Gus G. Katrouzos

Gus G. Katrouzos, 98

GRAND ISLAND - Gus G. Katrouzos, 98, longtime owner of Coney Island Lunch Room in Grand Island, NE, died Saturday, September 9, 2023, at Faith Regional Health Service in Norfolk, NE.

Funeral service will be Thursday, September 14, 2023, at 11 a.m. at Curran Funeral Chapel. The Rev. Christopher Morris will officiate. Interment will be in the Grand Island City Cemetery. Visitation will be Wednesday, September 13, 2023, from 4 – 7 p.m. at Curran Funeral Chapel. In lieu of flowers memorials are suggested to the Hall County Historical Society. You are encouraged to sign Gus' guestbook at www.curranfuneralchapel.com under his obituary. Curran Funeral Chapel is assisting the family.

Gus was born October 16, 1924 in East Chicago, Indiana. His parents, George and Catherine (Ethans) Katrouzos. Upon the death of Gus' mother in 1930, gus and his siblings were sent to an orphanage in Milwaukee, Wisconsin while his father searched for steady work. In 1933, Gus' father purchased what became the Coney Island Lunch Room.

As adolescents, Gus and his brother Sam were both actively involved athletes who played basketball, baseball, and fast pitch softball on teams representing Coney Island. As a young man, he chose to become a part of the family business in spite of a promising career in professional sports. As a member of the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Grand Island, the family shared many connections with other Greek residents in the Grand Island, Kearney, and Hastings area. Gus continued his close association with the Greek community as a lifelong member of the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA).

Gus attended the Grand Island Business College after graduating from Grand Island Senior High. From 1948 to 1953 he served in the 320th Ordnance Battalion of the Army Reserve.

Upon the death of his father, Gus and his brother Sam created a partnership to maintain the family business. After Sam's death in an automobile accident in 1955, Gus went on to become a prominent figure in the Grand Island business community. Throughout the years, he contributed to the efforts of community organizations like the Salvation Army, the Platte-Duetsche Society, and Grand Island Historical Society. Through the lunch room, he generously supported many an individual in need.

Honesty and trustworthiness were lessons Gus learned from his father and carried with him all of his life. "Dad had his ways. He always said pay your bills, pay your taxes and do business with a handshake," according to Gus. "We welcomed everybody. One time a regular customer complained that he'd never come back because Dad served a black man," he remembered. "He'll be back," said Dad…and he was. "We knew our customers well enough that we didn't write down orders. We knew by heart what our regulars wanted." Throughout the war years and beyond the Coney Island was the gathering place of generations. And it was more than the food.

On June 11, 1961, Gus was married to Christina Mitchell in the Orthodox church in Kansas City, Missouri. They had two children, Katherine Katrouzos of Providence, Rhode Island and George, who has continued the legacy of the Coney Island. However, as recently as 2015, Gus could be seen serving customers chocolate malts at the Coney.

For many years, Gus carried a keen interest in horse racing as well as the stock market. Almost legendary for his winning abilities in horse racing he confided that his secret didn't extend far beyond betting special numbers like his age or the age of friends and family. "I don't do a lot of sophisticated handicapping, it's just that when you hang around long enough to get a feel for these horses and what each one of them can do." For a time in the 1990s, Gus went so far as to own a couple of horses for himself. He continued trading stocks with his most recent winner was buying Nvidia just before its recent run.

1n 2020, Gus collaborated with Larry Molczyk, Jean Lukesh, and James Dean, to write a book called "What A Life" The Coney Island Story.

Gus was a past member of the Saddle Club, Fraternal Order of Eagles, Platte-Duetsche, and American Legion. Gus and Christina were past Grand Marshal of the annual Harvest of Harmony Parade.

Besides his parents, Gus is preceded in death by wife, Christina, sister, Pauline, brother, Sam, and infant sister Julia, Inlawn Sam and Pearl Mitchell, Nick Mitchell, George and Nia Mitchell, Pete and Liberty Mitchell, Niece Pamela Koumoutseas and nephew Bill Mitchell