By Nathan Bloechl · Monday, April 4th, 2022 at 11:24 am CDT

Prep Track: Mount Pleasant Runs Well at Home Co-Ed

The Mount Pleasant track team ran well at their home coed relays event on Friday at Mapleleaf Athletic Complex.

Kenna Lamm showed out well in the hurdles, winning the event in 17.56 while Iowa State recruit Jadan Brumbaugh continued her red-hot start to the season with yet another shot put gold with a heave of 45 feet, 3.5 inches.

Allie Westercamp, Jenna Gilmore, Thanh Phung and Lamm won the shuttle hurdle relay, clocking in a time of 1:13.25.

The Panther boys’ performed well, with Bryce Wilson — a state place winner last year — winning the 110m hurdles with a time of 15.58. He and teammate Will Davidson will be neck and neck all year. Davidson finished in second in 15.68.

Davidson claimed another victory in the long jump with a leap of 20 feet, 6.25 inches. Davidson also helped guide the shuttle hurdle relay team to a win in 1:04.09.

He was joined on that quartet with Morgan Van Nyhuis, Avin Truong and Bryce Wilson.

Mediapolis won the 4×400 Friday, as well.

The Bulldogs ran 3:32 even and the team comprised of Kadin Salek, Logan Rosas, Anthony Isley and Levi Arnold.

Girls’ Tennis: Mount Pleasant Beaten by Davis County

The Mount Pleasant girls’ tennis team fell in their spring opener Friday, dropping and 7-2 decision to Davis County.

Savana Walls beat Maddie Warning in No. 1 singles 8-5, but the Mustangs swept Mount Pleasant in each of the remaining singles bouts.

Walls and Melanie Olivas won No. 1 doubled 8-4.

That duo dispatched Davis County’s Jenna Marlow and Jada Will 8-4.

Boys’ Tennis: Panthers Sweep Davis County

Owen Van Sickel started the day with an 8-0 win in No. 1 singles over Dean Bragg as Mount Pleasant swept Davis County 9-0 in their opener on Friday.

Phoenix Watson followed up Van Sickel’s win with an 8-2 win over Jaxson lee while Jake Ensminger made short work of Syrus Benge, 8-1, in No. 3 singles.

In doubles play, Van Sickel teamed up with Elliot Cook for an easy 8-3 win, while Ensminger paired with Tim Cam for an 8-3 winner.

Both the Panther boys’ and girls’ tennis teams are back in action tonight for a home-and-home with Keokuk.

Both matches will begin at 4:30 p.m. with the girls’ in Keokuk and the boys’ playing at East Lake Park.

College Wrestling: Wesleyan Names Kadel Head Coach

Jake Kadel has officially been named the head coach of the Iowa Wesleyan wrestling program, the institution has announced.

Kadel, a New London, Iowa native, led the Iowa Wesleyan women to a 13th place finish at the NAIA Women’s Wrestling National Invitational earlier this year.

Under his watch, the Tigers also earned their first individual national champion in Adaugo Nwachukwu — who won the 136-pound national title.

Kadel spent last year as an assistant coach, subsequently earning the interim tag following the departure of Shawn Contos.

Before Iowa Wesleyan, Kadel spent one year as an assistant at St. John’s Jesuit High School and Academy in Toledo, Ohio.

Prior to that, he was a wrestling instructor for the Hard Drive Performance Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Women’s College Golf: Kirchner Wins, Wesleyan Places Second at Carl Sandburg Invite

Karli Kirchner took home medalist honors as the Iowa Wesleyan women’s golf team placed second at this weekend’s Carl Sandburg Invite in Galesburg.

Kirchner, who hails from Montrose, shot an 81 on the second day of the tournament to earn the win — carding a 164 over two days.

Aubrey Duncan, a freshman from Columbus Junction, placed in a tie for second overall with a 168.

Her day two 80 put her in contention for the top of the leaderboard.

