Mount Pleasant’s City Wide Garage Sales Digital Map is Out!

By Hayden Douglas · Wednesday, August 20th, 2025 at 12:27 pm CDT

City Wide Garage Sales are coming to Mount Pleasant August 21st–24th, and you won’t want to miss it!

Thanks to Root & Pixel, shoppers can now explore an awesome interactive map to help plan their treasure hunting routes. This tool makes it easier than ever to find the best bargains all around town.

A big thank you goes out to Meadow & Main Realty and Auction for making this community event possible.

Mark your calendars, grab some cash, and get ready to shop—Mount Pleasant’s City Wide Garage Sales are almost here!

City Wide Garage Sale Map!

Mt. Pleasant Community Schools Shares Bus Information Access

By Hayden Douglas · Wednesday, August 20th, 2025 at 8:24 am CDT

With the start of the school year just around the corner, Mt. Pleasant Community School District is reminding families how to access their student’s bus information.

Parents and guardians can view bus routes, pick-up, and drop-off details through the district’s Parent App.

To get started, families can download the app at: https://IAMtPleasantComSD.myridek12.tylerapp.com/

Burlington Trailways Ending Intercity Bus Routes, Depot to Close in September

By Hayden Douglas · Wednesday, August 20th, 2025 at 8:10 am CDT

Burlington Trailways has announced it will shut down its West Burlington bus depot and discontinue all scheduled intercity routes at the end of the day on September 27.

The company confirmed the decision Tuesday afternoon, saying rising costs and federal funding challenges made rural intercity bus service financially unsustainable. Despite the closure, Burlington Trailways emphasized that it is not bankrupt and will continue to provide other services.

Tours and charters will remain in operation through September 30, and company officials noted that charters could extend into 2026, depending on the outcome of a pending auto insurance quote. An answer on that request is expected by October 1.

“If any service has to be canceled, passengers will be contacted and refunded,” the company’s statement said.

Officials pointed to several reasons behind the decision, including outdated federal grant formulas under the 5311(f) program, instability in partnerships with other carriers, and the high cost of bus insurance.

While the West Burlington depot will close, Burlington Trailways’ Division Street office will remain open.

Ron and Lori Moore, who have owned the company since 1981, released a statement expressing gratitude to the region for nearly a century of support.

“It has been an honor to serve our community, while we are deeply saddened by the discontinuation of our intercity scheduled route service, we are committed to continuing our tour, charter, and garage services as long as possible. We wish our employees the best in their future endeavors. Without their hard work and dedication, none of our accomplishments would have been possible.”

Founded in 1929, Burlington Trailways has been a familiar name in Southeast Iowa for generations, carrying passengers across the region and beyond.

Sports, August 20th

By Slaten Swords · Wednesday, August 20th, 2025 at 6:34 am CDT

High School Girls’ Tennis

Mt. Pleasant will travel to Keokuk tomorrow, August 21st.

Fairfield will stay on the road to compete against Burlington tomorrow.

High School Volleyball

Winfield-Mt. Union will travel to West Liberty on Friday, August 22nd, for a scrimmage.

The season will officially get underway on Monday, August 25th, around the state of Iowa and WACO will ring in the new season by hosting a tournament with Columbus, Van Buren County, and Burlington Notre Dame making the trip.

High School Cross Country

Columbus will be holding a Run-A-Thon fundraiser at the Columbus Community High School Track tomorrow, August 21st, from 4 to 6 pm to raise money for new uniforms and warmups. If you would like to donate, then find a member of the Columbus cross country team. 

Meet the Players Night

Mt. Pleasant hosted their “Meet the Panthers” event last night, which gave the community the opportunity to see who will be representing the fall sports teams and an inside look at football practice for the Panthers. The first teams introduced were the girls’ and boys’ cross country teams, a week after their annual team camp: a chance to build on times and team camaraderie according to boys’ head coach Mitch Anderson,

“Yeah, we, we love having that. It’s one of the most fun things we do all season long… It’s a chance for them to bond when we have them exclusively, which doesn’t really happen once you know the school year gets going. So yeah, it’s a great experience and a great way to kick off the season.”

