“They say God never gives you more than you can handle, but it’s been getting close lately,” said Thysen Scott with a laugh, referring to the amount of catering jobs that he and his wife, Debi, have been booking for their business, God Bless Food Catering.

Faith is important to the Scotts, self-described committed Christians who donate 10 percent of their earnings to their parish, the Oak Bay Baptist Church in Port Hadlock. Just as important to them is carrying on a family tradition, and treating their customers as though they are members of their extended family.

Thysen is well steeped in the food service industry, with a father who has owned seven restaurants on the east side of Seattle, an aunt who owns three catering companies in the same city, and family roots in the Taco Time chain. Yet, in spite of spending two years working as a manager for his dad, Thysen’s primary business is carpet installation.

“I did the floors at the Port Townsend paper mill, but I would always bring Rita Hubbard some soup or a sandwich,” Thysen said.

“She liked his food so much that, four years ago, she decided to upgrade her catering by hiring him instead, for their Christmas party,” Debi Scott said.

With six weeks to prepare and no actual catering company at that time, Thysen and Debi nonetheless managed to serve more than 200 partygoers, paving the way for their return to the paper mill every Christmas since then.

“Our first year, we had just a handful of gigs, but word of mouth spread fast,” Debi said. “Our second year, we catered 40 events, which went up to 70 in our third year. This year, we’ve already catered more than 100 events, and it’s not even over yet.”

In addition to serving meals at the Port Townsend Elks Lodge every Tuesday, God Bless Food is also a fixture at annual community events ranging from Hadlock Building Supply’s customer appreciation day to the upcoming Port Ludlow outdoor movie night Aug. 27.

“We’ve catered fundraisers for the North Olympic Salmon Coalition and Chimacum High School,” Thysen said. “We go to people’s homes and teach clinics on how to make pizza dough or lasagna. I’ve done events at cost, and then given away auction prizes like free dinners to boot.”

“We don’t have as much time as we’d like to volunteer for organizations,” Debi said, “so this is our way of giving back.”

Regardless of where they show up, the Scotts have developed a fan following, to the point that Thysen can’t even shop at the QFC in Port Hadlock without folks checking out what he has in his shopping cart.

“I just use the best fresh ingredients, preferably by local companies,” Thysen said. “I slow-cook the meat, and I cut the salad 20 minutes before I serve it. A lot of my stuff is from scratch. It’s a matter of timing and attention to detail, so you know how long to cook each item, and when it should come out.”

“He just has a natural talent for flavoring, seasoning and layering that you can’t train,” Debi said. “He can throw together amazing dishes, like baked potatoes infused with butter, garlic and cheese; smoked salmon that’s like candy; and chowder that’s white gold.”

Thysen was humbled when a readers’ poll conducted by The Leader named him the best chef in the area, especially since his catering company’s motto is “He makes it, I put it together,” with “He” referring to God.

Thysen eventually hopes to operate out of a food truck, but in the meantime, he and Debi are inviting people to taste their chowder at the Port Ludlow outdoor movie night for the second year in a row.

“We start serving at 6 p.m., and the movie starts at dusk,” Thysen said. “I make my chowder on site with only 10 or 11 ingredients, in a huge cauldron that I stir with an oar,” he said, laughing. “We want to feed the world, but we’ll start with Jefferson County.”