My family has never been very big. Over the years we’ve lost a lot of people, which makes you lean into the beauty of chosen family. Not long after moving to Georgia, we met the Smith family, who welcomed us into their family. My childhood best friend and the rest of the Smith family started calling me “Ara,” and the nickname has stuck for nearly 20 years.
“Ara’s Bakehaus” is built on that spirit of home and belonging. “Bakehaus” comes from the German word Haus, meaning house, but to us it means something deeper. It means chosen family, a safe space, and a place of belonging. It’s not just cookies people, trust.
I’ve been baking since middle school for friends, family, and classmates, but it was never meant to be anything serious. If I’m being honest, this little business was born directly out of grief. Baking became my outlet during high school, but the loss of my bonus big brother, Aaron Myles Smith, turned it into something more. In the weeks following his passing, I baked more than 400 cookies to comfort myself and the people around me. Eventually, the other two-thirds of Ara’s Bakehaus lovingly told me, “You can’t keep baking all these cookies for free.” And just like that, Ara’s Bakehaus was born. My oven has been warm ever since.