Our Ave Businesses

The Secret Ingredient

Danee’ Williams has worked in marketing and retail for over 20 years. She has extensive knowledge in the fashion industry, much of it working in small boutiques in Georgia and Florida. You could almost say Danee' was born into the business, as her mother, Lorna, raised her around the profession as a district manager with multiple large Women's Fashion focused clothing companies.
Upon moving to Ave Maria in 2015 with her husband, Matt, and children, Cole, Peyton, and Reese, Danee' had the pleasure of meeting Jeanne Weber Rush, the founder of the Secret Ingredient in the La Piazza. Jeanne and Danee’ became fast friends and Danee' soon found herself as the Manager for the Secret Ingredient here in Ave Maria.
While Danee' loved working for Jeanne at the Secret Ingredient, as well as the relationships she developed with the residents of Ave Maria, she had a calling of entrepreneurship. In 2017, along with husband Matt, and with the assistance of Matt's parents, Mark and Deeda DeLillo, the family opened Oil Well Craft Beer, a small taproom, and current brewery, in the Ave Maria Park of Commerce in 2017.
In 2020 Jeanne expressed interest in retiring and turning the Secret Ingredient over to someone special, that she knew had the passion and drive to maintain the Secret Ingredient as a staple in the Ave Maria community. Jeanne asked Danee' if she would be interested in purchasing the business and, as you know, the rest is history.
As the current owner of The Secret Ingredient of Ave Maria, Danee' maintains the high level of customer service and fashion know-how her patrons have been accustomed to over the years. She works tirelessly to keep pace with the ever changing fashion industry to bring the best clothing and accessories to the wonderful people of Ave Maria, and surrounding communities, at a fair price.
She is forever grateful to Jeanne for the opportunity, and to her amazing customers for their ongoing support.

Stella Rose way

After spending over two decades in the Corporate World I wanted to be with my children more as the time goes so fast. I also wanted to create a meaningful work life balance that would work best for our family. My Grandfather started a small lawn and garden business that my Father eventually bought so I grew up in a small retail business.

When I moved to Ave Maria the opportunity to open a gift boutique opened up to me to pursue one of my favorite pastimes: shopping also known by many as retail therapy. My favorite part of opening the store is discovering all the new products and the people and stories behind them. I have also really enjoyed the beautiful people that have come to work, shop, and visit the store. It brings me great joy when I see someone find a meaningful gift whether it be for a friend, themselves, or their home.

We would love to see you soon!

The Palm Preschool

At Palm Preschool, we strive to create a working environment centered on excellence and camaraderie, and we believe that each teacher’s performance has a profound effect on our success and that of our students. All our staff are fingerprinted and CPR certified. It is a requirement that all our teachers have their DCF 45 hours and have previous experience in a preschool setting. Our staff’s mission is to maintain a warm, nurturing environment, while executing their training in the development of young children.