Today, August 21, is the day that early voting begins for the Henry County EMS Essential Services Tax levy. Go to the Henry County Courthouse 2nd floor Conference Room Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (The Courthouse closes at 4:30 p.m.)
Sports, August 21st
High School Football
WACO will kick off the season with a week zero matchup against Central City this Friday, August 23rd, at home at 7 pm.
Winfield-Mt. Union will scrimmage Midland on Friday at 5 pm at home.
Central Lee will take on Keokuk on Friday at 6:30 pm for a scrimmage at home.
Mt. Pleasant will face off against Danville on Friday at 7:30 pm for a home scrimmage. Mt. Pleasant head coach John Bowlin said his team currently has 59 kids on the roster and with that depth it has led to competitive position battles,
“You know, I think everything is, everything is kind of open. We’re trying really hard as a staff to get as many kids on the field Friday nights as possible and give them those opportunities to go play and really see what they can do on Friday nights when the lights are on. So that’s a big focus for us is just trying to get as many kids out there that are able and can see how they compete, you know where their levels are and hopefully in the long run that that just helps us with our depth. And you know kids, kids getting those chances.”
High School Volleyball
WACO will participate in a scrimmage tomorrow, August 22nd, at Washington with Keota and Hillcrest Academy also attending.
Danville will compete in a scrimmage tomorrow at Burlington Notre Dame.
Central Lee will host a scrimmage on Friday, August 23rd, at 5 pm against Keokuk.
Holy Trinity Catholic and West Burlington will travel to Mediapolis on Monday, August 26th, at 4:30 pm for a scrimmage with Fort Madison, Wapello, and West Liberty also participating.
Meet the Players Nights
New London’s “Meet the Players” night will be on Friday, August 23rd, at 5:30 pm with cross country and volleyball introductions and scrimmage taking place in the Charles Lorber Gym. On the football field, cheer and football will have their introductions with a football scrimmage against Wapello to follow.
Winfield-Mt. Union’s “Meet the Players” will take place tonight at 6:30 pm.
Mt. Pleasant will have their “Meet the Panthers” night on Friday starting with an intrasquad volleyball game at the high school gym at 5 pm. Head coach Logan Wall is pushing for an inclusive program that fields not only competitors but upstanding individuals,
“Definitely a positive culture where student athletes, female athletes feel seen and that they’re heard, and that they’re welcome on the volleyball team. But I want to develop determined individuals that are ready to compete at that high level. I feel like for many years we haven’t been able to compete at the highest level. So, you know, getting into state is one of our goals this year. And so, we just have to continue to build on that each day. But also like I said, they’re only in high school sports for a little while. So really building good character and someone who can contribute to our community as respectful community members. So, it’s kind of multifaceted there.”
Fairfield will have their “Meet the Trojans” on Friday with introductions taking place on the track at 6:35 pm. Volleyball and football will have intrasquad scrimmages at 7 pm.
High School Cross Country
Fairfield will practice at 8 am on Friday, August 23rd, then today and tomorrow practice will start at 3:30 pm.
Southeastern Community College
The volleyball team will travel to Rockford, Illinois on Friday, August 23rd, for their opening weekend tournament with their first matchup against Kansas City Kansas Community College.
College Football
The University of Iowa will officially kick off the season on Saturday, August 31st, at home against Illinois State at 11 am.
Iowa State will take on North Dakota on August 31st at 2:30 pm at home.
Iowa State Football Awards
Wide receiver Jaylin Noel received the revered Jack Trice Endowed Scholarship yesterday. The scholarship has been awarded annually to a Black student-athlete on the football team entering his senior season that portrays courage, character, selflessness, leadership, dedication to the community, and academic/athletic achievement.
Noel is the third recipient of the award as he earned Academic All-Big 12 honors in 2022 and Second Team All-Big 12 honors in 2023. Additionally, he was the third-fastest player in school history to grab 100 career receptions.
This Day in Sports History
1931 – Yankees slugger Babe Ruth becomes the first MLB player to hit 600 career home runs as New York defeats the St. Louis Browns, 11-7 at Sportsman’s Park.
