Jennivee’s Bakery: A haven for escape and comfort

CHICAGO – In Lakeview, WGN-TV’s Sean Lewis found the sweet story of an immigrant baker and the layered journey to find herself.

“I was raised in the Philippines, but I was born in Saudi Arabia,” Jenni Vee of Jennivee’s Bakery said.

Jenni ultimately came to the United States nearly 20 years ago

“Like most Filipino immigrants that come to the U.S., we worked in the healthcare field,” she said.

Although her parents were doctors and she was a physical therapist, she always knew she wanted something different.

Back in Philippines and at age of 19, that was when Jenni began her transition, participating in many pageants.

“For a young trans woman growing up in the Phillipines, one of the rites of passage of being accepted into the trans community is beauty pageants. So I was able to join pageants and win 30,” she said. “I felt more like myself.”

Jenni moved to Chicago when she was 25 and found that being a physical therapist wasn’t her calling, but knew what to do.

“I’ve been baking since I was six, seven years old,” she recalled.

The original Jennivee’s Bakery opened in 2017.

“It’s one of those things that’s like an escape for me. Like it doesn’t matter what I’m going through. Once I’m in the kitchen and I’m in the zone and creating, that’s my ultimate source of escape and comfort,” Jenni said.

Last year, her bakery moved into a much bigger space on Halsted.

“I’m so proud, so proud,” Jenni’s mother Zenas Vailoces said.

Vailoces was with her daughter every step of the way.

“At the start, it was just her and me,” Vailoces said. “I saw her dedication. I saw her passion. I had to support it.”

Jenni said it was when she came out as a trans woman where she found her path and strength and drives her business and her life today.

“We have our own struggles in life and ultimately our goal is to be happy and be our true, authentic selves and not a lot of people are able to do that, and I think people should be able to live as authentically as they can and to pursue their dreams and passions,” Jenni said.