Henry County Public Health News

By Allison Jacobs · Saturday, August 24th, 2024 at 6:33 am CDT

Foot Care!

Henry County Public Health has announced the “Happy Feet Program” on Monday afternoons!  Starting Monday, September 9th, from 1pm – 4pm, Henry County residents will have access to a variety of services at the Henry County Public Health Office, 106 N. Jackson St. in Mt. Pleasant.  The Foot Care Program includes a foot assessment, nail trim, referral to podiatry if needed, blood pressure check and an RN will be available to assist with diabetic patients.  The cost is $10 per person, you do need an appointment.  Call 319-385-0779 to make your appointment.

Senior Health Fair!

Henry County Public Health is offering a Senior Health Fair to showcase services for adults in Henry County. Health screenings will be provided: such as hearing, anxiety, and fall risk. Flu and Covid vaccines will also be available for those who want them.  The Health Fair is scheduled for Wednesday, October 2 from 9am-11:30am and is free to attend. It is being held at the Calvary Baptist Church Auditorium, 803 East Mapleleaf Drive in Mt. Pleasant.  Please check KILJ’s Community Calendar at KILJ.com for this information.

 

Sports, August 24th

By Slaten Swords · Saturday, August 24th, 2024 at 6:30 am CDT

High School Football

WACO showcased the offense last night in their week zero matchup, thumping Central City 51-36 to start the season undefeated. Clayton Miller threw for 157 yards and three touchdowns, while Louden Huisenga grabbed three rushing touchdowns for the win. The Warriors will travel to take on Coon Rapids-Bayard on Saturday, August 31st, at 3 pm.

Mt. Pleasant scrimmaged Danville to conclude their “Meet the Panthers” event last night with both teams getting a chance for their varsity and younger kids gaining some experience on the field. Panthers head coach John Bowlin was eager for the opportunity,

“Well, you know, I haven’t slept for a few days, maybe a few weeks. I don’t know. I was pretty, pretty antsy today, so I was excited. I know the boys were, you know, I don’t have to say much to get them fired up to put pads on. So, they were out there having a great time. So, and you could tell by their faces just how they were playing and running. Just you know, we’ve had a really good team camaraderie this year, so that’s been really nice.”

Danville’s offense was the first to find paydirt officially after Jaden Bauer’s arm hit a deep pass to Kessler Whaley to set up a touchdown strike to senior Landon Seibert, who then caught the two-point conversion. Bears head coach Cody Thompson discussed his team’s play last night,

“So, overall I was very pleased with how the kids came out and played. You could tell right away we had some younger guys out there, you know, the bright lights in front of people. This is a great time of year to get that out of the way, saw some really good things. And we saw some areas where we need to clean up to be ready for Week 1. But overall, as far as our varsity, even our younger kids, I’m pretty happy where we’re at today.”

Payton Walker returned the favor when he broke off a huge run, then followed it up with a bruising run to score a touchdown as Zach Newton hit Aiden Humble for the two-point conversion. Coach Bowlin talked about his team’s performance last night,

“Yeah, I thought we played pretty physical, and I was really happy with what the o-line did. You know, we had some mistakes. That’s gonna happen. Some of it was not their mistakes. It’s play calling mistakes. You know that we knew we didn’t have a guy blocked and we thought we could outrun that, and we couldn’t. So those are just some little things that we got to get better at reading people, but on an overall thing, you know, our goal was just come out and execute. We’d had very few penalties. Didn’t jump offsides just played really clean tonight, you know, and I think we created a few turnovers on defense. You know, if you look at last year, we didn’t create any turnovers on defense. So just the work our guys have done, you know, I think we’re going to be able to compete. You know, I don’t know where we’re going to end, but I know that our guys are gonna come out and give it their best and just have a ton of, you know, great opportunities this year.”

Mt. Pleasant will travel to Fairfield on Friday, August 30th, at 7:30 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 7:15 pm. 

Danville will host Lynnville-Sully on Friday at 7 pm.

New London will square off against Easton Valley on Friday at 7 pm.

Winfield-Mt. Union will face off against Central City on Friday at 7 pm at home.

Central Lee will take on Van Buren County on Friday at 7 pm at home.

West Burlington/Notre Dame will take on Wapello on Friday at 7:30 pm at home. 

Mediapolis will travel to compete against Columbus on Friday at 7 pm. 

