Woman Who Received Second Chance Opens Restaurant To Honor Daughter

Maria Morris is dedicating her new catering business to her daughter who died in a house fire.

Morris is honoring her baby, Carabelle, after her death in January 2018.

“I am still grieving, but I found a healthy outlet to kind of channel that grief,” Morris said.

Morris said her business is named after her daughter called “Carabelle’s Eats and Treats.”

“When I cook or bake something, I get that feedback from people and people are loving it and I know that doing something with myself,” Morris said. “It’s a good legacy for my daughter’s life.”

Nine months after Carabelle was killed, police issued a warrant for Morris’ arrest in connection to her death.

Morris has since filed a wrongful death suit that she hopes will remove the blame for her daughter’s death.

During Morris’ time in jail, she learned that she really enjoyed cooking.

“I have been knowing I could cook,” Morris said. “It’s just, after I got out of jail, I started to really push on that.”

While Morris enjoys cooking, she said she uses her business to employ women that have also been involved in the justice system.

Morris said the support from the community helped her business during the COVID-19 pandemic. Morris believes is a perfect time to remind folks that even when times seem bad, good things can still happen.

“I might have happened to me, but there is another Maria out there that is in a dark place and needs hope and needs a light,” Morris said.

The anniversary for her daughter’s death is Jan. 10, which will also be the day Morris plans to open her own nonprofit called “Carabelle’s Legacy” which focuses on teaching fire safety.

For more about her catering business, click here.