Kimberly Sue Pierce

By Theresa Rose · Monday, August 17th, 2020 at 11:55 am CDT

Kimberly Sue Pierce, 62, of Lockridge, died Friday, August 15, 2020 at the Parkview Care Center in Fairfield.

Per Kim’s request, no service will be held. A private family gathering will be held at a later date.

Those considering an expression of sympathy may direct memorials to the family. On line condolences may be left at www.kimzeyfuneralhome.com.

Kim was born April 7, 1958, the daughter of Sheryl Crouch. She married Edward Pierce, Jr. on Apr. 7, 1990 in Mt. Pleasant, Mr. Pierce died Saturday, April 4, 2020 at their home in Lockridge.

Mrs. Pierce was a Regional Training Manager for Hardee’s in Centerville and Fairfield. She had also worked at the front desk of the Tolson Community Action Center in Mt. Pleasant. She enjoyed reading and time with her family.

Survivors include a son and his fiancée, Joshua Pierce and Emily Roth of Lockridge; her mother, Sheryl Cook of Fairfield; brothers and sisters – Heather (Supra) Gajapur of Jacksonville, FL, Bill (Deb) Kruse of Fairfield, Heidi (Jeremy) Corbin of Lockridge, Lenn (Rhonda) Kruse of Keosauqua and Sharon Cook of Salem, as well as a host of nieces and nephews.

Her husband and an infant brother, Michael Kruse, precede Kim in death.

Sports, Monday, August 17th

By Nathan Bloechl · Monday, August 17th, 2020 at 11:33 am CDT

By: Nathan Bloechl — sports@kilj.com 

Winfield Football Hopes for Continued Growth:

The Winfield-Mount Union football team is hoping for continued growth as head coach Scott McCarty enters his 10th season as the lead man.

The Wolves graduated lots of talent from last year’s team that finished 1-8, but do return OL Seth Schurr, OL Chance Malone and last year’s leading WR, Jacob Ford.

Winfield will have to replace all three of their top skill players last year, including QB Daunte Oepping, RB Juanito Piper and WR Christian Gerot.

Oepping threw 13 touchdowns to just five interceptions last year while rushing for 949 yards and an additional 17 scores.

Getting the first crack at signal caller this year will be junior Noah Sparrow.

Sparrow appeared sparingly in a backup role last year, missing on his only attempted pass.

“We are going to play to the strengths of our team and put our guys in a position to be successful in every game we have” said head coach Scott McCarty.

McCarty believes that aforementioned strength will be the offensive and defensive lines.

“With the new schedule and the uncertainty we face week in and week out it will be imperative to control what we can control. We will be investing our time in the basics so we can become extraordinary in the ordinary.” 

Winfield will open their season on August 28th at home against Tri-County.

Full Schedule:

8-28: Tri County (HOME)

9-4: Montezuma (AWAY)

9-11: Twin Cedars (AWAY)

9-18: Iowa Valley (HOME)

9-25: New London (AWAY)

10-2: English Valleys (HOME)

10-9: WACO (HOME)

Hawkeyes Still Preparing for Spring Schedule:

With the fall season cancelled Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz has turned his attention to a possible spring season.

The Big Ten said it was a possibility last week when the fall season was cancelled.

Ferentz has two problems with the idea: playing two seasons in a calendar year and the possibility of many players skipping the season to prepare for the NFL.

“It’ll be a different approach for sure, but we’ll have to push forward. There has to be answer for it” Ferentz explained.

The Big Ten has yet to reveal any of their concrete plans for a spring season, which remains very much murky at best.

Over the weekend several Hawkeye parents crafted a letter to the Big Ten asking them to reverse course on their decision to cancel the fall football season.

UNI Adds Talented Illinois Prep:

The University of Northern Iowa football team went into Illinois to pick up a game-breaking wide receiver, Friday.

Peoria’s Dionysius Hogan announced a commitment to the Panthers on social media, choosing the Missouri Valley Football Conference team over an offer from Bowling Green.

The 6-foot-4, 195-pound Hogan is ranked as the No. 80 player in Illinois for the 2021 class.

Hogan, listed as an athlete on most recruiting sites, also played linebacker and safety last year.

He’s expected to suit up on offensive for Mark Farley’s bunch.

