"Good People" profiles everyday individuals who are bettering the lives of those in need and improving their communities.
At just 14 years old, Michael Platt is using his baking business to alleviate hunger in his community. For every cupcake his business — Michael's Desserts — sells, he gives one to a person in need.
"I really, really like baking and cooking," Michael, of Bowie, Md., told In The Know. "For my birthday, I didn't even get a birthday cake. I just baked."
Michael said the idea for his business came to him after his parents bought him a pair of Tom's shoes as a gift.
"Their business model is one for one; every shoe someone buys, they give a pair of shoes to someone in need," he explained. "I did that with my business — every dessert someone buys, I give a dessert to someone in need."
Although Michael said he has found himself lacking much of the free time that a typical teen enjoys, he said his mission makes the sacrifice worth it.
"I just get very inspired because I know that what I'm doing is helping people," he said. "Giving someone a cupcake — I know they don't get that all the time, if they're on the streets or they're going through a rough time. But, I know they feel good when they get that sweet treat."
"When I go to homeless shelters or domestic violence shelters, or around parks in [Washington] D.C., I want to give people a cupcake because to give them a cupcake makes them think, 'This person is really thinking about me enough to give me something that I don't get,'" he added.
Danita Platt, Michael's mother, said she's incredibly proud that her son, at the young age of 14, "has found his place in the world."
"With him being so young and starting so young, we kind of just believed that he wanted to do this and followed his lead on it," Platt said. "You just never know what's in somebody's mind until they start doing something and they're inspired and they're passionate about it."
"He honestly believes that if he does everything he can and other people do everything they can, that we can solve hunger," she added.
And others in Michael's community clearly recognize the value of his inspirational work as well.
"Michael has a vision and he wants to end hunger, which is awesome, but the willingness to go out and to do it and then incorporate his family and his friends to do it — it's beyond him," Dione Bowlding Jr., pastor at the Bowie City Church, said.
"Michael is a regular kid," he added. "He's just your average kid, average teenager, but he loves to love people and help people in need."
