Property Tax Credit Forms Available Now

By Hayden Douglas · Monday, February 3rd, 2025 at 9:37 am CDT

Iowa Property Tax Credit Claim Form, Iowa Special Assessment Credit Claim Form, and Iowa Mobile/Manufactured Homeowner Application for Reduced Tax Rate Form are available in the office of the Henry County Treasurer.  You can also find the 2025 forms on the Iowa Department of Revenue website https://tax.iowa.gov/forms  .  Anyone who has not received a Property Tax Credit or Mobile Home Reduced Tax Rate form in the mail may either download a form from the listed website or contact the Henry County Treasurer’s Office by phone 319-385-0763 or email treasurer@henrycountyiowa.us .

Residents with a total household income less than $26,219.00 may be eligible for these credits.

The Property Tax Credit is available to homeowners that meet the household income requirement and if one of the following applies:

  • 65 years of age or older as of December 31, 2024.
  • Totally disabled and age 18 to 64 as of December 31, 2024.

In 2022 new income provisions apply to persons 70 or older who meet certain income and number of household guidelines.  Henry County homeowners 70 or older are encouraged to obtain a form and apply.

The Mobile Home Reduced Tax Rate is available to residents that meet the household income requirement and were 23 years of age or older as of December 31, 2024.

Completed forms must be returned to the Treasurer’s office no later than June 1, 2025.

Individual Displayed Firearm During TRU REV MMA Event In Burlington

By Hayden Douglas · Monday, February 3rd, 2025 at 8:35 am CDT

On February 1, approximately 9:47 PM officers from the Burlington Police Department were provided information that there was an individual who displayed a firearm at another individual at the memorial auditorium during the True Rev MMA event.

Officers responded to the location and made contact with the individual and retrieved a black handgun.

The firearm was located and identified as a 9 mm handgun stolen out of Burlington.

The suspect was taken into custody and identified as Robert Walker.

Walker was transported to the Des Moines County jail and booked with the following charges:

  • Felon in possession of a firearm
  • theft in the fifth degree
  • public intoxication
  • carrying a dangerous weapon while intoxicated
  • assault while displaying a dangerous weapon.

Walker will be held with no bond.

Sports, February 3rd

By Slaten Swords · Monday, February 3rd, 2025 at 6:30 am CDT

High School Basketball

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team held strong for a half of play, but Mediapolis ran away with the 64-48 victory over the weekend behind 39 second half points. Abi Shelangoski led the Panthers with 12 points, while Abby Carthey collected an 11 point/11 rebound double-double. The Bulldogs had Ellah Wagenbach tab 18 points. 

The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team could not parlay Friday’s conference win into consecutive victories as Mediapolis pulled off a 71-50 win. Aiden Humble touted 18 points for the Panthers, while Will Luttenegger tallied 19 points in the win. 

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will host Fairfield tomorrow, February 4th, at the Mt. Pleasant Central Campus at 7:30 pm. 

The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team will travel to Keokuk on Friday, February 7th, with tip-off at 7:30 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call. 

Burlington Notre Dame split their non-conference showdown with Fort Madison over the weekend with the girls’ team falling 44-28 and the boys’ team sneaking away with a 59-54 win. Daisy Hazell scored seven points for the Nikes in the girls’ game, while the boys’ team buried 21 free throws with Shay Stephens leading the scoring with 18 points. Burlington Notre Dame will take on Regina Catholic tomorrow at home with game one at 6 pm. 

The Van Buren County boys’ team lost to Clark County over the weekend 71-64. 

Central Lee was swept by Keokuk over the weekend with the girls losing 69-28 and the boys falling 67-38. 

The New London girls’ team will celebrate senior night tonight against Cardinal at 7:30 pm, while the boys’ team will face off against Twin Cedars tomorrow at 7:30 pm at home for senior night. 

West Burlington will compete tomorrow against Burlington with game time at 6 pm.

Columbus will face off against Pekin tomorrow with the night starting at 6 pm.  

WACO will host Winfield-Mt. Union tomorrow with game one at 6 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 5:45 pm. 

The Fairfield boys’ team will face off against Holy Trinity Catholic tomorrow at home with tip-off at 7:30 pm.

The Southeast Iowa Super Conference shootout will tip-off on Thursday, February 6th, for the girls and Friday for the boys. 

High School Wrestling

The Southeast Iowa Super Conference tournament commenced over the weekend and Burlington Notre Dame regained the crown with a dominating 309 points, while Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union finished with 156.5 points for a distant second place.

