April 27, 2017
After making deliveries today in Kalamazoo, I decided to try out the new BBQ restaurant in town. Kelvin & Co is located at 232 E. Michigan Avenue....269-806-4864. I was able to meet the owner, Mark Nieuwenhuis....Kelvin is his middle name. He and his family have returned to the area after living in Indiana. Prior to that he had this business in Chicago in the Loop. I introduced myself and told him I owned A Single Ray of Hope....A Personal Assistant & Concierge Service here in southwest Michigan. He said he had worked with several concierge services while in Chicago doing catering for special events, meetings, etc. Awesome!!!!
My lunch choice of BBQ Brisket with Kansas City sauce was incredible! Chose the Mac'n'Cheese and Cole Slaw as the sides. I think next time, I'll opt for the platter as I didn't eat much of the bun. The meat was so tender and spiced to perfection. I will definately be back! Great food. Awesome to see such a young entreprenuer bringing BBQ specialty to Kalamazoo. Let's support him and his familly! Open houses for your graduates are coming up.....order your catering from Kelvin & Co. Tell them you read about Kelvin & Co. from A Single Ray of Hope. : ) And contact me if you need some help at the Open House so you can spend your time with your guests!
Now, I'm off to a business meeting and I might smell a bit like BBQ. Oh well....it will be a great conversation starter, right?
April 02, 2017April 2, 2017
Yesterday while I was out and about running my own errands, I received a call saying that a delivery was made to my back porch. I wasn't expecting any deliveries though. When I returned home, I found a gorgeous flower delivery from my client's loved one overseas. I had just recently moved my client into a retirement community this past Tuesday. What a nice surprise for him to take the time to thank me. I do get close to my clients, I understand their specific needs, and I worked especially hard to make sure everything went smoothly for this move. I love what I do and it touches my heart to receive such a lovely thank you gift.
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Mary Beth Esquibel
A Single Ray of Hope....Personal Assistant & Concierge Service
www.asinglerayofhope.com
After making deliveries today in Kalamazoo, I decided to try out the new BBQ restaurant in town. Kelvin & Co is located at 232 E. Michigan Avenue....269-806-4864. I was able to meet the owner, Mark Nieuwenhuis....Kelvin is his middle name. He and his family have returned to the area after living in Indiana. Prior to that he had this business in Chicago in the Loop. I introduced myself and told him I owned A Single Ray of Hope....A Personal Assistant & Concierge Service here in southwest Michigan. He said he had worked with several concierge services while in Chicago doing catering for special events, meetings, etc. Awesome!!!!
My lunch choice of BBQ Brisket with Kansas City sauce was incredible! Chose the Mac'n'Cheese and Cole Slaw as the sides. I think next time, I'll opt for the platter as I didn't eat much of the bun. The meat was so tender and spiced to perfection. I will definately be back! Great food. Awesome to see such a young entreprenuer bringing BBQ specialty to Kalamazoo. Let's support him and his familly! Open houses for your graduates are coming up.....order your catering from Kelvin & Co. Tell them you read about Kelvin & Co. from A Single Ray of Hope. : ) And contact me if you need some help at the Open House so you can spend your time with your guests!
Now, I'm off to a business meeting and I might smell a bit like BBQ. Oh well....it will be a great conversation starter, right?
April 2, 2017
Yesterday while I was out and about running my own errands, I received a call saying that a delivery was made to my back porch. I wasn't expecting any deliveries though. When I returned home, I found a gorgeous flower delivery from my client's loved one overseas. I had just recently moved my client into a retirement community this past Tuesday. What a nice surprise for him to take the time to thank me. I do get close to my clients, I understand their specific needs, and I worked especially hard to make sure everything went smoothly for this move. I love what I do and it touches my heart to receive such a lovely thank you gift.
Mary Beth Esquibel
A Single Ray of Hope....Personal Assistant & Concierge Service
www.asinglerayofhope.com
A Single Ray of Hope celebrates 16 years of being in business in July 2022! How is this even possible? It is an amazing milestone for me and I am extremely proud and a veteran and woman-owned business.
Where did the idea come from to open a Concierge Service in Portage, Michigan? Well, myself and two dear friends would gather over frozen strawberry dacquiri's and making jewelry while brainstorming businesses to go into. My friends chose other routes and were equally as successful in their career paths, while I pursued opening A Single Ray of Hope's Personal Assistant & Concierge Service.
Still today, I love being of service to people. I am blessed to meet and work for a wide variety of clients. Individuals of all walks of life....some working professionals both with and without families, retired seniors and their adult children, various businesses and more. I love getting to know people and hearing about their fascinating lives. My reward is knowing that my service is giving them the ability to focus on what is most important to them. It's about the value of time and how they choose to spend it while handing of their TO DO List to a trusted business.
I started my business as a way of giving back to others. My youngest son has special needs and many family and friends helped guide us over the years, providing respite, words of encouragement, providing helpful information of where to go for services and assistance. The term...it takes a village is true. Others helped us and I wanted to help others in return.
Another reason for my business is I saw my mother who raised thirteen children end up struggling later in life with Alzheimers. I'd visit her in her nursing home and think...is this really how life should be for a women who worked so hard to put her children through catholic school by donating her artistic time & talents, staying up late at night just to have a little peace & quiet, stretching a dollar beyond belief, and raising a good family? Mom's put themselves last, we do it willingly but in the end, we are doing a dis-service to ourselves and our families. I thought life shouldn't have to be this hard. How about a providing a service so that people could enjoy life more instead of running in a hundred directions?
Many times, I don't see a lot of my clients....I'm in and out of their home during the day while they are at work. Shopping is done, errands done, dry cleaning is hanging in their closet, meals prepped or cooked, prescriptions picked up, library books returned, service people have been to the home such as plumbers, etc. My business gives my clients some breathing room and that is how life should be lived.
You get the picture. It's about work life balance and peace of mind....for both myself and my clients. Life is short....take time to smell the flowers.