 For girls’ head coach Lyle Murray, there’s some exciting talent on the roster to keep an eye on for the season,

“I think on the girls’ side, Quintrie Lee coming back, you know, she state qualified last year. Nelle Peterson is our lone senior and she’s been just a, you know, steady presence all the way through. And then Avery Fedler coming up from 8th grade, you know, we know how well she did at the middle school level and we’re excited to see how well she can do at the high school level.”

Both cross country teams will start the season in Williamsburg for an invitational on September 2nd. 

Winfield-Mt. Union will hold their Meet the Players night tomorrow, August 21st, at 6:30 pm located at the Winfield-Mt. Union track. There will be a free will donation dinner starting at 5:50 pm.

Danville will host their Meet the Players on Friday, August 22nd, with the volleyball and football teams scrimmaging against Mt. Pleasant. 

Southeastern Community College

The women’s soccer team will kick off the year tomorrow, August 21st, against Black Hawk College on the road. 

The volleyball team will get the season started with the Opening Weekend Tournament, starting on Friday, August 22nd, with their first opponent being Schoolcraft College. 

The men’s soccer team will square off against Oakton Community College on Friday at home.

College Football

#22 Iowa State will start the season in Ireland on Saturday, August 23rd, with a showdown against #17 Kansas State at 11 am. KILJ 98.5 FM and AM 1130 will be on the call with the pregame show at 9 am.

Two Cyclones were added to award watch lists yesterday as Caleb Bacon eyes the 2025 College Football Comeback Player of the Year and Rocco Becht tacks another watch list to his preseason total with the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, which is presented annually to the top senior or upperclassman quarterback who is on track to graduate with their class.

Bacon was sidelined after a season-ending injury in the opening game last year. The walk-on linebacker earned a scholarship after his play in the 2023 season saw him collect the second most tackles on the team with 60, along with three sacks, six tackles for loss, and a forced fumble. 

This Day in Sports History

1900 – Great Britain beats France by 158 runs in Paris; cricket’s only appearance at an Olympic Games.

1919 – Wichita outfielder Joe Wilhoit (Western League) fails to get a hit, ending a 69-game streak (155 hits in 299 at bats for .505 average). The longest in minor league history.

1920 – The American Professional Football Association forms with Jim Thorpe as president; later becomes the National Football League (NFL).

Rail Crossing at Oakberry Ave. and 250th St. Closed for Repairs

By Hayden Douglas · Tuesday, August 19th, 2025 at 1:57 pm CDT

BNSF Railway crews are currently making repairs to the rail crossing at Oakberry Avenue and 250th Street in New London.

As a result, the crossing will be closed to traffic for the remainder of this week. Drivers are encouraged to plan alternate routes and use caution in the area.

The work is part of BNSF’s ongoing maintenance efforts to ensure the safety and reliability of rail infrastructure.

This information was provided by the Henry County Engineer’s Office.

 

Defense Department Awards $635 Million Contract for Expansion at Iowa Army Ammunition Plant

By Hayden Douglas · Tuesday, August 19th, 2025 at 11:03 am CDT

MIDDLETOWN – A major investment is coming to the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant (IAAP) in Middletown, Iowa. The U.S. Department of Defense announced Friday that the Army Contracting Command at Rock Island, Illinois, has signed a $635.2 million agreement with MSM Group North America to add a new production line at the facility.

The project calls for the Florida-based company to design, construct, and bring online a load, assemble, and pack facility at IAAP. The contract was funded through Army allocations in the Fiscal Year 2024 and 2025 defense budgets.

Only one bid was received for the project, which carries an estimated completion date of August 10, 2029.

IAAP has been in operation since World War II, when it opened in 1941 under the name Iowa Ordnance Plant. Today, it remains a cornerstone of U.S. military readiness, manufacturing medium- and large-caliber ammunition for the Department of Defense.

AT THIS TIME: KILJ News is waiting response from Joint Munitions Command out of Rock Island for a response on this expansion. More details will be released as they develop.

