Carl Kris Angelo

Carl Kris Angelo, 88, of Battle Creek died peacefully at home with his family at his side on Wednesday, July 1, 2020.

The former sign near the corner of Hopkins and Capital Avenue Northeast — barely an outfielder's throw to nearby CO. Brown Stadium — for many generations in Battle Creek, both the restaurant and the sport of amateur baseball — will always be associated with Carl Angelo.
Like the man himself, Carl's story is an original. He was born in 1932 in Battle Creek, the son of Naum Traijevski and Mary Ristefski. His parents grew up in neighboring towns in Macedonia and immigrated to the United States. His mom came over with her family in 1916, and according to Carl, "My Dad came across the border illegally from Canada in 1922." Carl would joke that his Dad changed his name as often as a pair of shoes. "Dad seemed to have a different name every time I turned around. He went by Naum Kris, then changed it to Naum Angelo, but in Macedonia, his name was Traijevski."

Soon, Naum made his way to Battle Creek and at age 15 was working fulltime for Grand Trunk Railroad "for 17 cents an hour, and sending every cent he could back home." He supplemented his income with music, playing clarinet as the leader of the Kris Angelo Orchestra, that played eight nationalities of music.
After Carl's parents married, they lived in what was known as "Hunkietown," an area of Battle Creek near Union Street. "Hunkie" was a slang expression, describing southeastern Europeans. Shortly after Carl's birth, the family moved to the east end near Post Cereals and the Kellogg Company.

In 1949, his parents opened Angelo's Restaurant at 1401 Capital Ave. N.E. "My mom cooked all the food — and everything was made from' scratch. I started working there after school when I was 17 years old." Not only did Carl work at the family restaurant after school, he played trumpet in his father's band (and they both played in The Blu Tones for many years), and was an athletic standout in multiple sports.

The family always spoke Macedonian at home. "My Dad taught me many things," Carl remembered in 2004. "A strong work ethic, respect for others, and to always take care of your family."

Angelo graduated from Battle Creek Central High in 1950, where he met homecoming queen and his future wife, Betty Elwood. Betty & Carl were married in 1954, and soon had their first child, Michael.

While Angelo spent two years pitching for Michigan State University, he also played basketball on scholarship at Lawrence Tech., and later with the Battle Creek Warriors and Battle Creek Braves. His rec teams competed in tournaments across the U.S. for the YMCA and the National Hellenic Invitational Basketball Tournament held in Chicago.

Carl was working at Fort Custer when he was drafted into the Army in 1955. Both his musical and his baseball talents were soon recognized in the Army, where he played in the 10th Infantry Division Band and pitched for the 5th Army Champions at Fort Riley, Kansas.

After his honorable discharge from the Army, Carl had planned to resume a professional baseball career. However, with urging from his father, he instead chose to take over the family business, remodeling the interior and renaming it Carl Angelo's Fine Foods in 1958. He would own and operate the restaurant until 2001.
During all those years, Carl continued to play baseball for the love of the game. His amateur baseball career spanned 53 years. His career record is 353 wins and 69 losses — an amazing .831 win percentage.

Angelo pitched his last game at age 70. He's been inducted into several halls of fame, the first of which was the Michigan Amateur Sports Hall of Fame in 1984. A decade later, he was inducted into the prestigious Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in Detroit. He has a special award named in his honor by the Dutch Baseball Federation, from his years of international play (and hijinks) with the renowned Sullivan's baseball team of Grand Rapids.
Carl's reach around the world allowed him to also be included in the Dutch Baseball Hall of Fame, which occurred in 2002 during ceremonies held in conjunction with the 21st Honkbal International Tournament in Haarlem, Holland, the Netherlands. During those ceremonies, his name was associated with the Honkbal tourney's Most Popular Player Award, which was created in Angelo's honor. His hijinks on and off the field are legendary and earned him the nick name, "De Clown."

Angelo is also a member of the Battle Creek Central Hall of Fame, where he helped the Bearcats to a league title his senior year in baseball and was a part of the BCC state semifinalist basketball team. He later went on to play baseball at Lawrence Tech and at Michigan State. He had a short stint in the Chicago White Sox minor league organization before joining the service in 1955.

Carl and Betty have been married for 66 years and raised seven children. Surviving are his wife, Betty; Michael (Maryann) Angelo of Battle Creek; Carla (Gary Arbogast) Angelo of Tellico Village, TN; Kristi Angelo; Kelli (Bob) Angelo-Palmer; Kazzi (Bob) Angelo-Tupper, Katie (Ron) Angelo-McFadden; and Mathew (Amanda) Angelo, all of Battle Creek. He also has 15 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren (with #16 due in the fall. Carl was preceded in death by his parents; a grandson, Nicholas Joseph Grumeretz; and a great-grandson, Justin S. Wilson; as well as his son-in-law, Douglas Graham.

As active as Angelo was in business and athletics, he never forgot his roots and the sacrifices his parents made for him while growing up in Battle Creek. He was a frequent volunteer for the March of Dimes and the Michigan Special Olympics (winter and summer games) for many years. In 2002, he received the George Award for his contributions and volunteer work in our community. He and his family established an annual scholarship fund for baseball players at Kellogg Community College to honor his mother and father. And Carl, with a group of volunteers, helped establish the Battle Creek Central High School Hall of Fame, which honors new inductees every spring.

Angelo also wrote a column for Scene Magazine "Touching Bases" for several years. He loved to watch movies, play music, read biographies, was a competitive bowler, enjoyed golfing, was always ready to sponsor a sporting team, and helped the underprivileged any time he could. Carl also loved animals and adored his dogs, Boris and Jojo.

A service for Carl will be held outside the chapel mausoleum at Memorial Park Cemetery at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 7, 2020. The service will be live streamed and may be viewed at https://vimeo.com/436150730. A gathering to celebrate Carl's life will be held at a later date after the COVID pandemic. If you attend the service we ask you practice social distancing and wear a mask, if possible. Arrangements by Farley Estes Dowdle Funeral Home & Cremation Care.

Memorial contributions may be made to Carl Angelo Annual KCC Baseball Scholarship Fund through the KCC Foundation, 450 North Avenue, Battle Creek, MI 49017 or to Miles for Memories, 32 W. Michigan Avenue, Suite 1, Battle Creek, MI 49017.