VANCOUVER, Wash. — When Chandelier Bakery opened the doors 2 years ago at the northeast Padden Parkway location in Vancouver, owner Monica Kersey immediately knew how her younger brother Chris White fit in the business' plans.
"We knew the dog treats were going to be his before we even opened. We just knew that it was something that he was going to be able to do well."
Yes, dog treats.
Chris White uses a family recipe of flour, eggs, pumpkin and peanut butter and a few other ingredients for the dog bones.
With the help of his sister Monica, he carefully measures out the ingredients and hand mixes them in a bowl, carving out each dog bone with a cookie cutter.
Chris can't see what he's doing. At the age of 7, an enlarged tumor pressed down on his optic nerve causing partial blindness. A year later, he tripped and fell in a classroom and suffered permanent vision loss.
At the age of 40, these obstacles don't stop Chris from doing what he loves and his canine customers love him too.
"A lot of the dogs are starting to like having them." White says, "It's kinda fun doing the dog treats."
He's a stickler for getting it right, carefully weighing each treat on an adaptive scale that tells him the weight of each ingredient and bone.
In the last year alone, he's performed this routine quite often.
"Probably around 4,000-5,000 this year," White said.
The dog treats are a hot seller.
"He does great work, everybody loves his dog treats, they're our number one seller here at the bakery and I'm super proud of him for that," Kersey said.
Chris White has his hands in more than just sticky dough. He loves to polish rocks and his family says while he can't see how beautiful they are, he finds beauty in the way they feel.
Chris's contributions make his family grateful for what their brother brings to Chandelier Bakery.
"We just figure that you know there's a purpose for everything and so we just don't let it get us down cause we know we're fortunate we have him."
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