Mother of longtime Palatine mayor was strong believer in public service

The mother of former Palatine Mayor Rita Mullins, who inspired her daughter to pursue a life of public service, has passed away.

Antonia Krueger died on Monday at the age of 93. She lived in Palatine for more than 50 years.

"My mother was the one who helped everyone," said Mullins, who was the Palatine village clerk for eight years before being elected to five terms as mayor. "When someone needed something, she was there to help them. In that way, I suppose she influenced me."

Mrs. Krueger passed away the same day as another Palatine matriarch was buried. Aida Guss, wife of former Palatine Mayor Robert Guss, was killed Feb. 18 after being hit by a truck while crossing Northwest Highway.

The two women were friends and considered each other family. Amber Mullins, Mrs. Krueger's granddaughter, is married to Mrs. Guss' son, Robert.

"It's been a very rough time for the family," Mullins said.

Observers say Mrs. Krueger and her can-do attitude played a role in her daughter's long career in public service.

"I'd say she had a huge impact on Rita," says Arlington Heights Village President Arlene Mulder, a friend and colleague of Mullins. "She gave her daughter a lot of self confidence and the attitude that she could do anything she set her mind to."

Mrs. Krueger grew up in Boston, as the oldest of six children of Italian immigrants. Her parents ran a fruit and vegetable store on the city's north side, requiring Mrs. Krueger to delay going to school in order to watch her younger siblings.

In the end, she was the first in her family to graduate from high school and she would encourage her siblings to pursue higher education, including her youngest brother, Dominic Donatello, who attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

When World War II broke out, Mrs. Krueger went to work in the Boston Naval Shipyard. Wanting to do more, she enlisted in the Navy and received medical training as a Naval corpsman.

While stationed in Washington D.C. and working in a hospital, she met her future husband, Alfred, a Marine recovering from malaria he had contracted in the Pacific theater.

"When they met, my mother outranked my father," Mullins says. "He was a very proud Marine."

They were married on the Quantico Marine base before being stationed at numerous bases across the country. Rita Mullins, the oldest of their three children, was born in Washington D.C.

In 1958, the family settled in Palatine where they would raise their children. Mrs. Krueger worked as a hairdresser in Palatine, but she also was a longtime member of the Palatine American Legion Post 690.

Mrs. Krueger was preceded in death by her husband, who died in 2004, and her youngest daughter, Alice Mika. Besides Mullins, she is survived by her son, Steven, as well as four grandchildren and eight great grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held in May when extended family members can gather.