Former East Dundee trustee loved fixing vehicles

A former East Dundee village trustee, who served three terms in office and whose life revolved around vehicles, has passed away.

Gordon E. Zaeske, 85, died Wednesday at St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates, surrounded by his family. His second oldest daughter, Marylou Zaeske, said he suffered from congestive heart failure and aortic valve stenosis. He died nine days before celebrating his 64th wedding anniversary and a month before his 86th birthday.

Zaeske lived in East Dundee most of his life.

He was born in the village on Aug. 18, 1926 and graduated from Dundee Community High School in 1944.

During high school, he started working at the family business — Zaeske Garage — as a mechanic.

That trade took him into World War II, where he was assigned to fix military vehicles in the army.

In 1946, he met Gloria E. Korte at a roller rink in South Elgin. The couple married two years later and had three daughters, Marylou, Susan Zaeske and Sally Draffkorn. He is also survived by grandson Alexander Draffkorn. Zaeske worked up to three jobs in the early years to support his family.

“He was the best dad anyone could ever have, I was always so proud of him, and there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for his family,” Marylou Zaeske said Thursday.

One of those jobs involved fixing cars at the Zaeske Garage, which his father, Charles, opened in West Dundee. The company moved to East Dundee in 1951. And Zaeske wasn’t content to keep that mechanical knowledge to himself, spending 30 years teaching auto shop at Dundee High School.

Giving back was also part of his life. He served three terms as an East Dundee village trustee during the 1990s and 2000s.

Retired East Dundee Police Chief Ignacio “Joe” Pena remembers Zaeske was supportive of the department, but kept his eye on the squad cars’ mileage so he’d know when they needed to be replaced.

“He would monitor everything,” Pena joked. “His forte was in our squad cars and the mileage.”

Trustee Michael Ruffulo said Zaeske also took pride in serving on the public safety and streets committees.

“He always was concerned about the residents,” Ruffulo said. “He always wanted to make sure the roads were in good shape, that we spent our money wisely, and that the residents were well taken care of.”

Zaeske was also a longtime member of Zion United Church of Christ in Carpentersville and belonged to the American Legion Post 57 in Elgin.

Services will be held Saturday at Miller Funeral Home, 504 W. Main St., West Dundee. Visitation will be begin at 9 a.m. and the funeral at noon.