Amerigo Marcelletti Jr. of Lawton Died on Friday, June 28, 2024, following complications from surgery.
Born July 1, 1957, Amerigo graduated from Lawrence High School in 1975, and briefly worked in real estate before pursuing a career in law enforcement. After graduating from the Kalamazoo Valley Community College Law Enforcement Academy, he worked part-time at both the Village of Paw Paw and Village of Lawrence police departments and served as chief of police for Lawrence. In 1985, he joined the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety (KDPS) and spent his next 25 years serving the Kalamazoo community as a patrol sergeant, bomb squad commander, and cold case detective, and as a member of the Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team (KVET), and the Southwest Enforcement Team (SWET).
While working as an investigator with KVET, Amerigo met Theresa Szakas, an attorney with the Kalamazoo City Attorney’s Office, and they were married on July 17, 1998. Their son Nicholas was born in 2003. Amerigo coached his young son’s baseball teams, and later cheered him on as a high school and college athlete. The two spent countless hours together hunting and fishing.
Following his retirement from the KDPS, Amerigo returned to his farming roots at Marcelletti Farms. In addition to sales to individuals and families, his fresh fruits and vegetables were also served at local restaurants and daycare centers. He regularly donated his surplus crops to non-profit organizations and provided pumpkins and gourds to area teachers for student projects.
Amerigo is survived by his wife, Theresa; his son, Nicholas; his sister, Clementina of Nevada, and several cousins, nieces and nephews.
A visitation will be held on Friday, July 19, from 4 – 7 pm at Betzler Life Story Funeral Homes, 6080 Stadium Drive, Kalamazoo. A service will be held Saturday, July 20 at noon, at the same location with a reception to follow. Celebrate Amerigo’s life online by sharing your favorite stories and photos on his dedicated webpage at BetzlerLifeStory.com.