Prep Cross Country: Preseason Team and Player Rankings Place Several Local Teams in the Top 10

By Slaten Swords · Tuesday, August 19th, 2025 at 9:13 am CDT

Prep Cross Country- The Iowa Association of Track Coaches released their preseason team and individual rankings yesterday and eight of our local teams found themselves in the top 20, including four teams listed in the top 10.

Class 3A

In Class 3A for the boys’ teams, Washington was the lone team ranked from the Southeast Conference, entering the season at #7.

The Demons scored 219 points at the state meet last year and will lose out on Tyler Alderton, a top 30 runner in the rankings all last year and at the state meet as he took 28th place.

They will return #9 Andrew Rees, as he turned in the best time for the team at Fort Dodge at 16 minutes and 20 seconds, which was good enough for 13th place. His partner in crime will be #26 Sawyer Tschantz, as a junior he finished 41st at state. A young core that finished in the low 100s at state last season should help improve the team score.

On the girls’ side for Class 3A, Fort Madison was ranked 8th and Washington snuck in at #20. The Bloodhounds will be led by Avery Rump, who took 45th place last season at the state meet as the only member to attend. She will continue her rivalry with Washington’s #28 Iris Dahl, who finished in 32nd.

The reason for only mentioning Dahl for Washington is the team that took 12th place at state last year accrued 240 of their 265 points from seniors: Kendall Hinrichsen, Lauren Horak, Alyvia Anderson, and Quincy Griffis. The next Demon to finish that will return is Angeline Anderson, who finished in 120th place.

Class 2A

The Mediapolis boys’ team took the #13 slot in the Class 2A rankings. The Bulldogs bring back all three of their state qualifiers from last season, including top 35 finisher #16 Simon Wendel.

Surprisingly, Will Schmidgall, who was individually ranked for most of last season as a sophomore, was left off the preseason top 30 list after finishing in 85th place at state last season. Mason Lindeen will also look to uplift the Bulldogs.

On the girls’ side, Kaitlyn Kipp of Notre Dame/West Burlington enters the season ranked as the 30th best runner in the state. The junior clinched 47th place at state as a sophomore with a time of 20 minutes and 44 seconds.

Class 1A

Over in Class 1A for the boys’, Van Buren County was placed at #6, followed by Columbus at #8. WACO was slotted in at #16.

The Wildcats actually finished above the Warriors, 12th versus 13th, at the state meet last year, but graduated their top runner in Ty Muniz, while the Warriors will get #15 Lincoln Bainbridge, who finished 27th at state last year, back to lead the squad.

Nevertheless, the top returning finisher for southeast Iowa was WACO’s #11 Jude Dykstra, as he looks to build upon his 19th place finish at state for his senior season.

Lastly, the Danville girls’ team starts the year ranked 16th in Class 1A. The Bears will be led by Alaina Gourley in her senior campaign. Gourley was kept out of the preseason top 30. Helping her out will be Delaney Newberry, as she finished in the top 100 at state last year.

Iowa Crop Progress: Scattered Rainfall Provides Favorable Conditions

By Hayden Douglas · Tuesday, August 19th, 2025 at 8:16 am CDT

Scattered precipitation across Iowa gave farmers 5.1 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending August 17, 2025, according to the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. Field activities included oat and hay harvests, along with limited reports of fungicide and insecticide applications.

Moisture levels remained favorable across most of the state. Topsoil moisture was rated 72 percent adequate and 26 percent surplus, with only 2 percent short. Subsoil moisture mirrored the trend, with 73 percent adequate and 23 percent surplus.

Corn development continued steadily, with nearly all fields silking. Corn in the dough stage reached 78 percent, slightly behind last year and the five-year average, while 27 percent of corn had entered the dent stage, on pace with historical trends. Overall corn condition was rated 86 percent good to excellent.

Soybeans were also progressing well, with 96 percent of fields blooming and 83 percent setting pods. Crop condition was rated 82 percent good to excellent. Oat harvest was nearly complete, with 91 percent of the crop harvested.

Hay and pasture conditions reflected the season’s favorable rainfall. The third cutting of alfalfa reached 65 percent complete, while pastures were rated 83 percent good to excellent. Frequent rains extended grazing opportunities, and livestock were generally reported in good condition, though some stress was noted from heat and humidity.