The Nikes had nine individual conference champions in Kohen Dietzenbach, Rowan Berndt, Colt Boyles, Jared Glendening, CJ Davis, Kaiden Dietzenbach, Kael Cook, Dirk Boyles, and Blake Wilson as they all went 3-0.

The Wildcats were led by the Zapiensz’s as Markel took the crown in the 215-pound weight class and Itai finished with the gold in the 285-pound weight class. Bowen Thomson took home the silver in the 132-pound weight class. 

Mediapolis finished in fourth place overall as Kyler Crow continued his undefeated season in the 175-pound weight class with a win by fall in the championship match. 

WACO’s trio led the charge as Louden Huisenga took the crown in the 190-pound weight class. Gage Samo and Ian Maize grabbed second place in their respective weight classes, as Maize lost on a tiebreaker to Kohen Dietzenbach.

Wapello’s lone conference champion was Cohen Wolford with a 12-7 decision win over Tate Sherwood of Burlington Notre Dame in the 144-pound weight class. Elijah Westercamp took third place for Van Buren County and New London had Gage Burden and Gavin Menke-Bailey claim second place in their respective weight classes. 

The Fairfield boys’ team hosted the Southern Iowa Classic over the weekend and ended with the team high in points with 194, while Mt. Pleasant grabbed 4th place with 151.5 points. 

For the Trojans, six wrestlers captured the gold in their respective weight classes in Cael McCabe, Aiden Westercamp, Zandrik Allison, Cason Miller, Dain Burkhart, and Dre Smithburg. 

The Panthers were led by Ramzy Davis (150-pound weight class) and Payton Walker (190-pound weight class) as both wrestlers collected 4-0 records and first place in their respective weight classes. 

The boys’ district meet is scheduled for Saturday, February 15th, with Van Buren County, WACO, and Wapello traveling to Pleasantville and New London will head to Wilton in Class 1A. For Class 2A, Burlington Notre Dame, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, and Fairfield will compete in Centerville and Mt. Pleasant and Mediapolis will venture to Williamsburg. 

The girls’ state tournament is scheduled to begin on Thursday, February 6th, in Coralville. KILJ will be giving live updates, following our 20 local wrestlers throughout the tournament. 

The matchups for the boys’ regional dual has been set and scheduled for tomorrow, February 4th, at 6 pm with the top eight teams moving on to the State Dual Tournament on Saturday, February 8th, in Coralville. 

In Class 2A at Davenport Assumption, #12 Burlington Notre Dame will face off against #11 Mount Vernon in the semifinals with the winner moving on to face #6 Assumption to see who will advance to state. 

Dan Gable Ms. and Mr. Wrestler of the Year

 IAwrestle and Iowa Corn in coordination with the Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association (IWCOA) has released the top 15 wrestlers for the Dan Gable Ms. and Mr. Wrestler of the Year Awards and southeast Iowa has three competitors in the running.

In Class 1A, WACO’s Louden Huisenga is a strong contender for the award at the 190-pound weight class. He has compiled a 25-0 record against fellow 190-pound contenders.

Over in Class 2A, Kaiden Dietzenbach of Burlington Notre Dame is back in the top 15 after being placed on the list last year. The Nike is continuing his reign of terror on the area in the 138-pound weight class with a perfect 27-0 record, so far through his senior campaign.

Fairfield’s Cael McCabe is also up for the award in Class 2A as the junior boasts a 22-2 record in the 113-pound weight class. McCabe has won the Bob Murphy and Bill Van Horn Invitationals this season.

Fans can vote once per list at Facebook.com/IAwrestle for their favorite wrestler in each category until February 9th, when the list will be narrowed down to the top 7. The next round of voting, from February 10th to February 23rd, will determine the top 3 finalists, with the winner announced at the banquet on February 27th at the Fareway Conference Center in Boone, Iowa, on February 27th at 11:30AM.

High School Bowling

Fairfield will host a triangular at home today.

Mt. Pleasant will travel to Keokuk tomorrow, February 4th. 

The girls’ state qualifying meets are scheduled for Monday, February 17th, and Fairfield and West Burlington will compete at Davis County, while Mt. Pleasant will travel to Keokuk. 

The boys’ state qualifying meets will take place on Tuesday, February 18th, and Mt. Pleasant will make the trip to Keokuk to compete. 

Southeastern Community College

The men’s basketball team lost to Triton College over the weekend 71-60. The Blackhawks will travel to Marshalltown Community College on Wednesday, February 5th, with tip-off at 7 pm. 

College Basketball

The #3 Iowa State men’s team suffered an embarrassing upset over the weekend, losing 80-61 to unranked Kansas State. Tamin Lipsey scored 20 points in the loss. The Cyclones will be tasked with #11 Kansas tonight on the road with game time at 8 pm.

