March 25, 2024 – March 31, 2024

By Allison Jacobs · Saturday, March 23rd, 2024 at 4:28 pm CDT
03/25/24
Christina Goettsche
03/25/24
Bobbie Jo Fox
03/25/24
James Kinney
03/25/24
Dorothy Miller
03/26/24
Kim Anderson
03/26/24
Deborah Ludwig
03/26/24
Abby Burden
03/26/24
Carol Carpenter
03/26/24
Ellen Krieger
03/26/24
Tim Reynolds
03/26/24
David Henkel
03/27/24
Grant Davidson
03/27/24
Austin Decker
03/27/24
Cody Neil
03/27/24
Maureen Hunt
03/27/24
Wendel and Kerry Luko Anniversary
03/28/24
Wade Carpenter
03/28/24
Duane Thomas
03/28/24
Delia Schoenewe
03/28/24
Joyce Hollingsworth
03/28/24
Wanye Pendell
03/28/24
Isaiah Denning - 16
03/28/24
Jerad Syfert
03/29/24
Grace Coble
03/29/24
Kristen Shaffer
03/29/24
Tom Pounds
03/30/24
Chad Doak
03/30/24
Christina Lease
03/30/24
Kristeena Oliver
03/30/24
Isis Sanderson
03/30/24
Richard Sheckler
03/31/24
Gary Hackett
03/31/24
Jeffery Hood
03/31/24
Charlene Doty - 59 & her kittie Thoreau - 19

Roger Roth

By Allison Jacobs · Saturday, March 23rd, 2024 at 7:36 am CDT

Roger Roth, 89, of Washington, Iowa, passed away Monday, March 18, 2024, at his home surrounded by his family.

Roger was born in Goehner, Nebraska to Clarence and Katie (Widmer) Roth on November 14, 1934, the third son of five boys. Roger’s family settled on a farm one mile west of Olds, Iowa. He graduated from Olds High School in 1953 and attended Goshen College and Iowa Wesleyan. Roger was baptized in the Sugar Creek Mennonite Church and served in alternative service (1-W) as a conscientious objector in Des Moines, Iowa and Richmond, Indiana. Roger married Joanne (Roth) Roth in 1960 and raised their family on his family’s farm west of Olds.

Roger’s faith and church community were central to his life; he experienced a spiritual renewal in the 1970s. He was a founding member of Washington Mennonite Church and served on the boards of MEDA (Mennonite Economic Development Association) and Parkview Home.

After retirement from farming, Roger built a home on a bluff overlooking a timbered creek bottom south of Washington, Iowa, adjacent to Crooked Creek Christian Camp (CCCC). In the 1970s, Roger would walk in this same timber and pastureland, then owned by his in-laws, when he had a vision of people gathered, praising the Lord among the trees. He shared his vision with a group of Mennonite church leaders seeking a location for a Christian camp. He would later serve as CCCC’s founding president of the board of directors from 1980-1992. It was his work with the creation of the Camp that he found most meaningful. Well-into his 80s, Roger could be seen on his dozer, tractor, or four-wheeler using his chainsaw to remove cedar trees, spraying for multiflora rose, and encouraging oak saplings.

Roger would go out of his way to share what he had with others and enjoyed being with people. He was a member of Wayland Lion’s Club and a regular at morning coffee in Wayland. He drove his Oliver 80 tractor in parades throughout southeast Iowa and was especially fond of old Cadillacs. He wintered in Sarasota, Florida with his wife, connecting with his cousins and brothers, making new friends, and establishing a second church home with Sarasota Community Church.

Roger was married to Joanne Roth for 63 years (d. Aug. 2023); the father of Kendra (Jeff) Landes of Iowa City, Erin Roth (Chris Giannella) of Baltimore, Maryland, and Tyler (Sarah) Roth of Goshen, Indiana; grandfather to Katelin Hamlin (Eric), Kelsey Mason (Jordan), Emma Headings (Zac), Grace Roth, Matthew Roth, Tillman Giannella and Matteo Giannella, and great-grandfather of six. Roger’s older brothers Dan and Junior, and youngest brother, Mervin preceded him in death. In addition to his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, he is survived by a brother Loren and sister-in-law Julie of South Bend, Indiana and his brother Dan’s wife, Donna of Lincoln, Nebraska, and his South African exchange student, Cheryl (Joseph) Smith and her family of Austin, Texas. Roger was a beloved uncle of more than twenty nieces and nephews and was one of 63 first cousins. He was a faithful member of Washington Mennonite Church and had many friends that were like family.

