Richard (Dick) Kleine was born in Brentwood , Missouri near St. Louis to George and Valerie Kleine. Dick has 3 brothers; Bob, Gerry, and George; and 1 sister Mary Jean. His father George worked in sales and his mother was a devoted housewife. Dick graduated from McBride High School in St. Louis , MO and went to college at St. Louis University . Graduating with a degree in Engineering he went on to get his MBA part time while working from the University of Iowa . Dick was in the Air Force for 3 years and also worked at Emerson Electric before beginning work with Deere & Company 38 years ago. Before his retirement he was the General Manager at both the Harvester and Ottumwa Works and the Vice President of Quality for the company.

Mary Lou was born in Alton , Illinois to Dr. Thomas and Marie Miller. Mary Lou has a younger brother Tom and sister Annie. After her father passed on her mother re-married Richard McBride an engineer and CEO of a local manufacturing firm. Mary Lou graduated from Marquette High School where she was very athletic and involved in many sports like golf and tennis. After high school Mary Lou went on to Fontbonne College in St. Louis where she graduated with a BS in Physical Education. She later taught Physical Education at Horicon High School in Wisconsin and St. Columkilles in Dubuque , Iowa .

Dick and Mary Lou met at an ROTC ball. The 3 St. Louis area catholic women's colleges' would select queen candidates for the annual ROTC ball at St. Louis U. Mary Lou was nominated queen from Fontbonne College and she was set up on a blind date with Dick. They were married after Mary Lou graduated from college. Mary Lou and Dick have one son Mark.

Mark was born in Anchorage , Alaska . He received his BS in Computer Systems from St. Ambrose. Marge also received her degree from St. Ambrose. Mark and Marge met while both were working for John Deere in a summer job and were married after graduation from college. Drew was born in Arkansas . Mark worked for Deere and Co. before leaving the company to buy his first John Deere dealership in the early nineties. Mark and his wife Marge own 5 John Deere dealerships in western Illinois and live in Galesburg , IL . They have one son Drew who is a junior in high school.

The Kleine family believes that they have been very fortunate to have many blessings in their lives and believe that sharing their blessings with others is their responsibility. They believe in sharing their time and talent by serving on boards and committees of charitable organizations that help others and share their treasure with those in need through their Community Foundation Charitable Giving Fund. Mary Lou serves on the board of the Women's Choice Center, serves on the Catholic Service Board organization, and supports the Handicapped Development Center by chairing their annual golf outing. Dick shares his talents by serving on many charitable organization boards both local and national, serves on advisory boards, and chairs local fundraisers and church committees. Dick enjoys gardening and golf in his spare time and Mary Lou enjoys golf and playing cards with friends. Mark is a community leader in Galesburg , IL , serving on several boards of charitable organizations, he also volunteers for many events and supports projects that help others. His hobby is golf and sports cars. Marge is involved in her hobby of raising and training horses and she volunteers her talents on local Galesburg projects and programs. Drew also volunteers his time to help others.