The Iowa men’s team will compete against Purdue tomorrow, February 4th, at home at 6 pm. 

It was a perfect day for the Iowa women’s team, not only did the Hawkeyes celebrate Caitlin Clark by retiring her jersey, they also knocked off #4 USC 76-69. Lucy Olsen led the effort with 28 points. Iowa will travel to Minnesota on Thursday, February 6th, at 7 pm. 

The Iowa State women’s team gave #9 TCU all they had over the weekend, but it was not enough in an 82-69 loss at the hands of the Horned Frogs. Addy Brown dropped a career high 31 points with Audi Crooks following behind with 29 points of her own. The Cyclones will take on Cincinnati on Wednesday, February 5th, at 5:30 pm on the road. 

This Day in Sports History

1876 – Albert Spalding invests $800 to start a sporting goods company, manufacturing the first official baseball, tennis ball, basketball, golf ball and football.

2008 – Super Bowl XLII, University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, AZ: the New York Giants upset the New England Patriots, 17-14; MVP: Eli Manning, New York, QB. Thus, ending the Patriots bid for a perfect season.

2013 – Super Bowl XLVII, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, New Orleans, LA: the Baltimore Ravens beat the San Francisco 49ers, 34-31; MVP: Joe Flacco, Baltimore, QB. First Super Bowl loss in 49ers history.

Gov. Reynolds Released statement on the passing of Iowa State Rep. Martin Gruber

By Hayden Douglas · Monday, February 3rd, 2025 at 6:07 am CDT

Friday, Gov. Reynolds issued the following statement on the passing of Iowa State Rep. Martin Gruber of Lee County, IA:

“Kevin and I are heartbroken at the loss of our friend and colleague Representative Martin Graber. He served with distinction not only as a representative for his constituents in the Iowa House, but also as a career soldier in the Iowa National Guard where he held the rank of Brigadier General (Retired).  He was passionate about his community, his family, and his faith. Martin was the best of us, and we send our heartfelt condolences to his wife of 49 years, Coni, his daughters, and his grandchildren.”

Graber was 72 years old. He represented House District 100. He was first elected to the Iowa House in 2020.

James K. Meyer

By Hayden Douglas · Monday, February 3rd, 2025 at 6:01 am CDT

James K. Meyer, 87 of Wayland, IA, passed away Thursday, January 30, 2025, at Halcyon House in Washington, surrounded by his family. 

 Funeral Services have been set for 11:00 AM Wednesday, February 5, 2025, at the Wayland Mennonite Church with Micheal Swartzendruber officiating. Burial will follow at the North Hill Cemetery. Live-streaming of the service will be on the Beatty-Peterseim Funeral Home Facebook page and YouTube channel.  Visitation will begin at 2:00 PM, Tuesday, February 4, 2025, at the Wayland Mennonite Church with the family present from 4:00-6:00 PM. Beatty-Peterseim Funeral Home is assisting with arrangements. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the North Hill Cemetery and the Wayland Fire and Rescue Unit.

 Jim was born July 9, 1937, in Wayland, IA to Allen (Bill) and Mildred (Kauffman) Meyer. He spent most of his life in the Wayland community. He was a graduate of Wayland High School and attended Iowa State University and Iowa Wesleyan College. While at Iowa State University, He enlisted in the Army Reserves in March 1956 and later joined the 495th Combat Engineering Battalion (Company B) Middleton, IA. In 1961, the battalion was called to active duty, moving the family to Fort Leonard Wood, MO and later Camp McCoy in WI.

 Following active duty, Jim spent his career farming in the Wayland area. After retirement, Jim worked at WACO Community Schools and was a strong advocate for education for all.

 On October 25, 1958, Jim was united in marriage to Norma Messer, they made their home for nearly 60 years west of Wayland. During their marriage, they welcomed two children, a son Todd and daughter Julie, both of Wayland, IA.

 Jim enjoyed being part of a small community, visiting and helping friends and neighbors whenever possible. He loved spending time with his family, attending and watching Iowa Hawkeye sporting events and the Green Bay Packers. He also enjoyed music, especially polka and accordion music. 

 Jim is survived by his two children, Todd (Deanna) Meyer and Julie Meyer, Wayland. Brother Richard (Bev) Meyer of Meeker, CO. Grandchildren Jill Meyer, North Liberty, IA, Jennifer (Mike) Giudici, Bettendorf, IA, Joel (Morgan) Meyer, Wayland and five great-grandchildren; Isabella, Grace, and Rose Giudici and Lincoln and Cole Meyer. 

