JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — "That's the best donut I've ever had!" Who said that? Well, just walk through Cinotti's Bakery in Jacksonville Beach and you'll hear that same sentence over and over.
The iconic family bakery, open since the early 1960s, has two police officers on location to get crowds in and out of their parking lot on Penman Road. The seasonal pumpkin donuts are an annual tradition for kids and adults.
Although, there's more going on at Cinotti's this October. Michelle Cinotti says her grandmother had breast cancer. She also has an employee fighting breast cancer and another employee who lost a sister to breast cancer.
So when a survivor and friend, Donna Cato, asked Michelle to design a Buddy Check Champ cookie, Michelle jumped on board in a flash. As Michelle says, "You have the opportunity to help people, why would you not?"
The Buddy Check Champ chocolate cookies are huge. And they're iced in terrific shades of pink you could probably see in the dark.
First Coast News is awarding the cookies to people helping others catch breast cancer early. First Coast News anchor Jeannie Blaylock has taken them all over the area with the new Buddy Bus, a mobile mammography unit with Baptist/MD Anderson.
First Coast News applaud Michelle Cinotti and her family at Cinotti's Bakery for donating all the Buddy Check Champ cookies.
The Buddy Check Champs aren't always women. Jahson Rucker is one recipient. He's a tattoo artist at Valei Arts on Beach Boulevard. Rucker lost his girlfriend to breast cancer. He described LaLa as "the love of my life," but said the experience taught him what breast cancer feels like.
One day, during a tattoo session, he found a lump under Donna's arm when he was trying to apply ink.
It sent her to the doctor and it turned out to be breast cancer. "Without Jahson," Donna says, "I wouldn't be here."
So Jahson was presented a Buddy Check Champ cookie at Cinotti's, while customers broke into applause.
It's a nice boost to people who know the struggle with breast cancer.