A memorial service is planned for 4:00 PM, Sunday, May 5, 2024, at the Washington Mennonite Church. the family will receive friends from 2:30 PM until service time at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be sent to Crooked Creek Christian Camp https://www.crookedcreekcamp.org/ or Hospice of Washington County https://hospicewc.com/ in Washington, Iowa.

Sharon Beckler Blakley

By Allison Jacobs · Saturday, March 23rd, 2024 at 7:31 am CDT

Sharon Beckler Blakley, 65 of Wayland, died Tuesday, February 27, 2024, as the result of an accident in Mesa, AZ while wintering in AZ.

A celebration of her life will be 11:00 AM, Saturday, April 6, 2024, at Bethel Church north of Wayland. Visitation will be from 4-6:00 PM, Friday, April 5, 2024, also at the church. The Beatty-Peterseim Funeral Home is assisting with arrangements. A general memorial has been established in the name of Sharon Beckler Blakley.

Sharon was born April 25, 1958, in Albany, OR, the daughter of Delmer F. and Mildred (Unternahrer) Beckler. She graduated from WACO High School and Parson Cosmetology in Fairfield. She was united in marriage to Steve Blakely, they later divorced.

She was employed at Pizza Hut, Alco, the Lunch Box in Rome, Innovaire (Metromail), Mary Kay Consultant, Archer TV in Washington and drove Amish families in Brighton and Kalona.  Sharon enjoyed traveling, knitting, gardening, flowers, the Wayland 4th of July parade and Old Threshers in Mt. Pleasant. Sharon’s greatest joy was spending time with her grandchildren and family as that truly was what brought her great joy. She was a kind and loving person who saw the best in others.

Survivors include her sons, Jeremy (Chari) Beckler of Noble and Nathan Beckler of Wayland; siblings, Ardith “Ardie” (Tom) Frees of Riverside, Dean (Crystal) Beckler of Crawfordsville and Beverly Elmore and special friend James of Hedrick; 10 grandchildren, Jonathan, Alysan, Joshau, Taylor, Hemi, Landon, Lane, Lekeisha, Nathaniel and Ashlynn and 5 great-grandchildren Sophia, Aubree, Kaanan, Siege and Leightyn; ex granddaughter, Mercedes; ex daughter in law, Emily Beckler; children of her heart, Tiffany Ford and Chris Nelson and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents, brother Duane and brother-in-law Daniel Elmore.

 

Sports, March 23rd

By Slaten Swords · Saturday, March 23rd, 2024 at 6:30 am CDT

High School Track and Field

The Mt. Pleasant girls team will compete at a meet in West Burlington on March 26th.

The WACO and Van Buren County boys’ teams will participate in a meet at Pekin on Monday, March 25th. The WACO girls’ team will run on March 26th at West Burlington.

The Mt. Pleasant, New London, Winfield-Mt. Union, Mediapolis, and Central Lee boys’ teams will participate in a meet on Monday at West Burlington.

The Mediapolis, Danville, Winfield-Mt. Union, and New London girls’ teams will compete in a relay on Tuesday, March 26th, at West Burlington.

The Central Lee girls’ team will travel to Fairfield for a meet on April 2nd. 

High School Soccer

The WACO boys’ team will open the season on March 28th against Fairfield on the road at 5 pm.

The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union boys’ and girls’ teams will take on West Liberty on March 25th at home with the girls’ game scheduled first at 5 pm. 

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ will host Mediapolis on March 26th to start their season at 4:30 pm, while the boys’ will travel to Danville to play at 5 pm on the same day. 

The Danville girls’ team will face off against Assumption on March 25th on the road at 5 pm.

The Mediapolis boys’ team will take on Burlington on March 26th on the road at 5 pm.

The Central Lee boys’ team will host Centerville on April 2nd and the girls’ team will travel to Mid-Prairie on the same day with both games starting at 5 pm.

High School Tennis

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will host Davis County on Thursday, March 28th, at 4:30 pm and the boys’ team will travel to Davis County on the same day. 

High School Golf

The WACO boys’ and girls’ teams will compete in a meet hosted by New London on April 2nd. 

