe. She also creates pear slices drenched in caramel honey then double-dipped in chocolate.

“We also have a honeycomb toffee that is super popular,” she said.

Another nonprofit benefitting from Patricia’s Chocolate sales is Read Ottawa which focuses on adult literacy through donations generated from macaron purchases developed by Patricia’s Chocolate.

“It’s a big help since three-fourths of our funding comes from local donations,” said Ally Velderman, executive director of Read Ottawa which has helped over 700 adults learn to read since 2009.

Next up is a honey caramel developed for U-M's SafERteens program focusing on youth violence prevention.

“So there are three different nonprofits we’re supporting using Dr. Stork’s honey," Christopher noted. "We think that’s a win for all of us."

“It’s a pleasure to create a product that started with bees gives people joy and meets community needs,” Christopher concluded.