A Mission of Love

Kelli’s Kitchen Grows with Purpose

September 6, 2026

 

 

When Kelli Vasso started her business about 10 years ago, she wasn’t thinking about building a catering company. She was a homeschooling mom of five looking for a way to help support her family—and a creative outlet of her own.

Kelli’s husband was self-employed, and his business was struggling. “I wanted to turn this into a teaching moment for our kids, so I started asking people in our community if they needed someone to prepare meals or bake for them. That’s how my business started,” she recalls.

“I’d never realized my artistic creativity was through food,” Kelli adds. “All of our children and my husband are very artistic in many different avenues, and I had never felt creative. With food, I found my creative avenue.”

The business grew slowly, with help from Kelli’s children and husband. “It was a good hands-on learning experience for all of us,” she notes. She began catering weddings, eventually doing about 20 a year without outside employees. In 2017, Kelli officially formed an LLC.

Then, in 2022, Kelli’s husband passed away after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

“It was a reality check,” Kelli reflects. “Is this still a fun thing for me, or is this the way I’m going to feed my family and keep a roof over my head?”

She decided to give the business a go.

From Side Business to Serious Growth

Kelli had spent 20 years in corporate America as a vice president at Citizens Bank, so she had a business mindset. “But after stepping away to raise and homeschool children, I had to rebuild those skills,” she shares.

She is getting more serious about the business, networking, hiring some help, and renting a commercial kitchen from the Italian American Club. Kelli joined the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce, which connected her with resources, including the Middlesex County Revitalization Commission (MCRC) small business grant and the Women’s Business Development Center (WBDC).

With a grant from the WBDC, Kelli purchased another vehicle and hired enough staff to operate two catering teams.

“That was my first real jump of growth, because we could be in two places at a time,” she explains.

“My dream was growing,” Kelli says. She had written a business plan and knew she needed a commercial kitchen to grow. The MCRC grant helped make that possible. She used that funding to purchase equipment for a commercial kitchen—part of a roughly $100,000 project to build out a permanent space in Middletown.

To help complete the project, Kelli also received $10,000 in equipment funding and a commercial loan through seCTer Rise, which provides grants for small business growth projects in Southeastern Connecticut.

Beyond Just a Grant

The funding did more than just help Kelli buy equipment.

“It gave me confidence and tools to see the business differently and recognize that I have something that could be a value to the community. I can employ people. I can give back,” she says.

“The application process helped me have a better business mindset and focus on what I needed as a small business to run,” Kelli recalls.

Before applying for the MCRC grant, she had been managing her finances by hand, but as the business grew, she adopted electronic bookkeeping and took classes in QuickBooks, financial management, and business planning.

Kelli also found value in the relationships she built through the Chamber and other organizations.

“I tell everyone I know who’s starting a business to connect with your chamber, because it really is a resource,” she maintains.

Kelli recognizes that, without the funding, she would have remained stuck at the same level.

“We were a small business. I was at a point where I knew we could grow, but I didn’t know if I could financially sustain the growth myself,” she admits. “So, the grant opened doors for me.”

Once the commercial kitchen opens, Kelli plans to hire culinary students through work-based learning programs and continue building a team.

She also looks for ways to give back to organizations with missions that resonate with her, including groups supporting youth transitioning out of foster care.

“I don’t care what their background is,” Kelli acknowledges. “As long as they’re willing to have a new, fresh beginning.”

 

 

Building Lasting Relationships

For Kelli, catering has never been just about food.

“My mission for my business is not to feed people. My mission is to love people and let them know they’re loved,” Kelli emphasizes. “Our staff is trained to make sure they really make our clients feel special and cared for.”

Kelli’s Kitchen strives to build connections and become part of clients’ family traditions and celebrations rather than just cater a single event.

For example, wedding clients receive a first-anniversary cake, followed by a coupon for a smash cake when they have their first child.

“We’ve really built relationships with clients,” Kelli notes. “I think that’s one of our successes.”

Much of the business has grown organically through referrals, social media, and relationships developed through the Chamber. “I now have relationships with people I would not have known otherwise,” Kelli says.

Now Kelli wants to use that same approach to help others like her build their dream businesses.

The Next Opportunity

What’s next for Kelli’s Kitchen?

“I have big goals,” she says.

Kelli’s immediate goal is to build three catering crews for Saturdays and add three full-time kitchen employees and three field team leads.

Longer term, Kelli has an even bigger idea. She wants to create a system that enables others —particularly single or working parents—to start their own catering businesses at relatively low cost.

“We figured out that starting a catering company with our system costs about $35,000 to be up and running,” she explains. “And we would give them five years of background support,” she adds.

“I want others to know they can build a legitimate business,” Kelli says, reflecting on how much the grants have helped. “It’s more than money. It gives you confidence to know that you can succeed. And there is help out there.”

 

Visit and Follow Kelli’s Kitchen:

https://www.kelliskitchenct.com/

Facebook: @kelliskitchen17
Instagram: @kellis_kitchenct