Former Rolling Meadows mayor dies

One of Rolling Meadows’ earliest mayors and business owners, William “Bill” Miseska, died at his home in Brooksville, Fla., on Tuesday.

Miseska was the third mayor of Rolling Meadows and served from 1966-1967. Rolling Meadows was incorporated in 1955.

Rudy Balek, who served as an alderman while Miseska was mayor, said he was an ideas man who helped set the city up for success.

“Bill was a very hardworking mayor,” Balek said. “He helped set the city in the direction it is now, focusing on helping the residents.”

Miseska also ran a gas station at the intersection of Meadow and Kirchoff roads, where he gave Balek’s son a job as a mechanic during high school. According to Miseska’s obituary, the gas station opened in 1957.

“He was always fair and honest. He helped teach my son about doing the right thing and owning your mistakes,” Balek said. “Bill what the kind of guy that if you broke something, you owned it.”

Working for the city in its early years was a memorable experience, said Balek, who has lived in Rolling Meadows for more than 50 years.

“We decided we were going to do what was best for the residents and that’s held over all these years because of the way we started out,” Balek said, remembering the early years on the city council with Miseska in charge. “When you start something off, you either do it right, or you don’t do it at all, and we did it right.”

Miseska moved to Florida in 1987 and was 83 when he died. Services are scheduled for Friday, June 8, in Brooksville.