2024 Small Business of the Year: Triple Seven Trucking

By Yorke Prough · Friday, May 3rd, 2024 at 10:20 am CDT

After a weeklong celebration of five finalists for the 2024 Small Business of the Year in Mount Pleasant, the winner was announced Friday morning.

Congratulations to your 2024 Small Business of the Year, Triple Seven Trucking! During the breakfast, Blaire Barton (owner) spoke about being honored to even be a finalist. Triple Seven Trucking acquired a new building a few short years ago, and it is built on ground that his grandfather owned when he was a baby.

Guest speaker, Craig Smith (CEO of Sterzing Food Company) talked about change, which is something that every business must face. He joined Paul and Kadie for a special episode of generation gap, which is available on KILJ.com and on KILJ Spotify page, where nearly every finalist spoke as well.

It is important to celebrate small businesses, and to congratulate those who work extra hard to make this town a better place. Congratulations to all of the finalists, From the Heart Flowers and Gifts, Sa3m Sao Market, Orthodontic Associates of Iowa, and Southeast Iowa Realty!

Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk on Cinco de Mayo Weekend

By Yorke Prough · Friday, May 3rd, 2024 at 6:39 am CDT

Cinco de Mayo is on Sunday and that means people will be celebrating all weekend long.  It’s a day to enjoy Mexican culture with themed food and drink. GTSB is partnering with law enforcement to spread the message, “Designate Before You Celebrate”.

If you’re going to indulge in alcohol on May 5, plan a sober driver or use a ride share service.

Cinco de Mayo is celebrated a number of ways – whether you are just meeting a few friends after work or attending a Cinco de Mayo party, think before you drink and plan a safe ride home.

  • Designate a sober driver
  • Use a rideshare app or taxi
  • Take public transportation
  • Stay the night at your location

Remember on Cinco de Mayo, Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk.

May your celebration be a colorful, festive and safe.

Two Vehicle Accident on 218 Yesterday Afternoon

By Yorke Prough · Friday, May 3rd, 2024 at 6:37 am CDT

Around 3:11pm yesterday a motor vehicle accident occurred at mile marker 46 in the 2100 block of highway 218. According to reports, it was a two vehicle accident with one of those vehicles entering into the trees. Responding to this was the Henry County Sheriff’s Office, Mt. Pleasant Police Department, Henry County Health Center, and Mt. Pleasant Fire and Rescue.

Sports, May 3rd

By Slaten Swords · Friday, May 3rd, 2024 at 6:30 am CDT

High School Track and Field

The Southeast Conference meet ran yesterday and the Washington boys’ team continued their dominance and won with 143 points, while the Washington girls’ team usurped Mt. Pleasant to take the title with 173 points. 

On the boys’ side, Fort Madison took second with 138 points followed by Burlington with 96 points. The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team finished with 42 points as Franklin Tousignant’s second place finish in the discus with a heave of 128 feet and 3 inches led the Panthers. 

On the girls’ side, Mt. Pleasant finished in second with 125 points and five conference champions. Alex Scott won the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.79 seconds. The 4×100, 4×200, and 800 medley relay teams grabbed the gold and Bailey Jalas took the long jump with a leap of 16 feet and 2.75 inches. 

Mt. Pleasant will host the state qualifying meet on Thursday, May 9th, with Washington, Keokuk, Fort Madison, and Fairfield making the trip.

The Southeast Iowa Super Conference meet had a couple repeat champions and a school sweep as the girls champion of the North Division was Pekin was 165 points and the champion of the south division was Mediapolis with 148 points, just four more than West Burlington.

Focusing on the girls’ North division, WACO collected 58 points as the 4×100 meter shuttle hurdle relay team of Ally Rinner, Brenna Graber, Madelyn Farmer, and Zoey Dennler finished as conference champions with a time of 1 minute and 15 seconds. 

Winfield-Mt. Union finished with 51 points and two conference champion hurdlers as Josie Nelson won the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 17.2 seconds and Tessa Huston took the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1 minute and 12 seconds. Quin Smith won the high jump with a leap of 5 feet and 2 inches. 

