For roughly 11 years, Tony Posca, longtime former owner of Andrea's Bake Shoppe in Newtown, offered a free birthday cake for one lucky local child through The Newtown Bee's weekly drawing. Now as the owner of Bakes n' Cakes Cafe in Southbury, Mr Posca is happy to again be providing birthday wishes.The Newtown Bee the "Just For Kids..." section offers the opportunity for local parents to submit their child's name, birthday, and age along with a picture of the child to be printed to wish them a "Happy Birthday." Each entry is entered into a drawing for a free cake that week.The Newtown Bee for welcoming him "back to Newtown."The Newtown Bee. The photo should be attached to the e-mail. Birth dates must be within one month of submission. After receiving notification from , PO Box 5503, Newtown CT 06470, or e-mail information and a digital JPG photo to education reporter Eliza Hallabeck, eliza@thebee.comThe Bee by phone, cake winners are requested to call Bakes N' Cakes Cafe at 203-405-6780 to order the cake. The bakery is at 316 C Main Street South, Southbury.bakesandcakescafe.com.

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Mr Posca estimates he provided more than 500 free birthday cakes for local children while he was the owner of Andrea's Bake Shoppe, which, he pointed out, also provided the service before he was owner.

After Andrea's Bake Shoppe closed in 2012, DOrazio Sisters Bakery in Plaza South, Newtown, offered the weekly birthday cake until recently.

Mr Posca will be celebrating his three-year anniversary as the owner of Bakes N' Cakes Cafe in Southbury in April. The Southbury resident said he has missed seeing the people he once saw regularly in Newtown. Every time a former customer visits him in Southbury, he says it fills his heart.

"The friends you build along the way are always there," said Mr Posca.

He used to love seeing the "smiles from the kids" when they would come in to pick up their birthday cake, Mr Posca said.

"There were so many weeks when people would cut the cake and bring me a picture of the children cutting the cake," said Mr Posca, smiling at the memory.

Every action in life, he believes, touches someone, "hopefully with the light on." Mr Posca thanked

"I just love to serve people that are looking [and want] to be served," said Mr Posca, about his business.

Bee birthday cake winners will win a Bakes N' Cakes Cafe 7-inch cake. Mr Posca said the orders should be made three-days in advance, and the winner can choose any cake available at the time. The most popular birthday cake, he said, is the cafe's chocolate mousse cake. The 7-inch cakes can serve eight to ten people, depending on the size of the slices. The cake winners can also choose to have the cakes decorated with an inscription and decor "Bakes N' Cakes style," he said.

In the past, people have opted to purchase some of the other baked goods available at the cafe to supplement birthday party goodies, like cupcakes and cannolis, he said.

Since Bakes N' Cakes Cafe also offers breakfast and lunch options - from sandwiches and wraps to quinoa salad and frittatas - Mr Posca said stopping by to pick up the birthday cake with time for breakfast or lunch would be a good idea.

Looking back on his experience with providing the birthday cake winners cake each week, Mr Posca said, "I enjoy so much watching the families come in, and watching the kids grow from 'can't see their heads [over the counter]' to young adults. It's pretty awesome for me to watch."

To include a child's name in The Birthday Cake, parents should send the child's name, address, phone number, age, and birthday, along with an original photo, to: Mini Page,

Bakes N' Cakes Cafe is open Mondays and Tuesdays, from 7 am to 3 pm, Thursdays to Saturdays, from 7 am to 4 pm, and on Sundays from 8 am to 2 pm. The cafe is closed Wednesdays.

More information about Bakes N' Cakes Cafe, including its menu, is available online at