High School Volleyball

Holy Trinity Catholic and West Burlington will travel to Mediapolis on Monday, August 26th, at 4:30 pm for a scrimmage with Fort Madison, Wapello, and West Liberty also participating.

WACO will be hosting a tournament on Monday at 5 pm with Burlington Notre Dame, Columbus, Pekin, Centerville, and Van Buren County also competing. 

West Burlington will compete in a quad on Thursday, August 29th, at Burlington with Danville and Wapello also competing. 

Central Lee will hit the road to take on Fort Madison at 7:30 pm on Thursday. 

Mt. Pleasant will participate in a triangular on Thursday at Ottumwa with their first game at 6:30 pm.

Winfield-Mt. Union will face off against Keokuk on Thursday at 7:30 pm at home.

Southeastern Community College

The volleyball team traveled to Rockford, Illinois for the first day of their three-day opening weekend tournament, splitting their contests. The Blackhawks lost to Kansas City Kansas Community College 3-1, then swept Blackhawk Technical College. SCC will take on Southwestern Illinois College to start off their day. 

College Football

The University of Iowa will officially kick off the season on Saturday, August 31st, at home against Illinois State at 11 am. Tune in to KILJ 105.5 FM to listen to the game.

Iowa State will take on North Dakota on August 31st at 2:30 pm at home. Tune in to KILJ 98.5 FM or AM 1130 to listen to the game.

This Day in Sports History

1804 – Alicia Thornton becomes the first female jockey in England, riding at Knavesmire in Yorkshire.

1875 – Captain Matthew Webb makes the first observed and unassisted swim across the English Channel in 21 hours and 45 minutes.

1978 – MLB baseball umpires stage a  one-day strike.

1st Iowa Case of West Nile Virus Reported

By Allison Jacobs · Saturday, August 24th, 2024 at 6:30 am CDT

The first case of the West Nile virus of the year in Iowa was found in Harrison County, which is a county along the Nebraska border just north of Council Bluffs.  A Press Release from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services says it was detected in an adult in the 61- to 80-year-old age range.

West Nile virus is spread to humans through mosquito bites. The Centers for Disease Control and Preventions says most people do not have symptoms but those who do could have fever, headache, body aches, vomiting, diarrhea or rash.  About 1 in 150 people infected with West Nile virus could develop encephalitis or meningitis, according to the CDC said.

The Department of Health and Human Services says 17 Iowans were diagnosed with the mosquito-transmitted virus in 2023. There was one reported death.

If you begin to have symptoms of West Nile virus, contact your health care provider.

Sports, August 23rd

By Slaten Swords · Friday, August 23rd, 2024 at 6:36 am CDT

High School Football

WACO will kick off the season with a week zero matchup against Central City tonight at home at 7 pm. 

Winfield-Mt. Union will scrimmage Midland tonight at 5 pm at home. 

Central Lee will take on Keokuk tonight at 6:30 pm for a scrimmage at home.

West Burlington/Notre Dame will scrimmage Burlington at 6 pm tonight at Bracewell Stadium. 

Mt. Pleasant will face off against Danville tonight at 7:30 pm for a home scrimmage. Head coach John Bowlin enters his second season at the helm, which has helped calm down the pace of the offseason and helped better prepare himself and the team,

“I think our players have a better, better understanding this year. You know, I think I think they know more about you know what I expect of them, and you know just getting to know them for that year and spending every day there in the weight room with them and getting prepared, I think you know one thing I preach to them is, you know, what their work they do is going to show up. You know, you got to believe in the process. You know, the work you do. And I think it’ll show up for us on Friday nights and you know, hopefully we can come out to be a much more competitive team this year.”

High School Volleyball

West Burlington and Winfield-Mt. Union will travel to West Liberty tonight for a scrimmage starting at 4:30 pm. Washington, Muscatine, and Solon will also be participating. 

Central Lee will host a scrimmage tonight at 5 pm against Keokuk.

Holy Trinity Catholic and West Burlington will travel to Mediapolis on Monday, August 26th, at 4:30 pm for a scrimmage with Fort Madison, Wapello, and West Liberty also participating.

WACO will be hosting a tournament on Monday at 5 pm with Burlington Notre Dame, Columbus, Pekin, Centerville, and Van Buren County also competing. 

High School Volleyball Rankings

The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) released their preseason rankings yesterday for the upcoming 2024 season and two of our local teams made the top 15 for their respective classes.

