Kleier served on the board of directors of the Oklahoma Thoroughbred Association and also was a member of the Texas Thoroughbred Association. His survivors include son Jeff and daughter Georgeann.
George Kleier, a Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association award winner for Oklahoma, died Nov. 7 in Edmond. Kleier had suffered a debilitating stroke in May of 2002 at his Esperanza Farm near Oklahoma City. He was 70.A Missouri native and U.S. Army veteran, Kleier went full time in the horse business and established Esperanza (Spanish for hope) following his retirement as a corporate attorney in the early 1990s. Starting in 1992, he campaigned a dozen stakes winners, eight of which were homebreds, including Oklahoma champion Voladora. Kleier was awarded a 1989 TOBA as the state's outstanding owner/breeder.
