From business meetings and award ceremonies to weddings and similar personal festivities, Prescott’s Goods from the Garden caters to the culinary tastes of area businesses and families.
Named Best of Business-Catering in 2019 by QCBN readers, the firm boasts 24 professionals with collectively more than 188 years of culinary experience and “amazing” serving skills, according to co-owner Debbie Maranville.
Championing “the pillars of healthy living and eating,” Maranville and her husband, Richard, began their current ventures in Prescott nine years ago as co-owners of The Natural Healing Garden Massage and Wellness Center. Between that center and VaYa Botanicals, they employ six massage therapists plus associated front desk personnel.
“We love sharing healthy food options with a large variety of health-centered choices that focus on utilizing fresh produce and delicious food,” Maranville said. “Our team is dynamic and passionate.”
A Chicago-native who inherited her grandmother’s Italian, Classic American and baking magic, Maranville affirms that food preparation is in her genes. She parlayed working for McDonald’s as a teenager into stints in operations, training, marketing and risk management. Having earned a Certificate in Human Resource Management through the University of Phoenix in 2003-2004, she also holds a degree in Hamburgerology.
Maranville’s first gig dates to age nine, when she catered a pretend neighborhood wedding, spawning a 40-year career in food service. Her expertise has been rewarded with the loyalty of area businesses.
Northern AZ Social, LLC owner Donna Werking and Realty One Group Mountain Desert real estate agent Cindi LaSalle-Shanks have long supported Maranville in her entrepreneurial dreams.
“I’ve known Deb since she first began her healing center,” Werking said. “When she extended her service line into catering, she quickly became my No. 1 choice for clients. She’s warm, friendly, hardworking and listens to clients’ needs.”
LaSalle-Shanks met Maranville through the Prescott Chamber of Commerce, where both are ambassadors.
“Deb is a kind, generous and hardworking lady,” said LaSalle-Shanks. “She always has a smile and greeting for everyone she meets. She takes great pride in providing awesome service with a warm and heartfelt smile.”
Maranville credits her husband as an inspiration for her entrepreneurship and community involvement. She supports many charities, including Prescott Area Women Who Care (PAWWC), which recently chose Goods from the Garden for its quarterly meetings.
“We are proud to partner with Goods from the Garden,” said PAWWC Founder Nicole Kennedy. “Debbie and Richard clearly are stewards of our community, and I look forward to seeing the continued growth of goodness as a result of their community participation.”
Maranville and many of her staff also serve three meals a day to men and women in recovery or treatment for behavioral challenges. “It is so rewarding to feed healthy food to people in need,” she explained. “We assist with their wellness one bite at a time.”
She acknowledges flexibility and creating her own schedule as “huge rewards” in her business. Although catering is hard on the body and requires long hours and dedication, she said it also helps her “be a Grammy” to her grandsons.
Her biggest business challenges stem from rapid growth during the past year, she noted, along with food and operational costs, obtaining quality ingredients, attracting and retaining the right staff, and setting up her own self-care routines and downtime.
Her next dream is to “offer culinary services to clients with cancer and other autoimmune diseases, and ensure that no child or person goes hungry. We will have prepared packaged foods to feed the community, along with culinary and dietary workshops.”
Maranville asserts that she has “the most rewarding job. God has been great to us. I am truly blessed. Creating culinary experiences is such an honor. I love, love, love working with our clients, staff and community.” QCBN
By Sue Marceau, QCBN
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