Arlene Amelia Johnson

Arlene Amelia Johnson, 96, of Columbus Junction, passed away on Thursday, January 27, 2022 in Columbus Junction, Iowa.  Funeral Services will be 10:30 a.m. on Monday, January 31, 2022 at Snyder & Hollenbaugh Funeral & Cremation Services of Columbus Junction.  Burial will be in Columbus City Cemetery.  Visitation will be from 2:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, January 30, 2022 at the funeral home.   A memorial has been established for Haven’s Hope Thrift Store in memory of Arlene.   Sympathy notes may be left for the family at www.sandhfuneralservice.com.

Arlene was born March 8, 1925, in rural Columbus Junction on the farm of her parents, Rueben P. Allen and Bessie F. (Weese) Allen.    On July 10, 1941, she married Earl Johnson in Kahoka, Missouri.

Arlene and Earl had four children:  Earlene (Verl) Lekwa of Columbus Junction, Harold (Paulette) Johnson of Muscatine, Marty (Jayne) Johnson of Wapello, and Don Johnson (deceased).  Grandchildren: Jodie Johnson, Bart Johnson, Jeff (Tasha) Lekwa, David Lekwa, Brenda (Craig) Wilson, Monty (Dyan) Johnson.  Step Grandchildren: Tim (Stephanie) Sill, Thomas (Jessi) Staley; Great Grandchildren: Jarrett (Hannah Kephart) Lekwa, J.D. (Karley Shlee) Lekwa, Jobie Lekwa, Justus Lekwa, Kayla Marquardt, Ruger (Racheal) Dean, Remington (Nolan) Amelon, Brooke Wilson, Trevor Johnson, Haley Steinke, Tyson Steinke, Dakota Johnson.  Step Great Grandchildren: Nathan Sill, Brianna Sill, Lawrence Staley, Marilou Staley.  Great-Great Grandchildren: Kendyl Epperson, Brittney Wilson, Riley Amelon, Lane Amelon, Wren Lekwa. She is survived by one sister, Vivian Kay Wilson of Columbus Junction and many nieces and nephews and special friend Jennine Wolf of Washington, Iowa

She was preceded in death by her parents Rueben and Bessie Allen, husband Earl Johnson, son Don Johnson and grandson Joseph Michael Johnson, three brothers: Rueben Dean Allen, Don Palmer Allen, Ronald Daryl Allen; five sisters:  Erma Brown, Corrinne Moyer, Eula Deese, Naomi Stites and Geneva Snyder.

Arlene grew up in the rural area she was born in.  She attended Pleasant View country school.  She attended High School in Columbus Junction and later received her GED.

Arlene, loving known as Beanie, enjoyed traveling or just going for a ride in the car.  She loved visiting with family and friends and was ready to help when there was a need.  She baby sat for many children over the years and continued up into her early 90s.  She was one of those last “chefs” who could mix up a dish or pie without a recipe.  She enjoyed country music and listening to books on tape.

Growing flowers and plants brought her a lot of joy.  She could stick a broken piece of flower in to the ground and it would grow.

She and Earl lived in Arizona for several years.  She loved being close to two of her sisters and nephews there and going up to the mountains whenever they could.  She remained friends with many of the people she met while they lived there.

She was proud of her family and enjoyed spending time with them as often as she could.

 

Vivian Marie Bickett

Vivian Marie Bickett, 89, of Muscatine, formerly of Birmingham passed away at her home on Wednesday January 26, 2022.  As were her wishes her body has been cremated and private burial of cremains will be at a later date in Maple Hill Cemetery, Birmingham.  Memorials to Genesis Hospice may be mailed to the family at 126 North Street, Fruitland, IA 52749.  Friends may leave online condolences at www.cranstonfamilyfuneralhome.com.

Vivian was born on February 29, 1932 to William James and Beulah Bruey Tonkinson .  She was raised in the Birmingham area and attended Cedar #5 school in rural Jefferson County.  As a child Vivian babysat for several families in Fairfield and Batavia to which she traveled to by train.  She married Robert Clyde Ward on October 29, 1949 in Lockridge and they later divorced.  She then married Fred Bickett in 1987 at their home in Muscatine and they later divorced. 

Vivian worked at Dexter Company and the Glove Factory, both located in Fairfield until she became a mother and moved her family to Wilton, IA where she stayed home to care for her children.  When they were old enough, she went to work at Thatcher Plastics in Muscatine until her retirement in 1994.  Vivian loved flowers, her family, watching Wheel of Fortune and playing quarter slots at Catfish Bend and Riverside Casino where she had won a car on her birthday in 2013.