 Jim was preceded in death by his beloved wife Norma, parents Bill and Mildred Meyer, and an infant sister.

Marie Margaret Hainline

By Hayden Douglas · Monday, February 3rd, 2025 at 5:58 am CDT

Marie Margaret Hainline, wife, mother, grandmother, great & great great grandmother & friend to many, went to her Heavenly Home February 1, 2025, at the age of 101, at the Keosauqua Care Center, Keosauqua, Iowa where she has resided since December 2023. Funeral services will begin at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, February 7, 2025, at the Cranston Family Funeral Home in Keosauqua, IA. Burial will be in the Bonaparte Cemetery in Bonaparte, IA immediately following the service. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. Memorial contributions in Marie’s honor may be directed to the Bonaparte First Responders or to the Bonaparte Cemetery Association and mailed c/o Cranston Family Funeral Home, P.O. Box 189, Fairfield, IA 52556. Friends may leave online condolences or join the livestream at www.cranstonfamilyfuneralhome.com.

Marie was born in Stockport, lowa at home to Harm Harms Overlander and Grace (Ommen) Overlander on May 25, 1923. Marie graduated from Stockport High School in 1940. After high school she worked for various families cleaning and taking in ironing, some of which took her to Bonaparte where she met Bruce Hainline, and they fell in love. Bruce enlisted in the Marine Corp and was stationed in Oceanside, California. Love is strong and Marie’s adventurous side kicked in and she boarded a train and off to California she went. This, too, was an adventure for a young woman from Iowa who had barely been out of the County. There are stories too numerous to mention of her train ride and early days in Oceanside. Marie and Bruce were married July 7. 1943, before Bruce was to ship out. Now was the war: WWII. Marie would return to lowa. Four children were born to that union.

In Marie’s life she lived on a farm with all that farming can bring. It sometimes brings the unexpected and Bruce was badly injured in a car accident which left the farming burden on Marie’s shoulders. Unexpectedly again, a new door opened, and Marie became the owner/operator of Hainline Custodial Home 1956-1973.  Marie nurtured, cared for and served others throughout her life. Marie worked at the Van Buren County Home. Marie cared for others in the same facility where she spent the final months of her life; then known as Good Sam Care Facility. Marie continued her life of service by helping Rose & Ben at the Bonaparte Retreat. Marie never met a stranger and assumed the best in everyone. Marie made fast, life-long friends in her years there and took pleasure in being known as the Oldest Waitress in Iowa.  Marie had a hidden talent: that of an actress. Marie enjoyed her roles in several plays as a star or villain. Marie enjoyed reading, was somewhat of a self-diagnosing, non-trained doctor as she often consulted her medical book for aches and pains. She was passionate about the Cubbies and the Golden State Warriors. Anyone who knew her would agree. Marie hosted Christmas Eve day dinners for her family for many years and delighted in giving gift bags filled with goodies to all who were able to come…and those who were unable to be there would still receive contents of the gift bags.

Left to honor her memory, children: Linda Sweatman (Carl); Steven Hainline (Sandra); Melody Unkrich (Lonnie); 10 Grandchildren, 21 Great-Grandchildren, 7 Great-great Grandchildren with one addition she will not have the privilege to meet. Many nieces, nephews, family and friends.

Marie was preceded in death by her parents Harm and Grace Overlander; husband Bruce Hainline; daughter Merri Christy Hainline: 3 Sisters Heika Overlander; Christina (Stina) Murray (Floyd); Mattie Van Patten (Frank); 1 brother Henry Overlander (Mildred); several nieces and nephews. Pallbearers: Jason Snyder, Andy Bartholomew, Brandon Hainline, Lyle Clark, Shawn Phillips, Travis Phillips, Dustin Phillips. Honorary Pallbearer: Scott Robson.

Ottumwa Driver Arrested on Multiple Charges

By Hayden Douglas · Monday, February 3rd, 2025 at 5:52 am CDT

On January 28th, 2025, at approximately 11:03PM a Henry County Deputy Sheriff observed a passenger vehicle traveling eastbound on Highway 34 near the Westwood exit ramp (mile marker 230). The vehicle had an improper registration lamp. The Deputy followed the car approximately 2 miles observing it sway within its lane and driving on the center line.

A traffic stop was performed on the vehicle at mile marker 233 on Highway 34. The driver was identified as Valentin Morales-Hernandez, 47 of Ottumwa. Valentin’s driving status in Iowa was found to be suspended. Valentin was subsequently arrested for Driving Under Suspension, a simple misdemeanor, and received a written warning for an Improper Registration Lamp.

***A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendants are

presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.***