About Cheer Baskets
In 1987, Cheer Baskets was created by Deb Russell in Fort
Wayne, Indiana as a home-based business to provide a service to
friends, families and local businesses to send cheer across the
Fort Wayne area. By 1991, the business had
grown too large
to continue operations of her home. The business moved to
the Village at Coventry Shoppes - at the time, a new development
in southwest Fort Wayne. As business continued to grow,
Cheer Baskets moved to another location within the Village at
Coventry giving the business more room to grow and expand
operations with Anastasia's Cafe.
Anastasia's Cafe was one of the first cafes in Fort Wayne to offer a true, authentic espresso bar, high-quality cafe-style sandwiches, gourmet salads and a fresh lifestyle menu. Striving to offer fresh ingredients, made-from-scratch soups and tantalizing flavors, Anastasia's Cafe quickly became a well-known food spot.
A true family-owned business, Cheer Baskets' creative gifts and baskets are masterminded by Deb while her husband, Tom, whips up the amazing made-from-scratch soups at Anastasia's and has become known as "The Soup Master." The cafe is named after Deb and Tom's daughter, Anastasia. Both of Deb and Tom's children, Rob and Stacey, have worked at Anastasia's at one point and have input on current operations.