The Tigers will be back in action tomorrow when they travel to Galena, Illinois for the Clarke Spring Invite.

Tee time will be 10:00 a.m.

Dorothy “Joanne” Taeger

By Theresa Rose · Sunday, April 3rd, 2022 at 4:45 pm CDT

Dorothy “Joanne” Taeger, 82 of Stockport passed away April 1 at 4:43PM at her home.  Visitation will be on Thursday April 7, 2022 from 10:00AM to 11:00AM at Pedrick Funeral Home, Keosauqua one hour prior to the service.  Funeral services will be at 11:00AM Thursday April 7, 2022 at Pedrick Funeral home with Pastor Mark Caston officiating.  Burial will be in Spences Cemetery, Stockport.  Memorials to Spencer Cemetery may be left at the funeral home or mailed to the family at 29606 130th Street, Stockport, IA 52651.

Joanne was born on October 1, 1939 on her grandparent’s farm near Hillsboro to Mandel Rudolph and Dorothy Almond Watson.  She graduated in 1959 from Hillsboro High School and was the last class to attend there.  She worked for a short time in a telephone office in Mount Pleasant and also on the family’s cattle farm.  She married Ervin Taeger on January 10, 1968 at the Keosauqua Methodist Church.  The couple moved into Ervin’s grandparent’s house east of Stockport where they still currently live.  Joanne spent her days working around the home and helping Ervin on the farm.  She loved gardening and canning what the garden produced, sew and embroidering and also the monthly trips to the Dutchman’s Store in Cantril for her supplies that kept her hobbies going.

Left to cherish her memory are her husband, Ervin, a sister, Joyce Holly of Burlington, a brother-in-law Eldon Taeger (Jane) of Hillsboro and a nephew, Marcus Taeger (Mercedes) of Stockport.  In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by a sister Jane Hudson and a brother-in-law Jay Holley.

News for Monday, April 4

By Theresa Rose · Sunday, April 3rd, 2022 at 4:28 pm CDT

A juvenile has been arrested in an investigation into shots fired west of Washington. Last Thursday at about 9:30 pm Washington law enforcement authorities received a report from a resident on Kiwi Avenue saying they’d heard what sounded like two or three gunshots when a vehicle stopped in front of their home. A Washington County Sheriff’s deputy located the vehicle at North 12th Avenue and East 2nd Street. As a result of the investigation the juvenile has been charged with “person ineligible to carry a dangerous weapon,” possession or purchase of alcohol by person under 18, assault while displaying a dangerous weapon, reckless use of a firearm, two counts of a minor armed with a dangerous weapon, and second-degree harassment.

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The Van Buren County School Board met in special session last week and voted to build a new activity center. The center is estimated to cost approximately 6 million dollars. The money will be borrowed against SAVE, the 1% state sales tax fund. This means the project will not impact property taxes. The activity center will be an addition to the existing school building. It will include a second gymnasium, a new wrestling room, 2 classrooms, an area for batting cages and turfed flooring for athletic practices, 2 restrooms and an office with a meeting room. Carl A Nelson and Company will be the project manager. S.V.P.A. will lead the architecture and design team. The project will begin late this summer and is expected to be finished by August of 2023.

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The Mt. Pleasant Municipal Utilities will be starting an underground electric replacement project in the area of Old Orchard and Baker Streets. Customers are being notified with a notice on their door or in their mail box. This project will take several months. During this time scheduled outages will take place and customers will be notified a couple days prior to any scheduled outage. The Utilities apologizes for any inconvenience during this time. For questions or concerns, please call MPMU at 319-385-2121 day or night.

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April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Region 7, that includes Iowa, is working with law enforcement agencies to ramp up enforcement of distracted-driving laws to raise awareness about the dangers of using your phone while driving. This annual campaign is part of a national high-visibility enforcement effort that runs from April 7 – 11. Between 2012 and 2019, 26,004 people died in crashes involving a distracted driver.  In fact, there were 3,142 people killed in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers in 2019 alone. This represents a 10% increase in distracted driving fatalities from 2018. The distraction figure was the largest increase in causes of traffic deaths reported for 2019.

