Streaks Alumni Profile- Jeremy Kleine (1989), Molly (White) Kleine (1991)

Today’s Streaks Alumni Profile features Jeremy Kleine (1989) and Molly (White) Kleine (1991). 

Looking thru their yearbooks, they were both extremely active in both sports and activities. As adults, they have continued to be active in our community. 

We are certainly lucky that Jeremy and Molly chose to live and raise their family in Galesburg!

Your GHS Athletics / Activities

Jeremy- FCA, G-Club, CARE, 3 year Varsity letterwinner for Baseball and Football

Molly- Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Student Council, G-Club, National Honor Society, Football Cheerleading, Softball 

Favorite Teacher / Classes

Jermey- One of my favorite classes was Spanish, I was known as “Jesus” Kleine, a play on Ivan DeJesus that was a Cubs shortstop, even though I don’t like the Cubs. I had Senora McQuiggin and Senora Pennington who I enjoyed immensely. 

 

Another class I enjoyed was English with Mr. Bill Allison, who always gave me some leniency as I was late everyday due to my older brother, Chris Kleine, being responsible for transporting me from our home at Lake Bracken.  Mr. Allison knew it was 100% Chris’s fault. 

 

Even though I didn’t necessarily enjoy Chemistry and Biology, I appreciated Mr. Spencer and Mr. Maurizi making the class fun with their personalities.

Mrs. Murdock and Coach Fisher were great for PE and Mr. Hickey, Albright and Willy made Driver’s Ed a lot of fun.

 

Two very important Teachers I had were Steve Peachey and Barb Devena. 

I didn’t have Coach Peachey for class, but he (and his wife Gail) had a huge impact on my four years of football and throughout FCA, and we remain friends to this day.

 

Barb Devena was my Accounting teacher and has also been a fabulous friend over the years.  She has been integral in my Christian walk and having a huge impact on my wife Molly (White) Kleine and both of our children, Kelsi and Kannon.

Molly- My favorite subject growing up in school was always math. Although he gave me the only B I received in high school, Mr. Kessler was one of my favorite teachers. I had him for both precalculus and calculus. My B came in the fourth quarter of my senior year. I eventually forgave him and he still holds a spot among the top of my favorite teachers. :)

I loved American Studies with Mr. DeVore and Mrs. Stewart, French with Mr. Newsbaum, and Accounting with Mrs. DeVena. I also loved it when Mr. Deimer played his guitar for us in Rhetoric. I never had Miss Black in class, but I loved that we met when I was in high school and when her name changed to Mrs. Aten a few years later we became, and still are, really good friends. Coach Clay scared the living daylights out of me in PE and as my varsity softball coach, but I learned a lot about hard work and dedication from her. (She didn't ever give up on her 1-16 softball team!) She is also a good friend of mine to this day.

And although this is supposed to focus on my time at GHS and its teachers, a special shout-out goes to my all-time favorite teacher, cheerleading coach, and the reason I went into education - Mrs. Savory. I had her for two years in math at Churchill and as a cheerleading coach both at Churchill and GHS. I admired her so much (still do!) and wanted to be just like her when I grew up! 

Favorite Memories from GHS and Growing Up in Galesburg

Jeremy- The majority of my best memories center around baseball and football.  I had the pleasure of playing on 3 Baseball teams that advanced to the State Tournament, when there were only 2 classes and we were in 2A , which was the top class at the time.

We were the State Champions in 1988 and 3^rd Place in 1989.

Our coaches were outstanding, Gary Bruington, Dave Peck and John Shay all knew the game and knew how to communicate.  I have taken so much of what I learned over those 3 years to help with my baseball coaching with the Galesburg American Legion Program.

We also made the playoffs in Football my Junior Year with a 6-3 record, we had the chance to be 8-1 but lost two early games late in the 4^th quarter.

One of the most fun years of my Football life.  Bill Bolinder was the Head Coach and he had a great sense of humor.  Other Coaches were Steve Peachey and the Allison brothers, Bill  & John.

Of course the absolute best memory of my GHS days are meeting Molly when I as going into my Junior year and she was an incoming freshman.  She is the love of my life and she is an amazing mother and now grandmother (or MoMo as she likes/wants to be called by our 5 month old grandson, Cooper Robert Brackett).

 

As far as growing up in Galesburg, again, the best memories centered around sports and the lifelong friends that were made through those connections.

My brother and I played on the A’s that won the Galesburg Little League title when the League included ages 9-12.  We also played on and won the Galesburg Junior Hardball title at HT Custer Park (now Jimmy Isaacson Field) as part of the Gale Ward Dynasty.  My friends will love being reminded of that😊

I played on two teams that won the Junior Football League Championships.  The first title was a Bears over the Raiders 3-0 game with Dave Guenther kicking the title winning field goal in overtime.  All of the sports, players, parents, fans were outstanding and wanted nothing but the best for Galesburg athletics.