1967 – MLB Kansas City Athletics utility player Ken Harrelson becomes one of baseball’s first free agents when he is abruptly released by the team, after he reputedly refers to team owner Charlie Finley as “a menace to baseball.”
1982 – Milwaukee Brewers’ relief pitcher Rollie Fingers becomes the first pitcher in MLB history to get save #300.
Robert E “Bob” Stuecker
Robert E “Bob” Stuecker, 90 years, of West Point, Iowa died on Monday, August 19, 2024 at his home. He was born at home near Denmark, Iowa on November 20, 1933, a son of Robert T and Esther (Mueller) Stuecker. On October 28, 1961, he married Martha Ann Moeller at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, Houghton, Iowa. They had four sons: Steve, Greg, Brian, and Scott.
Bob started his education at the Denmark School in Denmark. When his family moved near St. Paul, Iowa he continued at St. James Catholic School, St. Paul. He was drafted into the United States Army, and served his country as requested. He completed his high school education during his military time. Bob worked for J.J. Nichting for 36 years. He was the foreman of the set up crew. In his earlier days at the company he also worked at their lumberyard. Over the years, he helped his brothers farm. He was a former member of the Three Rivers Tractor Club. He was a member of St. James the Less Catholic Church, served on the God’s Acre Sale Committee, and was a member of the West Point Knights of Columbus. Bob enjoyed hunting. He always had a huge garden, and they raised rabbits, chickens, ducks, and geese. He loved spending time with his family, and he and Martha Ann could always be found at the boys and the grandkids sporting events.
He is survived by his wife, Martha Ann Stuecker of West Point; four sons: Stephen (Stephanie) Stuecker of Danville, Iowa; Gregory (Judy) Stuecker of West Point; Brian (Deanna) Stuecker of Donnellson, Iowa; and Scott (Cathy) Stuecker of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; seven grandchildren: Amy, Grant, Sara (Jamie), Cady, Nick, Ashlyn, and Taylor; two great grandchidren, Gideon and Poppy; two brothers, Leroy (Viola) Stuecker and Larry Stuecker; brothers and sisters-in-law: Pam Stuecker, Adele Stuecker, Jane Meyer, Richard (Mary Ann) Moeller, and Ralph (Patti) Moeller; numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, three siblings: Donnie Stuecker, Mark Stuecker, and Betty (Jim) Sanders, and brother-in-law Carl Moeller.
His family invites you to pray the Rosary with them at 3:30 pm Thursday, August 22, 2024 at St. James the Less Catholic Church, St. Paul. Visitation will follow and continue until a Christian Vigil Service is held at 6:30 pm Thursday evening at the church. Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 am Friday, August 23, 2024 at St. James the Less Catholic Church, with Reverend Jake Griener as Celebrant. Burial with military rites will follow at St. James Cemetery, St. Paul. A memorial has been established for the St. James Cemetery Fund or Lee County Hospice. Barr Memorial Chapel is honored to serve the Stuecker family, and an online guest book may be found at www.barrmemorialchapel.com.
Jan Crabill
A Celebration of Life Graveside Service for Jan Crabill who died May 22, 2024, will be held at 11:00 am, Wednesday, August 28, 2024 at Trinity Cemetery, rural Mt. Union. A light luncheon will immediately follow at Elliott Chapel, New London. For those wishing to forego the services at the cemetery, please feel free to proceed to Elliott Chapel any time after 11:30. Online condolences may be left at www.elliottfuneralchapel.com.
