Carl R. Duser

Carl R. Duser

Carl R. Duser, 90, of Bethlehem, passed away on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023, surrounded by his loving family at Guthrie Robert Packer Hospital. He was the loving husband of the late Bernadine A. (Timko) Duser.

Born in Weatherly, he was the son of the late Willard and Iola (Rothrock) Duser.

Carl was a graduate of Weatherly High School. He honorably served his country in the United States Army during the Korean War.

Carl was employed by the Bethlehem Steel as a sales executive for over 27 years until retiring.

He was an accomplished professional baseball player including pitching for the Kansas City Athletics from 1956-1958, when his career was cut short by an unfortunate automobile accident. He was a Caribbean World Series champion and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Pennsylvania. He struck out murder's row which is the top three Yankees where he struck out all three in a row including Mickey Mantle.

Carl had a passion for baseball and coached at City Line Little League as well as officiated Division 1 basketball including the Big 5.

He was a faithful member of Light of Christ Lutheran Church, Bethlehem, and a lifetime member of the Heights A.A. where he served as the bar steward for over 20 years. Above all, Carl loved his family and his many dogs throughout his life. Carl spent the last few years of his life living on Armenia Mountain where he enjoyed watching the animals and enjoying nature.

Survivors: He will be lovingly remembered by his daughters, Cindi Rice, and her husband Fred Jr., of Bethlehem, and Colleen Klein, and her husband Lee, of Armenia Mountain, Bradford County; son, Kyle Duser of Allentown; grandchildren, Kirra Rodriguez, and her husband Johnny, Fred "Boomer" Rice, Matthew J. Rice, Kolin C. Rice, Jenna Duser, Kaylyn Duser, Naydia Klein and Aiden Klein and great-grandchildren, Finn River Rice and Krue Mason Rice.

He was preceded in death by his siblings Iola "Snookers" O'Donnell, Evelyn "Pinky" Boyle and Ronald "Sonny" C. Duser.

Services: A memorial service will be held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, at the Cantelmi Long Funeral Home, 500 Linden St., Bethlehem, where the family will receive relatives and friends from 5 p.m. until time of service. Burial will be private and at the convenience of the family. A memory tribute may be placed at www.cantelmifuneralhome.com.

Contributions: In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Peaceable Kingdom, 1049 MacArthur Road Whitehall, PA 18052 or to Animals in Distress, P.O. Box 609, 5075 Limeport Pike Coopersburg, PA 18036.