MP Utilities Announced Water/Electric Meter Replacement

By Allison Jacobs · Saturday, September 28th, 2024 at 6:04 am CDT

Mt. Pleasant Municipal Utilities announced on Friday that they will be upgrading most water and electric meters city-wide.  The water meter changes will require the customer to be available, as these meters are located inside the structure.    The utilities office will be calling to schedule an appointment with residents when they are in your area and as the time for replacement comes closer.  They are expecting to start sometime in October.

Advanced metering Infrastructure, or AMI, is an integrated, fixed-network system that enables two-way communications between utilities and customers.  It provides utility companies with the ability to monitor electricity and water usage in real time.

AMI Systems can help customers manage their energy consumption effectively.  MP Utilities says that if the data points to excessive water use patterns, the information will be helpful with troubleshooting and reduction in repair times.  AMI can also help utilities pinpoint the location of the outage, enabling quicker response.

Bicycle Crash-One Person Injured

By Allison Jacobs · Saturday, September 28th, 2024 at 6:03 am CDT

The Henry County Sheriff’s Department, Henry County EMS, and the New London Fire Department responded to a bicycle crash at about 9:30am on Thursday morning (9/26/24) in the 2400 grid of Highway 34 East of Mt. Pleasant.  One person was transported via ambulance from the scene and the accident remains under investigation.

Please contact the Henry County Sheriff’s Office if you have any information regarding this crash.  319-385-2712

Local High School Football Scores (Week 5)

By Slaten Swords · Friday, September 27th, 2024 at 11:59 pm CDT

8-Player

(5-1) WACO 44, (2-3) Easton Valley 15

(3-2) Winfield-Mt. Union 60, (1-4) English Valleys 18

(1-4) New London 54, (0-6) HLV 38

Class A

(3-2) Danville 42, (2-3) Wapello 13

(2-3) Columbus 48, (2-3) Highland 14

Class 2A

(4-1) West Burlington/Notre Dame 21, (2-3) Mediapolis 19

(3-2) Albia 14, (4-1) Central Lee 0

(2-3) Mid-Prairie 48, (3-2) Davis County 3

Class 3A

(4-1) Mt. Vernon 59, (2-3) Mt. Pleasant 0

(4-1) Washington 35, (2-3) Keokuk 0

(1-4) Assumption 42, (0-5) Fort Madison 19

(3-2) Benton 29, (1-4) Fairfield 14

Class 4A

(4-1) North Scott 38, (2-3) Burlington 0

Martha Louise Galbraith

By Allison Jacobs · Friday, September 27th, 2024 at 3:48 pm CDT

Martha Louise Galbraith, 87, of Burlington, Iowa, formerly of West Point, Iowa, passed away at 11:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 25, 2024, at the Henry County Health Center in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa.

She was born on November 27, 1936, in Fort Madison, Iowa, the daughter of John D. and Florence (Boeddeker) Hogan. On November 28, 1964, she married Russell Worly Galbraith. They later divorced.

She is survived by her three daughters: Audra (Todd) Gerleman of Lockridge, Iowa, Carolyn Galbraith of New London, Iowa, Sheila Galbraith – Hull of Fort Madison, Iowa; one son: Michael (Jennifer) Galbraith of Homer Glen, Illinois; nine grandchildren: Alexandria and Liam Gerleman, Colter LeMoyne, Cameron and Josie Zeller, Adrianna Galbraith and Elizabeth Hull, Linden and Sloane Galbraith; sisters: Mary Scheetz, Cecelia Richards, as well as several nieces and nephews, all of whom were special to her.

She was preceded in death by her parents; four sisters: Alberta Wetherill, Irene Parrot, Margaret Haas, Cleta Beimer; three brothers: George, John D. and Bernard Hogan.

Martha attended the Burlington Beauty Academy. Following her schooling, she worked at salons in Houghton and Fort Madison. She then, ran a hair salon out of her home until she retired. She lastly was employed by Sears.