2024 Iowa State Fair Livestock Show Results Henry County
| Hierarchy Path | Exhibitor Name | Ribbon | Placing |
| Market Beef Simmental | Graber, Ethan | Purple | 2 |
| Breeding Meat Goats | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Market Meat Goat Wethers | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Market Meat Goat Wethers | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Meat Goat Showmanship Int. Showmanship (Gr. 7-8) | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Breeding Sheep White Face Commercial Ewes | Beard, Tate | Purple | |
| Breeding Sheep Speckled Face Commercial Ewes | Finnell, Carter | Blue | |
| Breeding Sheep Black Face Commercial Ewes | Beard, Tate | Purple | 2 |
| Breeding Sheep Black Face Commercial Ewes | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Breeding Sheep Black Face Commercial Ewes | Loyd, Kylie | Blue | |
| Breeding Sheep Black Face Commercial Ewes | Loyd, Kylie | Blue | |
| Breeding Sheep Black Face Commercial Ewes | Finnell, Carter | Blue | |
| Market Sheep Black Face Market Lambs | Beard, Tate | Blue | |
| Market Sheep Black Face Market Lambs | Beard, Tate | Blue | |
| Market Sheep Black Face Market Lambs | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Market Sheep Black Face Market Lambs | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Market Sheep Black Face Market Lambs | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Market Sheep Black Face Market Lambs | Loyd, Kylie | Blue | |
| Sheep Showmanship Int. Showmanship (Gr. 7-8) | Finnell, Carter | Blue | |
| Sheep Showmanship Int. Showmanship (Gr. 7-8) | Anderson, Colin | Blue | |
| Breeding Swine Yorkshire | Anderson, Grant | Purple | |
| Breeding Swine Commercial Gilts | Anderson, Grant | Blue | |
| Breeding Swine Commercial Gilts | Anderson, Grant | Blue | |
| Market Swine Crossbred Market Barrows | Anderson, Grant | Blue |
Cleda Mae Thomas
Sports, August 20th
High School Football
WACO will kick off the season with a week zero matchup against Central City this Friday, August 23rd, at home at 7 pm. The Warriors defeated the Wildcats 48-12 back in 2022, where Louden Huisenga rushed for a touchdown and totaled five tackles.
Winfield-Mt. Union will scrimmage Midland on Friday at 5 pm at home.
Central Lee will take on Keokuk on Friday at 6:30 pm for a scrimmage at home.
Mt. Pleasant will face off against Danville on Friday at 7:30 pm for a home scrimmage. Mt. Pleasant head coach John Bowlin praised his team for their work during practice as they prepare for their scrimmage and eventual week one opponent Fairfield,
“It was good. You know, we had the battle. We were kind of fortunate there during camp. We had a really nice cool week of camp. So we started battling some humidity last week and heat. And you know, I thought our kids did a really good job of that, staying focused. You know, we had a couple physical days there. We put shells on doing some situational drills and I think our kids competed well in that and you know I like where we’re at right now. You know, we’ve got a lot of the offense, and I just got to tweak things now. We play Danville on Friday night for a scrimmage, so, you know, really kind of prepping ourselves for Fairfield. But understanding we got, you know, a game type situation on Friday that we got to get ready for as well.”
High School Volleyball
Mt. Pleasant, Fairfield, and Highland made the trip to WACO last night to compete in a quad scrimmage. Focusing on Mt. Pleasant, the Panthers started off the night against Highland in the practice gym and after both teams shook off the preseason cobwebs they both finished with some nice plays. The Huskies found success at the net defensively, while Meadow Carter and Sonya Simon helped lead the Panthers from the service line, generating multiple aces, which was one of the preseason keys for head coach Logan Wall,
“Yes, we served really well last year. One of our goals was to serve spots efficiently. And so we’ve put that on the list to work on. We’re also trying to work on some plays too. So we just can continue to build from last year.”
Fairfield ventured in for game two and with both teams rotating players often, it was not quite the Southeast Conference matchup that we should expect to see from these two squads later in the season; nevertheless, there were some impressive rallies.
Lastly, the Panthers took on WACO in the main gym and exhibited their attacking offense headlined by Addision Clark and Alex Scott, each taking turns earning thundering kills. Coach Wall considered last night a successful scrimmage,
“I think we built on what we started in our team camp at Des Moines. We got a couple girls back, a couple of girls hurt, so we didn’t really know what to expect. But I think we came together as a team. I said in the huddle, we all worked as a team and for the team. So, no one was thinking individually. We’re all for the team, so.”
WACO’s head coach Danae Drish discussed the positives to last night’s scrimmage,
“We’re learning a lot and have some really good energy. We have a young group this year, so they’re learning a lot and getting experience, so it’s quite nice and refreshing to have the seniors giving them some advice and leading them, but with a lot of youngsters.”