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The Fellowship Cup in Mount Pleasant will be starting up the weekly Wednesday Community meal.  Small groups of three to six individuals are needed to cook, serve and clean up after the meal is served.  The meal begins at 11 am.  The time involved would be from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm.  If you or your group would like to help please contact the Fellowship Cup at 319-385-3242.

April 4, 2022 – April 10, 2022

By Allison Jacobs · Sunday, April 3rd, 2022 at 3:19 pm CDT
04/04/22
Eleanor Bjork
04/04/22
Doug Conner
04/04/22
Spence Evans
04/04/22
Tammy Tyrrell
04/04/22
Emily Orr (11)
04/04/22
Memphis Watson
04/04/22
Eleanor Bjork
04/05/22
Connie Pendell
04/05/22
Dylan Hagensee
04/05/22
Mikayla Jennings
04/05/22
Finn Lalaga
04/05/22
Henry Orr (7)
04/06/22
Sara Davis
04/06/22
Ian Franklin
04/06/22
Mary Graber
04/06/22
Paul May
04/06/22
Matt Moothart
04/06/22
Jason Smith
04/06/22
Madonna Worden
04/07/22
Jeryl McArtor
04/07/22
Lindsey Hill
04/07/22
Matthew Rowan
04/08/22
Dennis Lamm
04/08/22
Les & Lora Roth - 33 yrs
04/09/22
Dick Watson
04/09/22
Janet Hesler (Danville)
04/09/22
Shiree Strawhacker
04/10/22
Sally & Tim Olson
04/10/22
Robb Gardner (50)
04/10/22
Angel Jacobs

Sondra Kay (Nelson) Cochran

By Theresa Rose · Sunday, April 3rd, 2022 at 2:55 am CDT

Sondra Kay (Nelson) Cochran, 81, died Saturday, April 2, 2022, at her home in Mount Pleasant.

Sondra, daughter of Delbert and Verda (Aubrecht) Nelson, was born July 11, 1940, in Iowa City, Iowa.  Her family moved to a farm west of Mount Pleasant in 1947.  In 1953, the family moved to a farm east of Mount Pleasant on Winfield Avenue.  She attended grade school and high school in Mount Pleasant.  She raised two daughters and a son while working at Champion Products and Burlington Medical Center.  She married Lynn Cochran on November 27, 1992.  Sondra enjoyed reading the Bible and attending church, spending time in her flower gardens, and watching birds and squirrels at the feeders.

Sondra is survived by her husband; sister Nancy (Mark) Staal of Andover, Kansas; sister-in-law Barbara Nelson of Sonoma, California; two daughters Tamara Kirgan of Maquoketa; Kathryn Christiansen of Tucson, Arizona; a son Allen (Karen) Dolph of Marietta, Georgia; two step sons Ross Robertson of Mesa, Arizona; Randy Cochran of Milwaukee, Wisconsin; five grandchildren; two step grandchildren; and four great grandchildren.  Sondra was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Willis Wagler, sister Jacquelin, brother James, and a great grandson Wesson.

Funeral service will be held at 11:00 am Saturday, April 9, 2022, at the Olson-Powell Memorial Chapel.  Burial will be in the Forest Home Cemetery.  Visitation will be held from 4:00 – 7:00 pm on Friday at the Olson-Powell Memorial Chapel.  The service will be livestreamed on Powell Funeral Homes Facebook page and at www.powellfuneralhomes.com.  In lieu of flowers a memorial fund has been established for the American Cancer Society and American Heart Association.

