Home Cafe: Downtown Orlando/DoveCote & Altamonte Springs
This week's spotlight was on Kayla Miller.
Kayla has been with the company since October of 2019, after being a Mermaid Trainer at the Disney Hotels. Kayla explained that at Disney she would teach anyone (ages two and up) to swim through hoops or dive for treasure using a mermaid tail (a suit of flippers that go from the feet to the hip). She said that the best part of the job was "being able to jump into the pool on hot days" and she hopes to come back after Disney reopens their hotel pools.
When asked what beverages she prefers, Kayla admitted to being a bit of a soda connoisseur: Her favorites are Sprite and 7up but when curiosity strikes, she dabbles in the more exotic and esoteric flavors, like Pepsi Mango and Pepsi Lime. When it comes to keeping up with the soda trends, she stated that "If it comes out and I see it I'm like, 'Alright, I'm going to sample this!'" and she has been keeping her eye on a new flavor-- Mountain Dew Watermelon.
At work, Kayla has concocted a unique spin on the chai latte that is sure to please! She likes to blend our spiced chai with oat milk, pour it over ice, add coconut syrup, then add a splash of half and half to give the beverage a creamy fullness that tastes divine! She supposedly got many of the staff at the Dovecote restaurant hooked on this sensation.
Yet Kayla isn't all mermaids, soda pop and chai chemistry - she also has a major
passion for animals. She currently is seeking to finish her degree in environmental science with a concentration on fish and wildlife and someday hopes to be in management for an outdoor zoo or work as a national park ranger. Specifically, she hopes to work hands-on in the African routine with giraffes, elephants and zebras. She is especially fascinated with the enrichment that zoos do with elephants, such as teaching them how to paint. Kayla, however, is most passionate about public wildlife education. She hopes to someday be able to educate people on proper ways to handle encounters with wild animals to protect both people and animals. One of the organizations she likes is the WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature). She informed me about the genetic research the organization is working on to clone endangered animals to help preserve their species, which would potentially combat their extinction and the effects of climate change.
Kayla is one of the many awesome Baristas that we are lucky to have on our team. Throughout her time at Foxtail she has been a positive force for those she works with and a key part in making our customers’ day a little brighter.