Warrior Wednesday – Elaine Duran
Elaine served as the celebrity judge at the 2018 Fire in the Park Chili Cook-Off.
Our Warrior this Wednesday is the fabulous and inspiring Elaine Duran.
You might recognize her as one half of the red team from the television show “The Next Great Baker” on TLC. Maybe you ate her signature dessert at your local Carrabba’s Italian Grill. Or, perhaps you saw her build a four-foot “Beauty and the Beast” themed cake on Food Network’s “Cake Wars” last year.
Maybe you know her from her book, “You’re Next. Turn Your Disappointment into Destiny”, or one of her sold out cake decorating classes she teaches.
Whether teaching, talking, baking or creating, Elaine approaches each aspect of her life with a passion and a purpose. Her giving and gracious spirit draws people in.
The amazingly gifted gal lives and works in Central Florida where she currently owns, operates and functions as the lead custom cake designer at Enticing Cake Boutique in Kissimmee.
When she’s not spending time with her husband, David, and children, Valentino and Natalia or running Enticing Cake Boutique, she enjoys giving back and getting involved with her community.
Elaine has been a long-time supporter of the AutoNation Cure Bowl and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, even before her stage 4 breast cancer diagnosis this year.
Lending her time, talent and celebrity came naturally for Elaine, who states, “Without people supporting me and loving my crazy cake creations I would not be where I am today. I owe it to my community and those people to do what I can to give back.”
For several years she has donated her time as a celebrity judge at the Fire in the Park Chili Cook-Off, a local event in which proceeds were donated to the BCRF.
Elaine’s spirit and positive attitude refuse to be dampened by her diagnosis.
“I am not in denial about this diagnosis and I totally understood what the oncologist told me, but I’m not done yet,“ said Elaine. “I answer to a higher power and my faith tells me that I have more to give and much to do. I’ve been told that cancer has blanketed my body, but I still feel good. I’ve seen miracles happen in my own family and I believe that God has a miracle for me.”
Elaine went on to say that she wants to use her voice and her celebrity platform to inspire and motivate others going through the same situation as well as help raise awareness and create momentum for raising funds for research. She understands that her journey has just begun but she believes that if we dream it we can do it, and with a higher power there’s nothing to it.
It’s Elaine Duran’s unwavering faith and strong conviction and character during these hard times that make AutoNation Cure Bowl proud to stand beside her.
Join the Fight, Stand with Elaine.
You can donate to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation today by visiting https://orlandosportsfoundation.org/donate/. Together, #WeCanTackleThis.