Martha was a lifelong Catholic. A highlight of her life was when she and her sister saw Pope John Paul II in Des Moines. She enjoyed gardening, bowling, shopping, playing cards, dancing in her younger years, traveling, family get togethers and time spent with her grandchildren, whom she adored.

A graveside service will be held at 2:30 p.m. Monday, September 30, 2024, at Denmark Cemetery  in Denmark, Iowa with Father Dan Dorau officiating.

Burial will be at Denmark Cemetery.

A memorial has been established in her memory.

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

The General Election is November 5th. Do You Have a Plan to Vote?

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 27th, 2024 at 9:18 am CDT

Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate is reminding every Iowa voter to have a plan in place to be successful in casting their ballot this election. Whether you plan to vote absentee by mail, early absentee in-person, or in person at the polls on Election Day, it’s never too early to make a plan.

Those who plan to vote absentee by mail should be prepared to request their absentee ballot by October 21, 2024. Part of that plan should also include tracking your absentee ballot. Iowans can visit VoterReady.Iowa.Gov to track their ballot. This process allows Iowa voters to see if and when their local county auditor has received the absentee ballot request, the specific date that the ballot was mailed out, and the date the county auditor received the ballot back from the voter. Iowa law requires absentee ballots to be returned to the county auditor’s office by the time polls close at 8pm on Election Day, Tuesday, November 5.

In efforts to remind Iowans to head to the polls, political parties and candidates may send voters “absentee ballot request” mailings. In some instances, this may result in one voter receiving multiple mailings regarding absentee ballot requests. County auditors have a number of procedures in place to ensure that if multiple absentee ballot requests do come in from one voter, only one absentee ballot will be mailed out. Iowans are encouraged to call their county auditor if they have any specific questions regarding this process.

Iowa voters who plan to vote early absentee in-person can do so at their county auditor’s office or a special satellite location. Voters who plan to vote in-person at their polling site on Election Day can find their polling site at VoterReady.Iowa.Gov. Every voter who votes in person must present their voter ID (Iowa driver’s license, voter identification card, non-operator ID, military or veteran ID, passport, or tribal ID card/document).

Iowa’s election integrity approach requires multiple layers and following Iowa law and election procedures are critical to maintaining safe and secure elections.

If Iowans are looking for additional information on this process and other voting processes, please visit VotingProcess.Iowa.Gov for a video series about different voting procedures and laws in Iowa.

Sports, September 27th

By Slaten Swords · Friday, September 27th, 2024 at 6:30 am CDT

High School Football

Mt. Pleasant will stay on the road to compete against Mt. Vernon tonight at 7:15 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 7 pm.

Columbus will attempt to right the ship at home tonight against Highland with kickoff set for 7 pm. 

Mediapolis will square off against West Burlington/Notre Dame at home tonight at 7:30 pm. 

Fairfield starts their district play against Benton tonight at 7 pm at home. 

Danville will host Wapello tonight at 7 pm. 

WACO will travel to Easton Valley tonight at 7 pm. Starting quarterback Clayton Miller knows the defense will have to be on top of their game,

“They’re young and they’re explosive, they have a lot of fast people. And we’re just going to defend the pass. They like to spread it out and pass through the air and backside routes. And so, it’s going to be a tough one, but we’re going to get it done.”

Winfield-Mt. Union will hit the road to take on English Valleys at 7 pm tonight. 

New London will look to pick up their first win of the season tonight at home against HLV with kickoff at 7 pm. 

Central Lee will look to stay undefeated for the season against Albia tonight at 7:30 pm at home. 

High School Volleyball

The Southeast Iowa Super Conference (SEISC) held their conference tournament pool play last night with #4 Holy Trinity Catholic, Lone Tree, Mediapolis, and Pekin hosting the four sites with eight teams advancing to the tournament finals. Here’s how everything shook out. 

