Isaac López baked 47 cheesecakes this weekend. He’s got 65 cheesecakes to go.
That’s because Isaac, age 12, is trying to earn enough money to go on his first mission trip.
The idea for the fundraiser came after Isaac made a cheesecake for a celebration of his church’s seventh anniversary.
Isaac is the oldest child of Elizabeth and Marvin López, pastors of Primera Iglesia Metodista Unida de Gatlinburg. That’s the Hispanic congregation located at First United Methodist Church in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
Isaac with this mom, Elizabeth 
Isaac with his dad, Marvin
“Everyone commented on how good the cheesecake was, and one of his friends said, ‘Isaac, why don’t you sell cheesecake to raise money for your mission trip?’” Elizabeth explains.
Isaac is scheduled to join about 30 other Holston Conference members who will travel to La Fortuna, Costa Rica, in October. The team will help a group of Costa Ricans organize a spiritual weekend for young people. The event will mirror Resurrection, the annual winter youth retreat offered by Holston Conference in Pigeon Forge or Gatlinburg for the last 30 years.
The first “Resurrection CR” will be held Oct. 11-13. (See Resurrection gets new life with Costa Rican launch)
“I want to see the love of God shared with more people,” Isaac says, explaining why he has a passion to go to Costa Rica. Isaac has attended Resurrection youth retreat for the last three years.
Isaac and his mom got the cheesecake recipe, Pay De Queso, from a YouTube video series, Desde Mi Cocina by Lizzy. (It’s in Spanish but there are English subtitles.) They have been learning to cook together through the videos.
The cost for one of Isaac’s cheesecakes is $12, including delivery. As of August 24, forty-seven orders had been received, mostly through Facebook.
The goal is to raise $1,550 for the cost of the trip. Isaac already earned $200 this summer by working on the construction site where his dad works.
His mom tells the story of how Isaac approached his dad’s boss to ask for a job. “It’s a lot of money so I need to get started,” he said of the funds he needed to raise for the trip. He landed a job picking up trash and lumber and taking materials to the construction workers.
Isaac got up at 5 a.m. for his construction job. Now that school has started, he’s getting up at 7 a.m. on the weekends to make cheesecakes.
His parents donated the ingredients for the first 11 cakes. After that, he is using his profits to buy more ingredients (so maybe he has to bake more than 112 cheesecakes?).
Go Isaac!
To order a cheesecake, contact Elizabeth at ednalopez1234@gmail.com
You may follow this blog or subscribe by email through the blocks provided below. You may reach me directly at annettespence@holston.org.
The Call to Cook 