Life is Sweet
/Through baking, Devon Beaird shows his devotion to his family and community
by Ellen Orr
“My sense of humor — I guess you would call it ironic,” said local tire builder, personal trainer, professional baker, and father of three Devon Beaird. “I like to go against the grain.”
Juxtaposition has been a major feature of Devon’s life since he was a teenager. At 17, he became a dad to his eldest, Madison, and a year later, daughter Peyton was born. Devon was soon a single parent, attending college classes and working overtime. Though he describes his own teen-dad experience as “charmed,” referring to the incredible support he received from his parents and sister, those years were undoubtedly challenging. “[Devon’s mother] tells all sorts of stories about that time,” said Devon’s wife, Brittany. “He was working nights and doing everything he could to stay awake to spend time with [his daughters]. My mother-in-law tells a story about this time when he was literally sitting upright, and Madi was sitting on his head, but he’s out cold.”
The entire Beaird family — Madi Beaird, Peyton Beaird, Carter Adcock, and Brittany Beaird,and Devon Beaird — creates an annual peep cake every Easter.
Devon eventually stopped taking classes and transitioned to working at Cooper Tire, where he has now worked for 11 years. This job allows him to pursue education outside of a classroom: while building tires, he listens to podcasts and audiobooks, learning about anything that piques his interest. The unconventional work schedule is also a huge asset to the Beaird family. “I have the girls on my days off from Cooper,” Devon explained. Though he has 50/50 custody with the girls’ mother, according to wife Brittany, he has always been a full-time dad.
Devon has coached his bonus son, Carter Adcock, in football and baseball over the past three years.
Brittany, currently an instructional coach at Pleasant Grove, met Devon as Madison’s first-grade teacher at Nash Elementary. “He was at everything,” she recalled. “He brought them lunch, he took them to the book fair, he was at every party. He’d be in Cooper-Tire gear—dirty—but he was there. I always thought, ‘Man, that’s a devoted dad.’”
Madi, Devon and Peyton enjoyed singing and swinging in the hammock when the girls were young.
At home, too, Devon strived to be the dad his daughters deserved. “[When the girls were younger] he would let them paint his fingernails and dress up with them,” Brittany said. “He’s that dad you see in commercials, playing tea-party, and he’s in a full-out dress.”
Five days a week, Devon teaches a 5 a.m. HIIT and Core class and also trains clients on his days off of work from Cooper Tire. With him is his wife, Brittany, when he hosted a costumed workout class.
When Madison turned 5, Devon wanted her to have a beautiful, custom-baked birthday cake, but such a luxury was not in the budget. No stranger to self-education, he got online and taught himself how to bake and decorate cakes.
Although he had to drive straight to Dallas after coaching a football game, Devon was excited to watch oldest daughter, Madi, perform in a marching contest and finish in the top five.
When asked about his motivation for baking, Devon briefly cites his lifelong artistic leanings before explaining the heart of everything. “My parents also got pregnant when they were young, and they talked about the struggles of not being able to give us certain things that they wanted to give us,” Devon recalled. “And that’s not something I wanted [my children] to experience. I didn’t want them to have to pay for my decisions.
“When I had my children I promised to always be there for them, and I always will.”
“When I had my children,” he continued, “I promised to always be there for them, and I always will.” When Devon and Brittany blended their families in 2019, this promise extended to Brittany’s son, Carter (with whom Devon has “this crazy bond,” Brittany noted).
Devon has coached sports for every one of his children. On this particular day, Devon coached soccer and participated in the Dragon Boat Race, and both Peyton and Devon placed in their respective activities.
Devon’s elaborate, professional-quality cakes have been a family-birthday tradition for 10 years now. It wasn’t until February 2022, however, that Devon launched his home bakery, Delicious Bites TXK. In his one year of business, he has filled over 100 orders. He has cakes booked months out; he has even committed to an order for 2024. He learns as he goes, from watching YouTube videos and baking television shows.
Detailed and creative, Devon’s catfish cake for a 50th birthday party was a wild success.
Though Brittany had been encouraging Devon for years to sell his cakes (“They’re beautiful, and they’re delicious!” she stressed), he resisted. “It was intimidating,” he admitted. “What I love most about doing cakes is that I get to be a part of something special. The cake is meaningful. It’s something they’ll always look back on, always remember, and I didn’t want to mess that up.” Eventually, however, he caved and took on his first client. “I’m kind of a sucker for difficult things,” he laughed. His cakes were an instant hit.
In his baking, as well as in his effusiveness toward his children and wife, Devon bucks stereotypes of masculinity. His work at Cooper allows him to maximize his time with his daughters, learn about subjects he cares about, and support his family. His work as a GymBox trainer satisfies his need for work that “helps people,” he said. And through baking, he provides his own family and other area families with edible artwork—custom, elaborate cakes that celebrate the special people for whom they’re baked.
Like cakes, families are unique. They require hard work, quality time, passion, craft, and creativity. They are messy and colorful. They work best when the whole is sweeter than the sum of the ingredients. Devon, Brittany, Madison (15), Peyton (14), and Carter (12) exemplify the modern blended family.