MLB Scoreboard (8/16):

Tampa Bay 3, Toronto 2 — 7 innings (Game 1)

Tampa Bay 7, Toronto 5 — 8 innings (Game 2)

Cleveland 8, Detroit 5

Washington 6, Baltimore 5

Philadelphia 6, New York Mets 2

Atlanta 4, Miami 0

Chicago White Sox 7, St. Louis 2

Houston 3, Seattle 2

Minnesota 4, Kansas City 2

Milwaukee 6, Chicago Cubs 5

Colorado 10, Texas 6

Oakland 15, San Francisco 3

Arizona 5, San Diego 4

Los Angeles Dodgers 8, Los Angeles Angels 3

New York Yankees 4 Boston 2

BREAKING: Mount Pleasant Couple Dies in Plane Crash in Missouri

By Nathan Bloechl · Monday, August 17th, 2020 at 1:16 am CDT

By: Nathan Bloechl — sports@kilj.com 

KILJ — The Osage Beach Police Department (MO.) has released details of a fatal plane crash at the Grand Glaize Airport.

Officers responded to the area at about 1:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon and located the crash site in the area of Sleepy Hollow Road.

Per the City of Osage Beach, the individuals involved in the crash have been identified as Scott and Amy Lowe of Mount Pleasant.

The Osage Beach Police Department was assisted by the Osage Beach Ambulance Service, Osage Beach Fire Protection District, Missouri State Highway Patrol, and Camden County Sheriff’s Office.

The official release by the Osage Beach Police Department can be found here.

Mount Pleasant KFC Fire

By Theresa Rose · Sunday, August 16th, 2020 at 3:14 pm CDT
At about 1:15 Sunday morning the Mount Pleasant Fire Department responded to a call reporting a fire at the KFC/Taco Bell on Mapleleaf Drive.  According to Fire Chief Drew Schumacher, there were flames coming from the roof as well as heavy smoke when the fire department arrived on the scene. Two engines, two command vehicles and 10 firefighters responded along with an engine and five New London firefighters. The chief said “Good coordination with the New London crew helped knock now the fire. Concealed hot spots were the main focus after the initial fire was out.” Schumacher also said there was heavy smoke and fire damage to both the interior and roof of the building. The back storage room was also heavily damaged.  It’s not know at this time what started the fire.
Statement on Facebook from KFC:
Unfortunately our restaurant sustained massive damage in a fire overnight. Thankfully, no employees were present at the time of the fire.
Rest assured we will rebuild and return to serve our customers just as soon as possible. In the meantime, we wanted to thank all our loyal customers and ensure our commitment to serve the Mt. Pleasant community.
Please keep our KFC family in your thoughts as we transition through this time.

Donald James Fillinger

By Theresa Rose · Sunday, August 16th, 2020 at 2:31 pm CDT

Donald James Fillinger, 76, of Lockridge passed away on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, at Great River Medical Center in West Burlington.

A private funeral service will be held.  Burial will be at the Lockridge Cemetery.  Friends may call after 2 p.m. on Tuesday, August 18, 2020, at the Murphy Funeral Home of Mt. Pleasant. The family will be present from 5 to 7 p.m. that evening.  Memorials may be directed to the Lockridge Cemetery, Lockridge Fire and Rescue or to the Lockridge Baptist Church in his memory.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.murphyfuneralandmonuments.com

Murphy Funeral Home of Mt. Pleasant is caring for his arrangements.

Sports, Saturday, August 15th

By Nathan Bloechl · Saturday, August 15th, 2020 at 6:48 am CDT

By: Nathan Bloechl — sports@kilj.com

Options Being Looked at for Capacities at Jack Trice Stadium:

Iowa State is still considering options when it comes to fans at Jack Trice Stadium.

Cyclone Athletic Director Jamie Pollard outlined the policies being discussed in Ames:

1. No Fans

Attendance would be limited to student-athletes’ families and friends.

2. Split Season

Allowing ticket holders to sit in their current seating location but limiting stadium capacity to 25%.

This would require assigning each season ticket holder three of the six scheduled home games. The Cyclones have already sold season tickets for 50% capacity, so by limiting capacity to 25% means each season ticket would include three games.

3. Full Season

Keep stadium capacity at 50% (the fans who have already purchased season tickets) but reseat the entire stadium, using each ticket holder’s Cyclone Club level and priority points, to create as much social distance between ticket holders as possible.

Ticket holders would most likely not get their normal seat location but they would be able to attend all six games

Regardless if the stadium is at 25 or 50% capacity, Pollard did say that face coverings will be required at all times for all individuals at the games — including suites, club sections, general seating and the press tower.

MVC Pulls the Plug on All Fall Sports:

The Missouri Valley Conference has postponed all of its fall sporting events.