Left to cherish her memory are three daughters, Nancy Foor of Cape Girardeau, MO, Judy Haskins of Fruitland, IA and Tina Jarvis (Russell) of Troy, IA, two sisters, Wilma Hootman of Fairfield and Lola Kirchner of Stockport, six grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren and many other extended family and friends.  In addition to her parents she was preceded in death by her son, Thomas Ward, a daughter, Dorothy Ward, four sisters, Mary Garrison, Melvia Peck, Kathryn Disney and Ruth Countryman and a brother, William Tonkinson.

 

 

Faye C. Heartsill

Faye C. Heartsill, 87, passed away Friday, January 28, 2022, at her home in Salem.

Faye was born December 13, 1934, in Eckley, Colorado, the daughter of Elmer and Edna (Abbott) Lamb.  She graduated from Salem High School in 1952.  Faye was married to Charles R. Brown on May 22, 1952.  Then on June 29, 1963, she married Tonch C. Heartsill.  Faye was a clerk in Morrows Grocery Store for about a year, before working for Sylvania in Burlington for eight years until the plant closed.  In 1971 she began working for the U.S. Postal Service where she was a clerk. Faye was named Post Master in 1974 until retiring in 1997.  She had volunteered at the Lewelling Quaker Museum since 1992 and served as president of the museum for 22 years. She was a member of the Henry County Historical Society.

Faye is survived by two sons, Charles Brown of Cedar Rapids, Greg (Angie) Heartsill of Chariton; a daughter, Christine (Ken) Sylvester of Salem; a step son Harold (Kathy) Heartsill of Crystal River, FL; two step daughters, Linda (Dick) Smith of Mount Pleasant, Judy Odom of Moore, OK; step daughter in law Betty Heartsill of Salem; 15 grandchildren, 7 step grandchildren, 12 great grandchildren, 17 step great grandchildren, 15 step great great grandchildren; brother Tom Lamb of Salem; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her husbands, stepson Chris Heartsill, a brother, two sisters and a step granddaughter.

Funeral service will be held 1:30 pm, Friday, February 4, 2022, at the Olson-Powell Memorial Chapel. Burial will follow in the Salem South Cemetery. Visitation will be held 2:00 – 7:00 pm Thursday, February 3, 2022, at the Olson-Powell Memorial Chapel, where family will greet friends from 4:00 – 6:00 pm. A memorial fund has been established for the Lewelling Quaker Museum. www.powellfuneralhomes.com.

Former Fairfield Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Child Pornography Charge

DAVENPORT, Iowa – A former Fairfield man, Auston Jacobus Hummell, age 23, was
sentenced on January 26, 2022, to 190 months in prison for Receipt and Distribution of Child
Pornography. Following his prison term, Hummell was ordered to serve ten years of supervised
release as well as pay $3,000 to each of his eleven victims – for a total of $33,000. Hummell was
also ordered to pay a $100 Special Assessment fee.
According to court documents, the investigation into Hummell began when the Mount
Pleasant Police Department received a CyberTip from the Iowa Internet Crimes Against Children
Task Force. The CyberTip indicated files containing child pornography were uploaded from
specific IP addresses and those IP addresses traced back to Hummell. After liaising with Kahoka
Police Department in Kahoka, Missouri, a search warrant was issued for Hummell’s known
residence and numerous electronic devices were seized. The devices contained over 120,000
images and videos containing child pornography. On June 21, 2021, Hummell pleaded guilty to
the charge.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the
announcement. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Mount Pleasant Police Department, Kahoka
Police Department, and the Iowa Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force investigated the
case.
This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District
of Iowa as part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Childhood” initiative, which
was started in 2006 as a nation-wide effort to combine law enforcement investigations and
prosecutions, community action, and public awareness in order to reduce the incidence of sexual
exploitation of children. Any persons having knowledge of a child being sexually abused are
encouraged to call the Iowa Sexual Abuse Hotline at 1-800-284-7821

Prep Wrestling: Burlington Rolls to Easy Win over Mount Pleasant

Burlington — Burlington got falls from Porter Humphrey and Micah Zaugg as the Greyhounds earned a 60-22 dual win over Mount Pleasant last night.

Abby Blint pinned Buston Carlson in 1:03, Gannon McNamee also earned a fall win.

Carson Coleman picked up a major decision at 126, beating Titus Counterman 14-5.

But from there, it was all Burlington.

160-pounder Owen Baker pinned Mount Pleasant’s Jared Dorothy in 0:28, which was followed up by a pair of forfeits and two pins.

