The 45-year-old housewife decided to take part in a baking business with other women in the neighbourhood, hoping to earn some extra cash for Hari Raya.

Now, the smell of homemade butter cookies wafts unmistakably on the street outside Block 4 of the Desa Mentari People’s Housing Project (PPR).

Inside the activity community centre on the ground floor, Siti and nine other mothers have been hard at work, cooking up sweet treats almost every day from 9am to 4pm since early March.

Behind them lie shelves of popcorn as well as cranberry butter, peanut and chocolate chip cookies, all neatly stacked and ready for sale ahead of the festive season.

Their business is part of an initiative by Persatuan Penduduk Petaling Jaya (MyPJ), a society which aims to support B40 families and “elevate the community”.

According to Jeffrey Phang, chairman of MyPJ, computer classes are also provided so the women can bring their children along to work.

“The intention (of this programme) is to get everyone together. We want the children to know how hard their mothers work,” he told FMT.

Profits from the cookies are split 50-50: half going towards paying the mothers and the other half for purchasing more baking materials and tools.

Phang said this taught the women budgeting, marketing and capital building, as well as other entrepreneurial skills.

“These families do not wish to depend on zakat or other government aid. They chose to work here. It is an opportunity for them to earn money while learning new skills. There is a ‘kita jaga kita’ kind of attitude here,” he said.

MyPJ volunteer Stephanie Hum, who taught the women how to bake, said that if the programme proved to be successful, each family would be able to earn up to a few hundred ringgit a month.

Although churning out 20 to 30 tubs of cookies each day is no easy task, Hum noted that the women never complained and always put their heart and soul into each batch of treats.

“For them, it is taking joy in the simple things. As good friends, it is easier for them to work together as well. We hope this could take off as a sustainable business for them,” she said.

Speaking to FMT, Siti said she used to worry about finding a job as it meant having to leave her young children home alone.

“It was tough as my children are still in school and it was hard to juggle between a job and caring for my family. If I worked outside, I’d have to send them to a daycare centre, and I would have to pay for that. Here, it is easier because I can bring them along with me,” said Siti.

After only a month in operation, Siti and her colleagues already have big plans for the business, well past Hari Raya.

“Our goal is to create a logo and a brand to market our biscuits. For now, we are still in the middle of setting things up, but it’s great because the orders have started coming in,” she said.

Another mother, known as Jed, said it had been easy to work as a team as everyone cared for each other.

“If any of us are facing issues, we will try to cover for that person and allow them to head home earlier. It’s all about helping each other here,” said Jed.

She added that the baking business now gave her a sense of purpose, as she had been able to learn new skills in the kitchen and see her friends daily.

“I really wasn’t good at baking and before this, I used to just stay at home. Now, I get to see all my friends and learn to make biscuits. InsyaAllah, we will get to earn some money from this.”

The cookies are priced from RM15 per tub, while a set of four different types of cookies is sold at RM75. Those interested in supporting the Desa Mentari ladies can place their orders at 011-58869879 on Whatsapp.