The conference announced their decision Friday, mentioning continuing uncertainty around the ability to play full league schedules safely amid the COVID-19 pandemic — as well as the lack of a fall NCAA championship opportunities currently at their level.

The release followed a meeting of the MVC President’s Council that determined the conference’s fate Friday evening.

The Missouri Valley Football Conference had already announced their intention to cancel their year until the spring, meaning sports impacted by yesterday’s announcement include cross country, soccer and volleyball.

The status of the conference’s winter sports, such as basketball, indoor track and women’s swimming are not impacted at the moment.

Drake and Northern Iowa are both members of the Missouri Valley Conference.

Cyclones Purdy Named to Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Watch List:

Iowa State’s Brock Purdy has been named to the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Watch List.

Purdy broke multiple school records during his redshirt season, passing for 3,982 yards, rushing for 249 more and combining for 35 total touchdowns.

This award is presented annually to the top senior and upperclassman quarterback set to graduate with their class.

Last year’s winner was LSU’s Joe Burrow.

Iowa State is scheduled to open up their season Saturday, September 12th against the University of Louisiana.

Drake’s Zach Johnson Honored:

Drake alum Zach Johnson has been named the recipient of the PGA TOUR’s Payne Stewart Award presented by Southern Company, the PGA announced Wednesday.

The prestigious award is presented annually by the PGA TOUR to a professional golfer who best exemplifies Stewart’s steadfast values of character, charity and sportsmanship

Johnson, a 1998 graduate of Drake, led the Bulldogs men’s golf to three NCAA regional meets and two Missouri Valley Conference championships.

He has been a mainstay in the professional ranks since first joining the PGA TOUR in 2004 after finishing as the leading money winner on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2003.

Now a 12-time PGA TOUR winner, Johnson’s career is highlighted by victories at the 2007 Masters and 2015 Open Championship at St. Andrews.

He’ll accept his award on September 2nd.

 

 

Crop Damage Estimates

By Theresa Rose · Friday, August 14th, 2020 at 9:30 pm CDT
Secretary Naig Releases Updated Estimates of Potential Crop Damage Caused by the Derecho

DES MOINES, Iowa (Aug. 14, 2020) – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig has been collaborating with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, farmers and farm organizations, and agribusinesses to evaluate the agricultural damages caused by the derecho that rolled through the state on Monday.

The USDA Risk Management Agency (RMA) reports 57 counties in Iowa were in the path of the storm. Within those 57 counties, there are approximately 14 million acres of insured crops. This includes 8.2 million acres of corn and 5.6 million acres of soybeans that may have been impacted by the storm.

Based on MODIS satellite imagery and Storm Prediction Center preliminary storm reports, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship believes 36 counties in Iowa were hardest hit by the derecho. Within those 36 counties, the storm likely had the greatest impact on 3.57 million acres of corn and 2.5 million acres of soybeans.

“I’ve been touring some of the hardest-hit parts of the state this week to speak with farmers and agribusinesses that were impacted by the derecho,” said Secretary Naig. “These farmers put significant resources into this crop and were planning for strong yields. Now their crops have been damaged — some destroyed — and the state has lost tens of millions of bushels of grain storage just a few weeks before harvest begins. This is a devastating blow to the agricultural community that is still recovering from the pandemic.”

Iowans who were impacted by the storm can call the Iowa Concern Hotline at 1-800-447-1985 to get free, confidential emotional support, 24/7.

Assault Involving A Firearm

By Theresa Rose · Friday, August 14th, 2020 at 3:26 pm CDT

On August 13, 2020, at approximately 5:50PM, the Henry County Sheriff’s Office received a report of an assault involving a firearm that occurred in the 2200 grid of Dakota Avenue. Due to the volatile situation, the Iowa State Patrol Tactical team was called to assist.

Upon investigation, Dustin Kindig, 31 of Mount Pleasant, was arrested for multiple charges and a search warrant was executed at the residence.

Kindig was charged with: Burglary 1st (while possessing a dangerous weapon) a class B felony; Going Armed with Intent, a class D felony; Dominion of a Firearm by Prohibited Person (four counts), class D felonies; Assault while Displaying a Dangerous Weapon (two counts), aggravated misdemeanors; and violation of a protective order, a simple misdemeanor.

The Henry County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Iowa State Patrol; The Iowa State Patrol Tactical Unit; The Des Moines County Sheriff’s Office; The Henry County Sheriff’s Reserves; and The Henry County Health Center Ambulance.