On the South side, Mediapolis’ Bryn Wright ran the 1500-meter in 5 minutes and 21 seconds to win the event. Kendall VanWinkle won the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1 minute and 14 seconds. The Bulldogs rattled off wins in the 4×100, 4×200, and 4×400 meter relays. Avery Crear leapt to first place finish in the high jump with a height of 4 feet and 8 inches. 

West Burlington’s Ady Lamm grabbed first place in the 100-meter dash with a time of 13.57 seconds. Kaitlyn Kipp paced herself to a win in the 3000-meter run with a time of 11 minutes and 37 seconds. The 4×800 meter relay team grabbed the victory and Nadiya Jones won gold in the shot put with a heave of 32 feet and 1.5 inches. 

Danville took third place with 110 points and four conference champions. Jaeda Molle won the 200-meter dash with a time of 27.17 seconds. Miya Orbiana raced to a time of 1 minute and 4 seconds in the 400-meter dash. The 800 sprint medley team won by seven seconds and Kenna Furnald took the long jump with a leap of 15 feet and 9 inches. 

Van Buren County finished with 94.5 points, Central Lee 63.5 points, and New London grabbed 12 points. For the Warriors, Kayley Snowgren won the 800-meter run. Marlee Mertens took the 100-meter hurdles. The distance medley and 4×100 meter shuttle hurdle team each took home first place. The Hawks had a conference champion in Aubrey Weber in the discus with a throw of 93 feet. 

On the boys side we had two repeat champions, Columbus won the North division with 186 points and Mediapolis nearly won by 100 points in the South division with 190 points. 

Winfield-Mt. Union finished in third place in the North division with 120 points. Ty Scorpil won the 400-meter dash with a time of 51.76 seconds and 400-meter hurdles with a time of 58.11 seconds. Kolby Newsom grabbed the gold in the 800-meter run with a time of 2 minutes. The 800 sprint medley and distance medley teams finished with the win. Jake Edward leapt 6 feet to take the high jump and Cam Buffington won the long jump with a distance of 20 feet and 11 inches. 

WACO earned 67.5 points to finish in fifth place. Chase Waterhouse in the discus and Louden Huisenga in the high jump each grabbed second place.

For the South division, Mediapolis won 11 events. Solomon Zaugg won two events with first place finishes in the 1600 and 3200-meter runs. Nathan Schmidgall claimed the gold in the 400-meter dash and Logan Rosas won the 800-meter run. Grady Gunn hopped his way to a first place finish in the 110-meter hurdles. The Bulldogs won the 4×200, 4×400, 4×800, 4×110 meter shuttle hurdle, and distance medley relays. Lastly, Gavin Hallgren heaved the shot 42 feet and 4.5 inches to finish as the conference champion in the shot put.

Van Buren County finished in second place with 94 points followed by Danville (79 points), West Burlington (76 points), Central Lee (70 points), and New London (55 points). 

For the Warriors, Tyler Stoltz won the high jump and Cameron Stoltz took the discus. Danville’s Ayden Doyle grabbed gold in the 200-meter dash and the 4×100 meter relay team won with a time of 44.52 seconds. The Falcons had Landry Haberichter win the 100-meter dash, Logan Hamma took the 400-meter hurdles, and the 800 sprint medley team won with a time of 1 minute and 40 seconds. For the Tigers, London Franklin was the conference champ for the long jump with a leap of 21 feet and 6 inches. 

Danville, New London, WACO, Columbus, and Winfield-Mt. Union will travel to Sigourney for their state qualifying meet, while Mediapolis, West Burlington, Van Buren County, and Central Lee will head west to Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont for their meet on May 9th.

High School Soccer

Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union will travel to Wapello next Monday, May 6th, with the girls playing first at 5 pm.

The WACO boys’ team will host Danville tonight at 5 pm.

The Central Lee girls’ team had their game against Mid-Prairie canceled last night due to weather. The boys’ team will host Keokuk tonight at 7 pm and the girls’ team will take on Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union on Tuesday, May 7th, at home.

The Mediapolis girls’ team will take on Canton on May 6th. The boys’ team will wait for the Southeast Iowa Super Conference tournament on Tuesday. 

The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team fell to Burlington last night 4-2. Axel Noriega Ruiz scored both goals for the Panthers with Dylan White assisting on both plays. The girls’ team also lost to the Grayhounds last night 4-2. The Panthers will face off against Fort Madison on Monday with the boys’ team celebrating senior night at home and the girls’ team hitting the road. 