WACO will participate in a scrimmage on Thursday, August 22nd, at Washington with Keota and Hillcrest Academy also attending.
West Burlington will host a scrimmage today at 4 pm.
Danville will compete in a scrimmage on Thursday at Burlington Notre Dame.
Central Lee will host a scrimmage on Friday, August 23rd, at 5 pm against Keokuk.
Holy Trinity Catholic and West Burlington will travel to Mediapolis on Monday, August 26th, at 4:30 pm for a scrimmage with Fort Madison, Wapello, and West Liberty also participating.
Meet the Players Nights
New London’s “Meet the Players” night will be on Friday, August 23rd, at 5:30 pm with cross country and volleyball introductions and scrimmage taking place in the Charles Lorber Gym. On the football field, cheer and football will have their introductions with a football scrimmage against Wapello to follow.
Winfield-Mt. Union’s “Meet the Players” will take place tomorrow, August 21st, at 6:30 pm.
Mt. Pleasant will have their “Meet the Panthers” night on Friday starting with an intrasquad volleyball game at the high school gym at 5 pm.
Fairfield will have their “Meet the Trojans” on Friday with introductions taking place on the track at 6:35 pm. Volleyball and football will have intrasquad scrimmages at 7 pm.
High School Cross Country
Fairfield will practice at 8 am on Friday, August 23rd, then today through Thursday practice will start at 3:30 pm.
Southeastern Community College
The volleyball team will travel to Rockford, Illinois on Friday, August 23rd, for their opening weekend tournament with their first matchup against Kansas City Kansas Community College.
NAIA Football
NAIA released their first top 25 ratings for the season with four Iowa teams finding their way onto the list including three in the top ten: Northwestern (#2), Grand View (#5), and Morningside (#10).
Additionally, Bethel University out of Tennessee is ranked 8th heading into the season. Their co-offensive coordinator, pass game coordinator, and wide receivers coach is former Iowa Wesleyan head coach and defensive coordinator MD Daniels.
College Football
The University of Iowa will officially kick off the season on Saturday, August 31st, at home against Illinois State at 11 am.
Iowa State will take on North Dakota on August 31st at 2:30 pm at home.
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).
Roberta “Bobbie” McCarty
Roberta “Bobbie” McCarty, 63, of Batavia, Iowa died August 17, 2024 at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City.
Bobbie was born January 15, 1961 in Kirksville, Missouri to Robert and Helen (Petersen) Bissell. She married Tony McCarty in 2001. Bobbie had an incredible work ethic. She worked 3-4 jobs at a time to support her family. Her last several years were working in the Ottumwa School District. Bobbie enjoyed spending time with her family, sharing music by singing and playing the piano, camping and boating. She was a member of the Tabernacle Baptist Church in Bloomfield most of her life and recently enjoyed the Calvary Baptist Church in Batavia.
Those left to honor her memory include her husband Tony; son, Chase (Courtney) Feagins; mother, Helen Bissell; stepchildren, Chad (Emily) McCarty, MacGyver (Delana) McCarty, Caitlin (Jon) Boren; grandchildren, Aaron Helton, Canaan Feagins, Jaxon, Easton, Seeley and Emberly McCarty, Ian Woemmel, Jacob, Jocelyn and Esme Boren, Tori, Jenson, Lewis, Calista and Lexi Vanskike, and Piper Blair; sisters-in-law, Diana Van DenBaard and Renee (Bruce) Rebling; brother-in-law, Lee (Brooke) McCarty; along with aunts & uncles; nephews, Danny & Josh Anderson and niece, Bethany Kanselaar.
She was preceded in death by her son, Andrew Helton; son-in-law, Corey Woemmel; father, Robert Bissell; sisters, Terri Howe and infant, Marilyn Sue; fathers-in-law, Robert McCarty and Max Wolf; mothers-in-law, Marcene McCarty and Maxine Wolf.
A Celebration of Life for Bobbie will be held from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Saturday, September 14, 2024 at the VFW in Fairfield. Behner Funeral Home in Fairfield is assisting the family.
Online condolences may be made to Bobbie’s family at www.behnerfh.com.
