Kara Millard was never in doubt about the career she wanted. She had fallen in love with cooking when her dad introduced her to it at a young age. By high school, she was taking culinary classes at Wake Tech in the dual-enrollment Career & College Promise program, and by the time she earned her high school diploma, she also had a certificate in Culinary Arts.

Her next goal was an associate degree. As a Garner resident, the commute to Wake Tech's Southern Wake Campus was convenient. Not long after starting the Culinary Arts degree program, however, she realized her true love was baking.

"I was looking at the baking students doing pastries and sugar sculptures, cakes and chocolate sculptures and thought, 'That's amazing! I want to do that!'" she said. "There were so many different things you could with it. You could specialize in chocolate or sugar. You could do breads or pastries or cakes. It's a world of artistic freedom, and I just felt like it was such a great outlet."

Millard changed her major to Baking & Pastry Arts, which she says really prepared her for the career of her dreams. She says the program was very challenging but gave her a strong foundation: "A lot of the skills I have and the work ethic I have are based on what I learned from the instructors at Wake Tech."

After graduation, Millard got her first job at a cupcake shop where she worked as part of the Work-Based Learning experience required by the program. She continued to develop her skills and went on to work at bakeries in Cary and Fuquay-Varina. Then, in 2021, she heard about an opening at the renowned Fearrington House Inn and Restaurant in Pittsboro. Fearrington House consistently ranks among the top hotels in North Carolina, attracting guests and visitors from around the world.

"I applied mostly as a joke because I didn't think I had the skills. But I heard back the very next day – and they asked me if I could work a 'stage,'" she said.

A stage (pronounced "stazh") is part of the interview process for chefs. Instead of sitting down and talking with someone, applicants must show their skills by working in the position for a day or half-day.

Millard admits to being "terrified" but found she was quite comfortable in the kitchen, and her stage turned into a job offer! After two years as a pastry assistant, she moved up to lead cake decorator and says she couldn't be happier. She says she feels supported in trying new techniques at Fearrington; she's found her own style and has the freedom to be creative and expand her skills.

She gets to make cakes for all occasions, from birthdays to baby showers, including some "cool" carved cakes. Her specialty is wedding cakes, which is no surprise given the inn's status as one of the Triangle's premier wedding venues.

"People don’t just want a wedding cake – they want a piece of art," she said.

Millard has even become an expert on Fearrington House's 40-year-old signature dessert – the chocolate soufflé – and taught classes on how to make it. For her, there isn't a more fulfilling place to work. And the fact that she gets to meet people from all over the world and learn to bake confections from a variety of cultures is just icing on the cake!