In pool 1, the Crusaders entered the tournament having won their classic earlier this week without dropping a set and they replicated the feat last night to win their pool. In their six sets only two of their opponents managed double-digit points as the Crusaders downed Louisa-Muscatine (21-4, 21-7), Hillcrest Academy (21-12, 21-4), and Van Buren County (21-9, 21-17). Anna Bendlage made her money from the service line, finishing with a team leading 7 aces, while Presley Myers claimed 15 kills and four blocks.

Hillcrest Academy would earn a ticket to the conference finals after going 2-1 last night to finish as the pool’s runner-up. 

At Lone Tree, Class 2A’s #10 West Burlington handled business, defeating Lone Tree (21-3, 21-12), Central Lee (21-12, 21-9), and Winfield-Mt. Union (21-10, 21-8) without dropping a set, exiting as the winner of pool 2. 

In a battle for runner-up, Central Lee came out on top, picking up a sweep of Lone Tree (21-18, 21-18) and sneaking out with a three-set thriller against Winfield-Mt. Union (21-19, 23-25, 15-10). Kenna Sandoval tabbed 47 assists and 10 blocks for the Hawks, while Taylor Jones led the squad with 19 kills.  

In the only five-team pool, Mediapolis did not let an extra game stand in their way of sweeping all four of their competitors in WACO (21-2, 21-8), New London (21-13, 21-10), Columbus (21-18, 21-7), and Highland (21-18, 21-15). Bryn Wright tabbed 50 assists and six aces, Josie Hutcheson led the team with 18 kills, and Maycie Thornburg grabbed 10 aces in the winning efforts. 

Highland finished as the runner-up, as the Huskies defeated New London (21-15, 21-16), WACO (21-16, 21-13), and Columbus (21-19, 21-15) in straight sets.

In the final pool, Pekin hosted Wapello, Burlington Notre Dame, and Danville. It was the Arrows who claimed the top seed and Burlington Notre Dame who grabbed the runner-up slot.

The SEISC tournament finals will start tomorrow, September 28th, at 5 pm at Southeastern Community College. Holy Trinity Catholic will face off against Central Lee and Hillcrest Academy will clash with the defending champs West Burlington to start off the night, followed by Highland versus Wapello and Mediapolis taking on Burlington Notre Dame.

Mt. Pleasant will host Fairfield on Tuesday, October 1st, at 7:15 pm for their senior night. 

High School Cross Country

Burlington hosted their invitational last night and the Van Buren County boys’ team skirted past Mediapolis with 34 teams points, anchored by Lincoln Bainbridge’s 1st place finish, while the Keokuk girls’ team ran to the team gold with three runners finishing within the top 10.

Looking at the boys’ race, Van Buren County and Mediapolis each had four runners finish in the top 10 as Leo Sawyer of Van Buren County’s 13th place finish was enough to defeat Mediapolis with Caleb Massner taking 16th place for the Bulldogs.

Bainbridge won the race with a time of 17 minutes and 1 second, followed by Will Schmidgall of Mediapolis taking 2nd place with a time of 17 minutes and 12 seconds. Mediapolis’ Simon Wendel and Van Buren County’s Landry Loeffler grabbed 3rd and 4th place, respectively. 

Liam Haeger was the top runner for West Burlington/Notre Dame with a 14th place time of 20 minutes and 7 seconds, as the squad finished in 4th place. Wapello’s Will Parsons raced to a 31st place finish. 

On the girls’ side, Marie Yoder of Hillcrest Academy raced to a 1st place finish of 20 minutes and 23 seconds. Kaitlyn Kipp of West Burlington/Notre Dame grabbed 3rd place with a time of 21 minutes and 40 seconds. Van Buren County had their top duo of Kayley Snowgren and Rylee Phillips take 5th and 6th place, respectively. 

Avery Dietz was the top runner for Mediapolis as her 9th place time of 23 minutes and 1 second helped the Bulldogs claim 2nd place as a team. Kenna Small led Wapello with a time of 23 minutes and 13 seconds, which was good enough for 10th place. 