For Class 2A, West Burlington is ranked #11 to start off the year after falling to #14 Grundy Center in last year’s Regional Championship contest. Last year’s SEISC champion, the Falcons return most of their roster; however, one of the names not returning is Taryn Havener as she led the team in kills with 335 and blocks with 68.

A good candidate to fill that slot will be junior Brenna Beggs, who posted 241 kills and 34 blocks in her sophomore campaign. Taryn Snodgrass returns after nabbing 900 assists last season, which led the conference. Their top servers in Madelyn Hamelton and Carli Cline return and following behind are their 107 combined aces.

For Class 1A, Holy Trinity Catholic enters the as the #2 team behind last year’s champion Ankeny Christian. The Crusaders are hoping to keep the tradition rolling after making it to state for the 13th time in the past 14 years. The squad was led by five All-Southeast players and, of course, District Coach of the Year, Melissa Freesmeier.

However, two of those All-Southeast members were seniors: Mary Kate Bendlage, who recorded over 1,000 career kills, and Natalie Randolph, an all-around talent. Nevertheless, the Crusaders will be returning towering junior Presley Myers and an experienced sophomore in Adalyn Kruse as the two combined for 479 kills and 206 blocks.

Additionally, Anna Bendlage has had two successful seasons of being the team’s main setter under her belt and Teagan Snaadt is a defensive specialist that keeps plays alive as she led the team with 482 digs.

Meet the Players Nights

New London’s “Meet the Players” night will be tonight at 5:30 pm with cross country and volleyball introductions and scrimmage taking place in the Charles Lorber Gym. On the football field, cheer and football will have their introductions with a football scrimmage against Wapello to follow.

Mt. Pleasant will have their “Meet the Panthers” tonight starting with an intrasquad volleyball game at the high school gym at 5 pm. Introductions of the fall teams will begin at 7 pm, starting with the cross country teams.

Fairfield will have their “Meet the Trojans” tonight with introductions taking place on the track at 6:35 pm. Volleyball and football will have intrasquad scrimmages at 7 pm. 

Central Lee will have their “Meet the Hawks” night tonight with the cross country race beginning at 4:30 pm to kick off the night. Volleyball introductions will commence at 6:10 pm in the gym, while dance, football, and cross country team introductions will take place on the football field at 6:20 pm.

Mediapolis will have their “Meet the Bulldogs” tonight starting at 5 pm with a free will donation dinner and a youth football punt, pass, and kick fundraiser. The football team will be introduced at 5:45 pm with a scrimmage against Fort Madison at 6:30 pm to round out the night. For admission, please bring a donation of prepackaged individual snacks for the football team after away games this season.

Southeastern Community College

The volleyball team will travel to Rockford, Illinois today for their opening weekend tournament with their first matchup against Kansas City Kansas Community College.

College Football

The University of Iowa will officially kick off the season on Saturday, August 31st, at home against Illinois State at 11 am.

Iowa State will take on North Dakota on August 31st at 2:30 pm at home.

University of Iowa

Head coach Kirk Ferentz and wide receivers coach Jon Budmayr have been suspended for the first game of the season after a recruiting violation in 2022. The review brought forward that the staff talked to Cade McNamara prior to him entering the transfer portal.

Coach Ferentz and Athletic Director Beth Goetz recommended a self-imposed one-game suspension and loss of one week of off-campus recruiting. 

“I frequently tell our players to abide by the rules, and in this instance, I did not.” said Ferentz. “In 26 years as a head coach at Iowa — and more than four decades as a coach — this is my first potential Level II NCAA infraction. I made a mistake and would like to apologize to our players, University leadership, and our Hawkeye football fans. I know Coach Budmayr echoes those sentiments.”

The two coaches will step away from all duties on August 31st and will return to normal duties on September 1st. Assistant Head Coach Seth Wallace will act as Head Coach for the Illinois State contest. 

This Day in Sports History

1936 – 17-year-old future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Feller’s first MLB game as a starter; strikes out 15 St. Louis Browns in 4-1 win at League Park, Cleveland.

1947 – First Baseball Little League World Series, Williamsport, Pennsylvania: Maynard beat Lock Haven All Stars, 16-7.

1992 – Dennis Eckersley, who previously set record for most consecutive saves (40), is the first pitcher to record 40 saves in four different seasons.

Is School Attendance Important?