Mount Pleasant fell to 1-15, they’re now 1-4 in Southeast Conference action.

Burlington improved to 9-3, they’re perfect in conference duals at 4-0.

Prep Wrestling: Wapello Sweeps at New London; Nikes Dominate

Wapello Sweeps New London Quad

Wapello earned wins over New London, Pekin and Van Buren County as the Indians brought out the brooms in last night’s quad at New London.

The host Tigers took down Van Buren County and Pekin.

Zach Harbison took out the do-it-yourself kit going 3-0 on the night individually with two falls and a forfeit.

New London was led by Josh Glendening, who finished 3-0 with three falls.

Of course Dominic and Marcel Lopez earned three wins with four tech falls combined between the two of them.

Gage Burden picked up a fall and two forfeits at 113-pounds.

Notre Dame Spoils Party in Wayland 

The third-ranked Notre Dame Nikes earned their second straight Super Conference dual meet championship, beating Mediapolis and WACO yesterday in Wayland.

Isaiah Fenton, Blaine Frazier, Sam West, River Belger, C.J. Walrath, C.J Davis and Carter West were all double winners for the Nikes.

WACO went 1-1 on the night, taking down the Bulldogs 60-24.

Jonah Clark went 2-0 with two falls for the Warriors, while freshman phenom Louden Huisenga, John Rice and Drew Diers all went undefeated, as well.

Mediapolis’ Quinten Aney went 2-0 with a fall and decision victory. Grady Gunn pinned both of his opponents wrestling for the Bulldogs at 126 pounds.

Columbus Sweeps in Riverside

Second-ranked 120-pounder Lane Scorpil went 3-0 with two falls and a forfeit helping guide Columbus Community/Winfield-Mount Union to three wins at Highland’s quadrangular yesterday.

Ty Scorpil and Ethan Palmer also picked up three wins for the Wildcats.

Columbus won 45-30 over Louisa-Muscatine, 51-18 over Cardinal and 51-18 over the host Huskies.

Prep Basketball: Danville, New London Set for Box Office Night

New London — Tonight will be box office stuff when Danville meets New London in a Super Conference doubleheader.

The evening will start with the girls’ clash, beginning at 6:00 p.m.

New London is still seeking win number one on the year behind new head coach Terry Hester.

They’ve made some strides over the course of the season and have recently gotten guard Ashlyn McSorely back into the rotation.

Junior Natalie Burden is averaging 7.0 points per game to lead New London.

The Danville girls’ are lead by seniors Makenzie Morris and Ava Smith, both hovering right around nine points per game.

The Bears are coming off a Tuesday win over Holy Trinity, entering tonight at 6-10.

They’ve won the last three straight in the series.

In the nightcap, No. 10 Danville will look to keep their dream season going when they hook up with Blaise Porter and a healthy Kade Benjamin.

The Bears are 14-1 on the year, while New London enters 12-1.

Danville is paced by senior guard Drake Johnson, averaging 13.6 points per game. Caiden Gourley scores 13.3 points per game, while senior Sawyer Nelson is averaging a double-double at 10 points and 10 rebounds per game.

New London junior guard Blaise Porter, who holds Division I offers from Bryan University and IUPUI, is scoring 19.4 points per game to lead the Tigers.

Kade Benjamin is second with 16.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.

New London has won four straight between the two schools — but this is a whole different Danville group.

Both games can be heard on FM 105.5 and kilj.com.

Coverage will begin at 5:45 p.m.

Nathan Bloechl and Kent Bennett will have the call.

Other action in the Super Conference tonight will see:

  • Van Buren County at Cardinal
  • Highland at Columbus
  • Pekin at Hillcrest Academy
  • Central Lee at Holy Trinity
  • Lone Tree at Louisa-Muscatine
  • West Burlington at WACO
  • Winfield-Mount Union at Wapello

Prep Basketball: Mount Pleasant Battles Keokuk in Home-and-Home

KILJ — In the Southeast Conference tonight, the Mount Pleasant boys’ and girls’ basketball teams will take on Keokuk in a home-and-home affair.

The girls’ will be at Mount Pleasant while the boys’ will travel to Keokuk.

Tonight marks the first action of the week for both teams, who have had ample time to get their legs right before the stretch run.

Mike Davis’ Keokuk girls’ are 12-3 on the year and are currently ranked No. 11 in Class 4A in the latest IGHSAU poll.

They took down Mount Pleasant 73-40 earlier this year but the Panthers have won four of five — their best stretch of the year.

Both games tonight will begin at 7:30 p.m.