High School Tennis

Mt. Pleasant will compete on Monday, May 6th, in Fairfield with the girls’ team participating in the regionals and the boys’ playing in their district matches.

High School Golf. 

New London will host Danville, Holy Trinity Catholic, Winfield-Mt. Union, and WACO for their district meet. Central Lee, Van Buren County, and Mediapolis will take a trip to Mid-Prairie for districts on Tuesday, May 7th. 

The SEISC girls’ teams will participate in their conference meet on Monday, May 6th. 

The SEC boys’ teams will meet up on May 8th at Mt. Pleasant for sectionals with Albia, West Burlington/Notre Dame, and Mt. Vernon also competing.

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will compete in their SEC meet on May 8th. 

The Central Lee boys’ team will host a meet tomorrow, May 4th, with Van Buren County, Holy Trinity Catholic, and Burlington Notre Dame also making the trip. 

WACO will host Hillcrest Academy today.

Southeastern Community College

SCC baseball will travel to Indian Hills Community College today in a doubleheader.

SCC softball will host Indian Hills today in the semifinals of the ICCAC tournament. The winner will advance to the championship game to face off against #1 Iowa Western. 

This Day in Sports History

1910 – Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States is renamed the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

1936 – New York Yankee Joe DiMaggio makes his major-league debut, gets 3 hits.

2023 – MLB Los Angeles Angels pitcher Shohei Ohtani joins New York Yankee legend Babe Ruth as only pitcher to strike out 500 batters and hit over 100 career home runs in 6-4 win over the Cardinals in St. Louis.

Monthly Department Head Meeting

By Yorke Prough · Thursday, May 2nd, 2024 at 3:54 pm CDT

The monthly department head meeting at the Henry County Courthouse was held on Thursday morning. If you owe property taxes still, be expecting a letter from the Treasurer, and if you’re looking for a COVID shot, Henry County Public Health is out for now, so they are directing people to HyVee.

Emergency Management Director, Walt Jackson, spoke about the tornado that ripped through Southeast Iowa and thanked the Sheriff and road departments. He mentioned that we suffered heavy structural damage from the storm. A Henry County Sheriff car ran into a deer that same night, and the car was determined to be totaled. However, the same squad car was on its way to decommission anyway, so the storm and deer just combined to make it happen a little easier.

Early voting will begin on May 15th for the upcoming primaries on June 4th, according to the Henry County Auditor. That will take place in the conference room at the courthouse.

Just before adjournment, concerned citizens asked the Henry County Supervisors about a noticeable absentee from the department head meeting. Joe Buffington, Planning and Zoning Director, was missing from the meeting, although it was explained that he was at an appointment. Citizens pressed on, urging the Supervisors to meet with Buffington once a month from now on. The supervisors seemed to agree that this was a fair request. Joe Buffington is on the agenda for next Thursday, May 9th, to give a monthly update.

Another citizen in the crowd brought up employee timesheets in the county. Recently, a Human Resources Representative was asked to investigate allegations of the falsification of time records. After doing a thorough investigation, it was determined that out of 9 employees across two departments who were meant to work 7.5 hours on a day in question, 2 of those clocked less than 5 hours, one use accrued leave, three worked between 7.12 hours and 7.33, and two employees did not report to work at all. One employee worked 8.38 hours on that day. It seems further investigation is in the works.

Arts IMPACT Welcomes the Work of Arrin Kartel for May and June

By Yorke Prough · Thursday, May 2nd, 2024 at 2:55 pm CDT

Mount Pleasant Arts IMPACT is featuring the work of Arrin Kartel for the months of May and June at their mini art gallery located in the Mount Pleasant Public Library.

Kartel is a painter and illustrator based out of Southeast Iowa. She has been creating art since childhood. Alongside her practice as an artist, Arrin has studied and worked as a graphic designer for over 10 years.

The inspiration for Arrin’s art comes from plants and nature, patterns and color, and warm nostalgic feelings. She specializes in painting colorful, loosely painted landscapes and painterly still life scenes. As an illustrator, she produces imaginative images that are fun and lighthearted.

Arrin has worked with a wide variety of artistic mediums including acrylic paint, oil paint, wax pastels, oil pastels, printmaking, ceramics, and digital illustration.

