CONTRIBUTED PHOTO — Kris and Shannon Naughton are the third generation owners of ServiceMaster of Marshalltown, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary with an open house at 707 Maytag Rd. on Tuesday from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Kris and Shannon Naughton are proud to be the third generation of the Naughton family to own ServiceMaster of Marshalltown, and the general and specialty cleaning business will celebrate its 50th anniversary in the community with an open house at 707 Maytag Rd. on Tuesday night from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

It all started back in 1971 when Dick and MaryLou Naughton purchased the ServiceMaster Clean/Restore business with the mission “to honor God in all we do,” and their son Rich and his wife Micki entered the fray 12 years later. In 1984, Dick and MaryLou made the transition from home business to an office, and in 1990, Rich and Micki officially purchased ServiceMaster from Dick and MaryLou.

Kris, who currently runs ServiceMaster alongside Shannon, first got involved in 1991, and in 1997, Shannon, who was engaged to Kris at the time, joined the staff of around 15 part-time employees.

For Kris and Shannon, both of whom grew up in Marshalltown, taking over his family’s business wasn’t immediately on their radar — Kris had even sworn he “absolutely” wouldn’t do it at one time — but they came around eventually. Kris got into it after returning to Marshalltown from Loras College in Dubuque, and Shannon shifted the focus of her studies from psychology to business to help her as she took on the new challenge.

“I realized that it would give me the opportunity to be a hands-on mom by working for the family business, and so that’s kind of what brought me into the fold,” Shannon said.

In 2009, Kris and Shannon began to earn ownership of the business through self-described “sweat equity,” and in 2012, they officially purchased it from his parents. In 2016, they added housekeeping services along with five new employees, and in 2018, they sold off their disaster and residential carpet cleaning portion of the company to focus on cleaning. As of 2022, ServiceMaster of Marshalltown proudly boasts a staff of nine full-time and 27 part-time employees, and, as the founders envisioned, they continue to honor God while also pursuing excellence, helping people develop and growing profitably. Kris and Shannon have two daughters who work in the business as well, though they do not currently plan to take over ownership in the future.

The business’s community roots run deep, and that commitment to Marshalltown is also apparent in Kris and Shannon’s extensive list of philanthropic and charitable endeavors around town. Kris was a high school soccer coach for about 10 years and was also involved with coaching at the local soccer club. He joined the Chamber Ambassadors and Rotary groups during the transition period of the business from his parents to he and his wife.

Kris has served as President for Marshalltown Ambassadors, served on the board for the Marshalltown Rotary Club and most recently co-chaired the local United Way Campaign in 2021. He is still actively involved in Rotary and Chamber Ambassador groups and is always a sucker for any fundraiser that will get him out of the office and onto the golf course.

Not to be outdone by her husband, Shannon has been a high school volleyball coach, served on the Oktemberfest Board for over a decade and was President in 2009. She sat a term on the St. Francis school board, worked with the House of Compassion and spent countless hours assisting with the high school musical “The Little Mermaid” in 2019.

Shannon was honored with the Marshalltown Area 2020 Woman in Business award and then went on to co-chair the United Way Campaign with Kris in 2021. Shannon was also mentioned in 2022 Marquis Who’s Who for all that she has done for her community while working in and helping to run the family business.

For the past eight years, she has also been a part of the Assistance League of Marshalltown. She has worn several hats with this group. She was one of the driving forces behind the “M” project, served as their treasurer in 2018 and is currently the chair of charity ball decorations that will be showcased on Dec. 3.

Although volunteering and participating in so many events and community organizations can be difficult for families that are already plenty busy, the Naughtons have always found a way to make it work.

“There’s been moments throughout the years where we’ve had to take a deep breath. In the past, we’ve tried not to say no, and now we’re at the point where we need to learn how to say no because we don’t say no that often,” Shannon said. “(We’re) ‘Let’s get it done. If that’s what needs done, let’s figure out a way to do it’ people.”

During the past few years alone, Kris and Shannon have continued to work hard for the community, donating time and labor to help with the tornado and derecho cleanups at many of the city-run locations. They also donated over $10,000 in sanitizing services to the Marshalltown Police Department to assist in keeping them safe and healthy, and to top it all off, they also became “kitty fosters” for the local Animal Rescue League.

The Naughtons ask those who attend the open house that if they have any cleaning products or gently used supplies that could be shared, bring them to be donated to the House of Compassion. Anyone who donates a cleaning product will be entered in an award drawing.

While it’s hard to look forward too far with all of the changes and challenges currently on the horizon, the Naughtons hope to keep doing things their way with a hyperlocal focus on the Marshalltown area.

“The industry has changed significantly. (Our goals are) streamlining processes, maintaining good employees and just keep plugging away,” Kris said.

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.