Henry County Supervisors Meeting Agenda

By Theresa Rose · Sunday, April 3rd, 2022 at 2:53 am CDT

AGENDA

 

April 5, 2022

 

Approve Agenda

 

Approve Minutes

 

9:00 Jake Hotchkiss, Engineer Weekly Update

Resolution to Purchase New Salt Shed

 

9:30 Presentation by Hillcrest Family Services

 

Other County Business as time allows

 

Supervisors Sub-Committee

Kadel Steps into Head Coaching Role

By Theresa Rose · Saturday, April 2nd, 2022 at 12:13 am CDT

Jake Kadel, who has led the Iowa Wesleyan Men’s and
Women’s Wrestling Teams for the majority of the 2021-2022 season, has officially been named
the new Head Coach of both programs.
Kadel, a New London, Iowa native, led the Iowa Wesleyan Women’s Wrestling Team to a 13th
place finish at the NAIA Women’s Wrestling National Invitational, which took place in
Jamestown, North Dakota, on March 11-12, 2022. Adaugo Nwachukwu became Iowa
Wesleyan’s first NAIA Women’s Wrestling National Champion when she defeated her opponent
13-3 in the 136-pound championship match. Mia Palumbo also saw success by securing the
National Runner-Up spot in the 109-pound weight class. Both Palumbo and Nwachukwu now
garner the title of NAIA All-American.
“I am excited to get the opportunity to lead this program going forward,” said coach Kadel. “I
cannot say enough about the current student-athletes of this program. They are committed to the
success of this program and extremely passionate about Iowa Wesleyan University. I would like
to thank President Plunkett, Derek Zander, and the administration for supporting me through this
transition. I look forward to developing young men and women who will be successful on the
mat and in the classroom.”
Kadel was the assistant coach for Iowa Wesleyan’s Wrestling programs for the inaugural season
of the women’s program and the return season of men’s wrestling since the 1970s. Five Tigers
qualified for the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships during this season.
Alaina Sunlin and Daisy Scholz walked away with fifth and sixth-place finishes, respectively,
along with the title of All-Americans.
Before Iowa Wesleyan, Kadel spent one year as the Assistant Wrestling Coach at St. John’s
Jesuit High School and Academy in Toledo, Ohio. Prior to that, he was a wrestling instructor for
the Hard Drive Performance Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. While Coach Kadel was a member of
the University of Iowa Men’s Wrestling Team, he served as a camp counselor at the University
of Iowa Sports Camps in Iowa City, Iowa.

Citizen of the Year Robb Gardner

By Theresa Rose · Friday, April 1st, 2022 at 10:16 pm CDT

The highlight of the Mount Pleasant Area Chamber Alliance Annual Banquet on Thursday evening was the announcement of Robb Gardner as the 2022 Citizen of the Year.

Gardner served on the Mount Pleasant Chamber of Commerce Board from 2015-2021 including serving as President in 2018. He is a member of the Noon Rotary Club and is an active member of the Mount Pleasant Athletic Booster Club. He has been a member of the Iowa Wesleyan President’s Advisory Council, St Alphonsus Church Parish Council, and served on presidential search committees for area schools.

Through Gardner’s 13 years of executive leadership at Henry County Health Center and his commitment to the region, he has succeeded in bringing ideas and people together and making things happen. His dedication has resulted in a variety of awards for HCHC, including Top 100 Critical Access Hospital awards, the Outstanding Rural Health Organization of the Year, and Most Wired Hospital awards. This past year, he received one of the Iowa Hospital Association’s highest recognitions, the Excellence in Leadership award.

The Chamber of Commerce has been awarding the Citizen of the Year since 1972 to individuals that live and/or work in the Mount Pleasant area who have had a significant impact on the community through their volunteer and charitable activities. The winner is selected each year by the Mount Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.

Other awards this year included The Fellowship Cup receiving the Humanitarian Award; Melinda Huisinga receiving the Ambassador of the Year; and Lori White as the Volunteer of the Year. This was the 80th Annual Banquet for the Mount Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce.