By Angie Fenton | Photos by Tony Bennett
“If you hear negative things every day, all you’re going to think is negative,” said Katy Petty-Jenkins, just before she stood up to help a customer at Angel’s Bakery & Café. “I think a lot of people (in Scott County) have gotten to feel like nobody is going to want to come here, no one is going to want to spend money here.” And that’s exactly why Kathy opted to open Angels in Scottsburg late last year.
“I wanted to have a business here because I wanted to see Scottsburg do well and have more places that aren’t fast food,” which is good for both the community and passersby, she said. “There are a lot of hard-working, honest, good people here who go to work every day to take care of their families. People help each other here. … I’m always asked what made me stay. This is home for me. This is where I grew up, and it’s still home.”
Opening the café has been cathartic – and a lot of hard work, said Kathy. “When we first opened, I was holding two jobs … and sleeping maybe three to four hours a night, but I had the determination to start my own business. Just having this now, my stress levels are way less. I sleep more. I actually go home now and am able to have a meal with my husband (James), go to bed and get up in the mornings.”
Kathy honed her culinary skills at Sullivan University; she earned her degree in 2010. A former police officer in Austin – make that the first female police officer in the city – “Cooking is what I always had a passion for,” she said.
Named after Kathy’s boxer Angel (one of her three dogs) – “I got Angel right after I lost my mother and she was my angel” – the café specializes in baked goods, Italian dishes and sandwiches. “Everybody loves the lasagna, that and our scones,” she said (moments later, this writer purchased a blueberry scone and thoroughly enjoyed it). “The lasagna is made with love. Everything is made fresh.”