By Allison Jacobs · Friday, August 23rd, 2024 at 6:28 am CDT

Today is the first day of school! Why is attendance in school important? Attending classes regularly creates good habits, makes it easier to form friendships, time is not lost reteaching which benefits all children, our schools offer many supports such as nurses, counselors, and meals, and attendance is a predictor of reading scores.

  • 64% of kids with good attendance in Kindergarten and 1st grade who miss 9 days or fewer both years read on level after third grade, while only 17% of children who missed 18 or more days both years are able to read on level after third grade.

To fight against absences you can:

  • Make appointments outside of school hours or on non-school days.
  • Have a back-up plan for getting to school such as a neighbor able to help.
  • Don’t hesitate to ask the school if you need help.

Henry County Board of Supervisors Meeting 8.22.24

By Kadie Johannson · Thursday, August 22nd, 2024 at 11:08 pm CDT

The Henry County Board of Supervisors held their regular board meeting on Thursday, August 22 at the Henry County Courthouse. The first item on the agenda was discussion on the TIF rebate and incentives for the developers of the Hershey Apartment Project located on the former Iowa Wesleyan Campus. The plans for the project include reconstructing Hershey Hall into a 22-unit apartment complex. Mike Norris from the Southeast Iowa Regional Planning Commission (SEIRPC) explained the process and next steps in coordinating the TIF rebate, which include establishing the area as an Urban Renewal Area (URA). While there is ongoing litigation between the Henry County Assessor Board of Review and the developer on the valuation of the property, the Henry County Supervisors have asked SEIRPC to draw up a contract to complete the URA work on their behalf. The contract will be presented to the Supervisors at their regular board meeting on September 19, 2024.

Supervisor Marc Lindeen gave his subcommittee report on the most recent meeting of the Great River Regional Waste Authority. He noted the county is allowed to dump up to 50 tons at no cost to the county. He suggested if there were no major construction projects that needed to haul waste, the county should allocate those tons to Jake Hotchkiss, Henry County Engineer for cleanup on county roads.

Supervisor Greg Moeller led the discussion on a check request the county has received. The check in question was issued from the county to the Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility on May 5, 2022, in the amount of $17, 822.50 for April 2022 meals for the Henry County Sheriff’s Department. The Superviors canceled the check on July 6, 2023, because it was not deposited by the Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility. And, according to the Iowa Code, unclaimed checks may be canceled after a year has passed. While the time to request a reissued check has passed and the supervisors are not legally required to remit the payment, the discussion centered around whether they should pay the $17,822.50. There is a strong working relationship between the Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility and the Henry County Sheriff’s Department which the Supervisors are considering. On the other hand, the money is not in the budget for this fiscal year and would cause headaches to adjust funds in an already tight budget. Supervisor Greg Moeller motioned they table this discussion until the next board meeting when Supervisor Chad White would be back and able to give input on it.

Henry County Sheriff Rich McNamee presented a contract between the Henry County Sheriff’s Department and the New London Community School District for a School Resource Officer (SRO). The two parties had an agreement last year, however this year the school district requested a change in deputies and for the SRO to go to full time status versus part time. With the help of the Henry County Attorney’s Office, the Sheriff presented a contract to the Board of Supervisors for review. The contract has not been presented to the school district yet; that comes next. The Supervisors motioned to approve the Henry County Sheriff to present this contract to the New London School District and begin negotiations to place a full time Henry County Sheriff Deputy as a SRO in their buildings.

The meeting ended after the public comment portion, which included comments from citizens about the Hershey Apartment Project TIF rebate, overtime for deputies contracting out as SROs, and operational inefficiencies that can be found in the different offices of the Henry County Courthouse.

Prep Volleyball: IGHSAU’s 2024 Preseason Volleyball Rankings

By Slaten Swords · Thursday, August 22nd, 2024 at 2:09 pm CDT

Prep Volleyball- The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) released their preseason rankings for the upcoming volleyball season and there’s a couple local teams to look out for.

Class 5A

Last year’s champion, Waukee Northwest, starts off the year all the way in 9th with the runner-up Dowling Catholic staying put in their #2 slot behind #1 Pleasant Valley. Iowa City Liberty enters the rankings at #7 despite a losing record last season. #12 Waukee also joins the distinction of being ranked in the top 15 despite a losing record last year at 13-20.