 

Molly- My best memories are hard to narrow down. I had a wonderful childhood and loved every school I attended - Silas, Lincoln, Gale, Churchill, and GHS. My family didn't have much when I was younger, but my parents made sure my siblings and I were taken care of and were able to participate in whatever sports and activities interested us. I tumbled, took piano lessons, and played softball. But my fondest memories are probably time spent in Student Council. My high school best friend, Jodi Lear, and I were very active and held offices in The Executive Council our junior and senior year. Mr. Busse was a wonderful staff sponsor. I also have incredibly fond memories of The Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) where the Peachey's leadership greatly impacted my Christian walk.  

First Date

Molly- Jeremy's older brother, Chris, and my older sister, Michelle, dated first. The story goes that when Jeremy first met me, he told someone that "He was going to marry that girl someday."  I was only in 8th grade at the time, so he waited until July before my freshman year to ask me out. I was just 13 years old (turning 14 the next month) and he was 16. He was late picking me up for our first date because Legion baseball practice ran late. 

We went to see the movie "Summer School" at the theater and then drove 'the strip' in Galesburg. During the movie, he wanted to hold my hand but had scrapes on his arm resting on the arm rest next to me (baseball strawberries from sliding) and decided to ask me to switch seats so he could take my hand without the armrest rubbing against the 'strawberries'. 

The next week at one of his Legion games, we stood talking outside of the fence and a foul ball headed our way. He took his ball cap off and caught the ball in it to save me from getting hit. The rest, they say, is history. Baseball has been a huge part of our love story and continues to be a huge part of our lives.

After GHS

Jeremy- After GHS I attended Knox College, the Harvard of the Midwest.  I earned a BA in Sociology in 1993 while playing 4 years of Baseball and 2 years of Football.

I was a part of the last class to be called a “Siwash.”

After Knox, I went to WIU and earned a MA in Sociology in 1995.

Molly- After GHS, I attended Bradley University for 2 years before transferring to Western Illinois University. (I was chasing my boyfriend at the time as he graduated from Knox College and went on to graduate school at WIU.) I got my bachelor's degree in elementary education and later my master's degree in math education. (And the boyfriend I was chasing became my husband in 1997.)

 

Your Career

Jeremy- After my college days were over, my first “real” job was as a Counselor at the Wittenmyer Youth Center in Davenport, IA.  This was a 90 day Bootcamp style, high intensity program for the juveniles.  They did PT every morning at 6am, went to school, counseling sessions after school, more PT, then in bed at 9pm. Still the most fun job I’ve ever had. 

After Molly and I got married and decided we wanted to live and have a family in Galesburg, I took a job at the Mary Davis Home.  After a few years of that, I became the Administrator of the Knox County Academy, a school for students grades 7-12 that didn’t quite fit the mold of traditional schooling.  I did this for approximately 5 years. 

Then I was approached by my brother-in-law (Mick White) and father-in-law (Mike White) about joining their Insurance Agency with Country Financial (Insurance & Investments) and I have been in this career for the last 20+ years.  I saw the success they had been having and thought, “if those two can do this, I know I can.”😊

Molly- After college graduation, I took a third grade job at Nielson Elementary School in district 205 where I stayed for 24 years before its doors were closed in the spring of 2020. For the past 6 years I have been teaching second grade at Steele Elementary School and am looking forward to retirement in the spring of 2030!

What Are You Doing Today

Molly- Jeremy and I are blessed with a daughter and a son. Kelsi (Kleine) Brackett, GHS class of 2019 is married to Ryan Brackett, GHS class of 2018. Kelsi earned both her bachelor's and her master's from The University of Tennessee. She is a school social worker at United West Elementary School in Monmouth. They gave us our first grandchild, Cooper Robert, born in August of 2025. We are smitten!! His Opa (Jeremy) already has a baseball glove and bat ready to go! 

Our son Kannon, GHS class of 2022, attends Middle Georgia State University where he plays baseball and is majoring in psychology. His goal is to become a firefighter and coach baseball at the high school or college level. 

Becoming empty nesters was a difficult transition for us, but we found out we still really enjoy spending time together and look forward to following our kids and grandkids wherever life takes them. Jeremy was inducted into the GHS Athletic Hall of Fame for baseball and I was honored to be in the first class of the GHS Academic Hall of Fame. Together, we like to think we have a lot to share with our grandkids. 

Advice to Today’s Students/Athletes

Molly- My advice for current GHS students and athletes - get involved, stay involved, and make the most of your time as a Silver Streak. The days are long, but the years are short. And there is no promise for tomorrow. 

As I shared in the speech I gave at graduation "Live life to the fullest. Make the most of each day and each age of your life. Look forward with confidence and back without regret."