Dreams were coming true for Christopher Caris

Fremont native was about to reach his goals of fishing and family when he was killed

Christopher R. Caris

(January 25, 1974 - October 26, 2007)

By R.C.Wheater Sr.

Jeannie Caris wants people to know more about her son Christopher, she wants them to know more about him than the way he died.

“Christopher was always giving,” his mother said while displaying some of his things at the home where he grew-up in Fremont. “He had some sad moments in his life, and he certainly had some dark times, but he never looked back. He always looked forward.”

Christopher Caris, the 33-year-old son of Ted and Jeannie Caris, died a month ago, on a Friday night, Oct. 26, in Nashville. He and an 18-year-old worker were killed in the pizza restaurant Caris managed. A 21-year-old former employee and an 18-year-old woman have been arrested in connection with the robbery and murder.

An avid bass fishing tournament competitor, he was on the verge of realizing his dream of a professional fishing career and his desire to start his own family.

He did not know it, but he was scheduled to receive a $40,000 sponsorship deal on Oct. 29. According to Jeannie Caris, a friend had set-up a lunch meeting for that Monday, where a fishing tackle manufacturer was planning to surprise Caris with the offer of a two-year professional sponsorship contract and money to get his professional career started.

“The pro scouts had been watching him for two years,” his mother said. “He didn’t know this.”

Jeannie Caris said that she wants people to know that her son pursued his dreams with determination, despite some setbacks along the way.

She said that her son started fishing as a young boy, spending hours on the lakes in the area, often fishing with his older brother Todd. She displayed a notebook full of the photographs of Christopher’s catches.

“He watched every fishing show that was on TV,” she added. “You could say he was addicted to fishing.”

Jeannie Caris described her son as an average student and an average athlete who played basketball and soccer at Fremont High School. After graduating from FHS in 1992, he went on to Ferris State University, then transferred to Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Kentucky. He earned a bachelor’s degree in therapeutic recreation. While doing clinical work at WKU, he worked with a former professional angler and began a serious pursuit of bass fishing.

He started working for the Mancino’s restaurant company in Kentucky, advancing into the ranks of management. He presided over the opening of two Bellacino’s restaurants affiliated with the Mancino’s chain.

He left the company for an opportunity that appeared to be better suited for his fishing ambitions, but a financial reversal led to the loss of his boat and his truck. His fishing buddy died and he even lost his home, which was struck by lightning.

A year ago, he returned to the Mancino’s company and again had risen into the management ranks.

In May, he met Marianne Purcell. They had picked out a ring and planned to purchase it the night he was killed. They planned to be married before Christmas.

“He found his soul-mate,” Jeannie Caris said, adding that he had talked much about his desire to be a good husband and father. She said that her son was also a writer, an introspective person who shared his new poem with his mother the day he died.

His co-workers and the Nashville community, along with people in the Fremont area, have impressed his family with their respect for Christopher’s memory and care for his family and his fiancee. Along with attending a memorial service in Nashville, Bellacino’s staff members travelled to Fremont for a memorial service held here. Mancino’s staff members, directed by franchise president Chris Thompson, provided food and beverages for the Fremont memorial service.

Jeannie Caris noted that the leftover food from the memorial service was donated to the NCCS Emergency Food Pantry. She said that it was something that her son would appreciate.

“He had a love of helping people,” she added.

The Caris family has started the Christopher R. Caris Memorial Fund at the Fremont Area Community Foundation. The foundation has agreed to match donations of up to $500 per household for the fund. Jeannie Caris said that the fund will be used to help people, especially “average” people who need assistance to realize their dreams.

“He would want to help people,” she said of her son. “That’s the way he lived his life.”