By Ashley M. Casey

Associate Editor

When Aunjanaya Ramdath’s infant son was diagnosed with a rare liver disease in 2017, the worried mother sought solace in her lifelong passion of baking. Juggling doctor’s appointments and her job as a teacher in the Syracuse City School District, baking became therapy for Ramdath.

“I found happiness and peace in my kitchen,” said Ramdath, who lives in Clay with her husband and three children. “I was able to get in my kitchen and bake in silence and sort through my feelings.”

Ramdath decided to turn her passion into a profitable venture in December 2019. She turned to her sixth-grade students for name ideas, and Sista Sweets was born. Ramdath is setting aside 10% of the proceeds of each sale with the goal of founding an organization to support families dealing with biliary atresia.

BA is a condition in which scarring blocks a baby’s bile ducts, which causes bile to build up and damage the liver. The symptoms are jaundice (yellowing of the whites of the eyes or skin), dark urine, and yellow, white or gray stool.

While jaundice is relatively common in newborns — and usually turns out to be harmless — Ramdath knew something wasn’t right with little Adonias, nicknamed “Adi.” The whites of his eyes were turning green and he suffered from projectile vomiting.

“His urine would be brown like Hennessy,” Ramdath said.

Ramdath’s pediatrician suggested Adonias needed more sunlight to clear up his jaundice. Ramdath, thinking her baby was dehydrated, upped her water intake and took vitamins while she was nursing.

Finally, blood tests showed that Adi’s liver was not functioning properly. He was admitted to Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital.

“Everything just happened really, really quickly,” Ramdath said. “I never knew even with my first son how to advocate for my children until biliary atresia entered our lives.”

Adi underwent a surgery called the Kasai procedure, which replaces damaged bile ducts with a portion of the small intestine so bile can drain from the liver.

Handing her 4-month-old baby over to the surgery team was devastating, Ramdath said.

“The level of hurt was indescribable,” she said.

While Adonias is now 3 and thriving, his liver could still fail and he would need a transplant.

“Even after a successful surgery, most children will slowly develop complications of biliary atresia, over years or decades, and will eventually need a liver transplant. In some cases, after a successful procedure, children never need a liver transplant,” reads the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases website.

Surgery left Adonias with a scar shaped like Nike’s trademark swoosh. Ramdath ordered shirts emblazoned with the symbol and the phrase “Just Cure It” accompanied by “Biliary Atresia Awareness” in glittery, green text. The shirts — and much of the branded material for Sista Sweets — are made by a woman whose own son has BA, too. Ramdath wanted to support a fellow Black entrepreneur and BA mom.

Ramdath’s dream is to one day set up a support network for BA families, a hotline for parents to seek advice and informational pamphlets for families of newborns, including a stool chart comparing healthy newborn stool and the oatmeal-like stool of a baby with BA.

“People do not want to talk about poop … but that is one of the biggest signs with this disease,” Ramdath said.

She also urges people to sign up to become an organ donor.

“Your liver is the only organ that if you donate a portion of it, it regenerates to full capacity,” she said.

Living donors can give organs such as the kidneys or liver, but many organ transplants come from deceased donors.

“After your life, give the gift of life. Your organs can save so many lives,” Ramdath said.

Sista Sweets offers a variety of cakes, cupcakes and candy-coated treats such as strawberries, pretzels and Oreos. Ramdath’s students, colleagues and family members are well-versed in quality assurance, as she keeps them supplied with her creations.

Popular among Ramdath’s confections is her cake in a jar. Cake, Swiss meringue buttercream and fillings are layered in a plastic jar  that won’t be crushed during shipping like a cupcake might.

Often, 3-year-old Adi accompanies his mom in the kitchen.

“When I am baking sweet treats for my students, who is standing next to me? Adonias. He is helping me shake the flour,” Ramdath said. “You can help support my business and my son in one stroke.”

Sista Sweets is located in Clay. For more information, visit sistasweetsny.com or follow @sistasweetsny on Instagram. Follow Adonias Ramdath’s BA journey @adonias_ba_baby_ on Instagram.