Samplings of Kartel’s work are being exhibited through the end of June in the Mini Art Gallery located in the Mount Pleasant Public Library and viewable free of charge during regular library hours.

Mount Pleasant Arts IMPACT sponsors the Mini Gallery as an outreach to the residents of Henry County, introducing the public to the many talented artists in the Southeast Iowa area. Individuals interested in purchasing work from our local artists may contact the artists directly to discuss availability of their work.

 

Randy Dodds

By Yorke Prough · Thursday, May 2nd, 2024 at 10:57 am CDT

Randy Dodds, 73, of Ankeny, formerly of Mount Pleasant, died Wednesday, May 1, 2024, at his home.

Randy was born January 13, 1951, the son of Morton and Barbara (Hill) Dodds. He graduated from Mount Pleasant High School and continued his education at Northeast Missouri State University in Kirksville, Missouri. On January 26, 1990, Randy was united in marriage to Peggy Gray. The couple enjoyed 33 wonderful years of marriage. Randy’s father started Dodds Insurance Agency, where Randy sold health and life insurance. He attended the Trenton Missionary Church and The Ridge Church in Ankeny. Randy was an avid Dallas Cowboy and Iowa Hawkeye fan. He enjoyed cooking, fishing, and especially spending time with his family and friends.

Randy is survived by two sons Terry (Wyndie) Gholson of Ankeny, Travis Gholson of Mount Pleasant; daughter Belinda (Chuck) Allen of Mount Pleasant; six grandchildren Brady, Morgan, Madisyn Gholson, Lydia (Keegan) Pullis of Des Moines, Leah Allen of Mount Pleasant, Ethan Bever of Dubuque; a great grandson Noah Pullis; and a nephew Brandon Ha. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife Peggy, and a brother Kent Dodds.

Memorial service will be held 3:00 p.m. Wednesday, May 8, 2024, at the Olson-Powell Chapel and Crematory. Visitation will be from 2:00 p.m. until the time of service. A memorial fund has been established for Trenton Missionary Church. The Olson-Powell Chapel and Crematory is caring for Randy and his family. www.powellfuneralhomes.com

Anna Underwood

By Yorke Prough · Thursday, May 2nd, 2024 at 10:56 am CDT

Anna Mae Underwood, 92, of Mt. Pleasant, and formerly of New London and Carlisle, IA, died Wednesday, May 1, 2024 at Savannah Heights in Mt. Pleasant.

Anna Mae Conant was born December 2, 1931 in Carlisle. She was the daughter of Harry and Edith (Schooler) Conant. She graduated from Carlisle High School in 1949. In 1950, Anna was united in marriage to Tom J. Underwood. Mr. Underwood preceded Anna in death on November 4, 1999.

While her daughter was young, Anna was a stay at home mom. She then became a cook at the Carlise Care Center. She accepted the position as the Activities Director for the care center. While in that position, she acquired a van for the center and was instrumental in taking the residents to various activities. She retired from the care center. In retirement, however, she took on the responsibility of the Activities Director for the Independent Living section of the care facility.

Anna was a member of the Carlisle United Methodist Church. She belong with a group of ladies called T.G.G. (The Go-Getters) and also to a group called the Lunch Bunch. In 1985, Anna was named the Parade Marshall for the Carlisle Fourth of July Parade. When not participating in the activities of the center of her friends, Anna loved gardening and doting on her grandchildren, following them in all their activities.

Those thankful for sharing in Anna’s life include a daughter and her husband, Marcy & Steve Davis of Salem, IA; a brother and his wife, Charles “Chuck” & Karen Conant of Carlisle; 4 grandchildren – Chase, Casey, Justin & Sydney and 2 great grandchildren.

Her parents, husband Tom, a brother and his wife – Marvin & Carol Conant and a sister and her husband – Harriett & Jake Ellison, precede Anna in death.

Anna has donated her body to the University of Iowa Department of Anatomy & Physiology. A celebration of life will be held at a later date. Following the completion of her service to the University, her ashes will be interred at the Scotch Ridge Cemetery near Carlisle.

Those considering an expression of sympathy may direct memorials to the family for decisions to be made later. Online condolences may be directed to www.kimzeyfh.com.