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Alumni Spotlight: Chef Paige Damore ’18

Paige Damore’s Own Little “Disneyland”

Author Annie B. Milostan ’25 is a Baking and Pastry Arts major.

Paige Damore ’18, originally from Michigan, got introduced to the Culinary Institute of America through ProStart® and SkillsUSA competitions while in high school. Throughout her time at CIA, she was very involved in Res Life as a resident assistant coordinating activities for students in residence halls as well as multiple other clubs and activities. She called her time here her own little Disneyland, and said it was the best experience of her life.

Paige jumped into her bachelor’s degree at CIA just days after graduating with her associate degree. During her time in the bachelor’s degree program, she went with the school on two trips to China and Italy and said it was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity. After graduating with her bachelor’s degree, she said that it took her a little bit of time to find what she wanted to do and where she belonged in this industry. She worked for Marriott, Misericordia’s Hearts & Flour Bakery Cafe, Truluck’s Restaurant, and Morley before COVID-19 hit and changed all our lives.

During the pandemic she realized just how much she missed being in the kitchen, so she started preparing meals for family and friends and that was the start of her company Buon CIBO LLC. As a personal chef, she preps meals for families, and is even getting into catering events and weddings which she is overjoyed to start. As a current student it was truly inspiring to hear about Paige’s journey after CIA. Even though she initially didn’t know what she wanted to do, less than 10 years after graduating from CIA, she now owns and operates a successful business.