Class 4A

North Scott shocked the crowd in Coralville after sweeping the undefeated #1 team last season in Clear Creek-Amana and eventually blanking Indianola to win the championship. The Lady Lancers were awarded the #3 slot in the preseason rankings. #1 belongs to Cedar Rapids Xavier followed by #2 Bishop Heelan. The Clippers are back at #6 despite a 46-1 record last year. #14 Waverly-Shell Rock and #15 Sergeant Bluff-Luton round out the list as they both suffered losing record last year.

Class 3A

Mt. Vernon looks to avenge their loss in the championship game as they enter the season as the #1 team in Class 3A followed by #2 Assumption and last year’s champion #3 Western Christian. Mid-Prairie looks to follow up another successful season as they enter the year at #6.

Class 2A

Denver enters the season as the favorite after falling in the semifinals to the eventual undefeated champion, #6 Dike-New Hartford. Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont is ranked #2 and Beckman Catholic grabbed #3.

West Burlington is ranked #11 to start off the year after falling to #14 Grundy Center in last year’s Regional Championship contest. Last year’s SEISC champion, West Burlington could very well control the SEISC this year after graduating just two players from last season’s squad. However, one of those names is Taryn Havener as she led the team in kills with 335 and blocks with 68.

A good candidate to fill that slot will be junior Brenna Beggs, who posted 241 kills and 34 blocks in her sophomore campaign. Taryn Snodgrass returns after nabbing 900 assists last season, which led the conference.

Their top servers in Madelyn Hamelton and Carli Cline return and following behind are their 107 combined aces. The Falcons could soar to a spot in the Class 2A state tournament.

Class 1A

Ankeny Christian is the only champion from last year to enter the new season as the #1 team in their class as the Eagles look for a three-peat in November. Ankeny Christian retained the strength of their lineup from last season’s championship team sans defensive specialist Riese Gjerde.

Expectedly, last year’s runner-up starts off the season at the #2-slot, Holy Trinity Catholic. The Crusaders are hoping to keep the tradition rolling after making it to state for the 13th time in the past 14 years. The squad was led by five All-Southeast players and, of course, District Coach of the Year, Melissa Freesmeier.

However, two of those All-Southeast members were seniors: Mary Kate Bendlage, who tabbed over 1,000 career kills, and Natalie Randolph, an all-around talent. Taegan Denning, Reagen Holvoet, and Jenna Hellman also graduated from the squad.

Nevertheless, the Crusaders will be returning towering junior Presley Myers and an experienced sophomore in Adalyn Kruse as the two combined for 479 kills and 206 blocks.

Additionally, Anna Bendlage has had two successful seasons of being the team’s main setter under her belt and Teagan Snaadt is a defensive specialist that keeps plays alive as she led the team with 482 digs.

North Tama is ranked 3rd with Janesville being ranked #4. Edgewood-Colesburg rounds out the list as they ended last year with a 29-13 record, falling to Holy Trinity Catholic in the regional championship.

Douglas C. Carver

By Allison Jacobs · Thursday, August 22nd, 2024 at 2:08 pm CDT

Douglas C. Carver 69, of Bonaparte, Iowa, passed away at 12:32 a.m. Tuesday, August 20, 2024, at the Van Buren County Hospital in Keosauqua, Iowa.

He was born on June 8, 1955, in Des Moines, Iowa, the son of Edmond Carl and Maxine Cadillia (Cunningham) Carver. On March 25, 2017, he married Lola Groseclose at the Melrose United Methodist Church.

He is survived by his wife: Lola; children: Stacey Powell, Angela Carver, Douglas Carver II, Joey Carver, Amanda Karhoff, Jack Mortimer, Jr., Breanna Groseclose; four brothers: Steven Carver, Floyd Carver, Byker Mark Carver, James Carver; many grandchildren, great grandchildren, nieces, nephews and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents; Son: Edmond Carl II; three grandsons: Cody Ray, Tanner Ray and Stephan Karhoff.

Doug enjoyed hunting, fishing, boating, being outdoors, watching Westerns, family gatherings and he loved his Mountain Dew.

The family will receive friends from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Tuesday, August 27, 2024, at Schmitz Funeral Home in Farmington.

A funeral service will be held at 1:00 p.m. Tuesday, August 27, 2024, at Schmitz Funeral Home in Farmington, with Byker Mark Carver officiating.

Burial will be at Greenglade Cemetery in Farmington.

A memorial has been established in his memory.

Schmitz Funeral Home of Farmington is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences may be made to the family at www.schmitzfuneralhomes.com.