Van Buren County will host Holy Trinity Catholic, Central Lee, and New London on Tuesday, October 1st. 

Mediapolis will participate in a meet hosted by Winfield-Mt. Union on Thursday, October 3rd.

Winfield-Mt. Union, Columbus, and New London will run at Iowa City on Monday, September 30th. 

Mt. Pleasant, WACO, and Fairfield will travel to Washington on Tuesday.

Danville will travel to Williamsburg on Tuesday. 

Southeastern Community College

The volleyball team rallied from a 26-24 first set loss to win the match 3-1, taking the rest of the sets 25-21, 25-18, and 25-19 as McKenna Marlow tabbed her 500th career kill. The Blackhawks will stay at home to compete against North Iowa Area Community College on Wednesday, October 2nd, at 7 pm. 

College Football

#18 Iowa State will start Big 12 play tomorrow, September 28th, at 6 pm against Houston. KILJ 98.5 FM and AM 1130 will have the broadcast. 

Iowa is on their bye week. 

This Day in Sports History

1939 – The Chicago White Sox play the first “day-night” doubleheader against Cleveland, but lose both games, 5-2 and 7-5.

1942 – The New York Giants beat Washinton 14-7 without gaining a 1st down. The only team to ever accomplish this feat.

2006 – The Boston Red Sox honor former player Johnny Pesky by officially naming Fenway Park’s right-field foul pole “Pesky’s Pole.”

Service Academy Application Deadline in October

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 27th, 2024 at 6:22 am CDT

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is accepting applications from Iowa high school students who wish to be considered for appointments to U.S. service academies. Students must submit their applications to Grassley’s office by Friday, October 25. Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered. Nominations will be finalized by December 31, 2024.

“U.S. service academies offer students the opportunity to receive a world-class education while serving our great nation,” Grassley said. “It’s a privilege to nominate Iowa’s best and brightest to these prestigious academies. I encourage any interested student to apply.”

Grassley’s academy nomination application can be found HERE. Students may hand-deliver their applications to any of Grassley’s Iowa offices, or mail them to the following address:

U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley

Attn: Nominations Coordinator

721 Federal Building

210 Walnut Street

Des Moines, Iowa 50309

NOTE: Applicants must also submit preliminary applications to the academies of their choice and ask that a pre-candidate file be opened on their behalf.

Kevin Pforts

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 27th, 2024 at 6:00 am CDT

Kevin Philip Pforts, 65, of Burlington, formerly of Yarmouth, died Wednesday, September 25, 2024 at the family farm north of Yarmouth.  He was born March 5, 1959 in Mt. Pleasant to Herbert Eugene and Norma Jean Logan Pforts.  On June 26, 1987 he married Angela LaFawn Hill in Burlington.

He was a graduate of Mediapolis High School and a member of First United Methodist Church of Sperry.

Kevin worked as a material handler for Big River Resources.  He enjoyed astronomy; mushroom hunting; hunting and fishing; the Chicago Bears; camping at Mark Twain Lake and time spent on the family farm.  He was a proud “Papa” who enjoyed spending time with his children and grandchildren.

Besides his wife, he is survived by a daughter Angela (Chris) Claypool of Marshalltown; sons Justin Pforts of Mediapolis and Mitchell (Shannon) of Mt. Union; six grandchildren, Olivia, Matyson, Trevin, Aliya, Eastin and Rowan; great-granddaughter Paysley; and his sister Vicki Barton of Mt. Union.  He was preceded in death by his parents.

According to his wishes, his body has been cremated and a memorial service will be held at 11:00 am, Tuesday, October 1, 2024 at Elliott Chapel, New London with Pastor Nancy Sutherland officiating.  The family will receive friends from 9:00 – 11:00 Tuesday morning.  Burial at Trinity Cemetery, rural Mt. Union will be at a later date.  A memorial has been established and online condolences may be left at www.elliottfuneralchapel.com.