Cake Box Employee Wins Medals at Special Olympics USA Games

Two days a week, you’ll find Hannah Krafft in the kitchen of New Hope’s Cake Box bakery doing her part to help the place run smoothly.

“Yes I do everything here,” Krafft said. “I actually wash dishes. I taste test some baked products for my job.”

If you talk to the owner of Cake Box, she’ll tell you that Krafft brings a sense of passion and enthusiasm to the workplace.

“Very happy person to have around,” said Roxanne Johnson, the owner. “She loves her job and we love having her around, so it works both ways.”

Yet it’s only fitting that a business built around cake decorating would also have a decorated athlete working among them.

“I just feel humbled having her work here,” Johnson said.

You see, Krafft was part of the Minnesota contingent that competed in this year’s Special Olympics USA Games in Orlando.

Hannah Krafft (front row, second from left) stands with other members of the Minnesota contingent at the Special Olympics USA Games in Orlando.

“Oh I’m really driven and focused,” Krafft said. “Me, I’m like really committed in sporting events.”

She’s so committed that she took home three medals for track and field events at the summer games. Krafft won a bronze in shot put, a bronze in the 100-meter run, and a silver in the 200-meter run.

“I was like in tears of happiness because of that,” she said.

On Wednesday, officers from the New Hope Police Department paid Krafft a surprise visit to congratulate her on her accomplishments.

A well-deserved piece of recognition after months of dedication and hard work.

“Well Special Olympics means everything to me. It’s about inclusion for other teens,” Krafft said.

That message of the importance of inclusion is one she plans to share every year when she competes in future Special Olympics events.

But in the meantime, she has work to do at the bakery.

“I love having her here,” Johnson said.

New Hope