The Winfield-Mt. Union boys’ and girls’ golf teams will travel to Columbus to participate in a meet on April 4th. 

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will travel to Washington Golf and Country Club on April 1st and the boys’ team will participate in a conference match at Fairfield Golf and Country Club on the same day. 

Mt. Pleasant

Pioneer Athletics awarded the Mt. Pleasant Community School District with the “2023 Fields of Excellence Award.” The program honors outstanding athletic fields and the hardworking field crews who diligently maintain them. Mt. Pleasant will receive a certificate of recognition and a “Fields of Excellence” banner to display at the football field. 

Southeastern Community College

SCC baseball will host Northeast Community College today in a doubleheader. 

The SCC softball team will travel to take on Indian Hills Community College today in a doubleheader. 

College Basketball

The Iowa women’s team will take on Holy Cross today at 2 pm.

The Iowa State women’s team found themselves down 20 points at one point against Maryland, but Audi Crooks put up an all-time performance to end up winning 93-86. Crooks shot 18 of 20 from the field to finish with 40 points, which set three NCAA Championships single-game Iowa State records in points, field goals made, field goal percentage, and a freshman single-game all-time record. Additionally, Crooks toppled the freshman free throw record for the Cyclones, while also grabbing 12 boards. The Cyclones will face off against #2 Stanford tomorrow at a time to be determined. 

The #2-seed Iowa State men’s team will take on #7 Washington State today at 5:10 pm. 

The Iowa men’s team will face off against the #2-seed Utah tomorrow, March 24th, at 8 pm for the second round of the NIT. 

March Madness

The KILJ bracket challenge, sponsored by The Press Box and Wiley’s Interior Furnishings and Design, is officially underway with over 30 brackets submitted with the top three set to receive prizes.

Standings will be updated at the conclusion of each round.

This Day in Sports History

1948 – 10th NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: Kentucky beats Baylor, 58-42; it’s the Wildcats’ first victory in their first title game.

1957 – 19th NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: North Carolina beats Kansas, 54-53 (3 OT); Wilt Chamberlain of Kansas becomes the 4th player to be named tournament MVP despite not playing for the championship team.

1994 – Wayne Gretzky sets an NHL record with 802 goals scored.

Mt. Pleasant Spring Clean Up Dates Announced

By Allison Jacobs · Saturday, March 23rd, 2024 at 6:14 am CDT

The City of Mount Pleasant will hold the annual Spring Clean Up at the end of April. Spring Clean Up is a one-week opportunity for residents of Mount Pleasant to rid their homes of those unusual or large items that are too big to fit into a garbage bag for your regular garbage collection day. The collection work is done by WEMIGA WASTE. Spring Clean Up will be picked up on your normal garbage day. Please do not place items curbside until the week before Spring Clean Up.

SPRING CLEANUP SCHEDULE:

LANCE WEDNESDAY – Pickup April 22nd

LANCE THURSDAY – Pickup April 23rd

(Make-up day scheduled for April 26th)

WEMIGA WEDNESDAY – Pickup April 29th

WEMIGA THURSDAY – Pickup April 30th

(Make-up day scheduled for May 3rd)

GARBAGE STICKERS:

Please adhere stickers no earlier than the morning of your pickup date to ensure scavengers don’t take the adhered-to item. Pile size limited to equivalent to unit 6′ wide x 8′ long x 4′ tall, excludes separated metal pile. You are required to use ten stickers for your entire pile.

WHAT WE CAN NOT AND WILL NOT PICK UP:

  • Tires, Waste Oil, Batteries, Roof Shingles, Ashes
  • Liquids, such as Anti-freeze, Household Chemicals and Wet Paint
  • Construction materials of any kind such as drywall, wood, etc.
  • Televisions and Computer Monitors
  • Yard Waste
  • Appliances

THINGS WE WATCH FOR:

Leave the lids off your paint cans. If you have old paint cans and the paint is dry, we can take them. We cannot take wet paint of any kind. We can take all kinds of carpet. The carpet must be tightly rolled and tied to be collected.

QUESTIONS AND INFORMATION:

If you have any questions about the 2024 Spring Clean Up, please contact Public Works at 319-385-1480, Monday – Friday 7:00 am to 3:30 pm.

 

6th Annual Bonaparte Music Bonanza

By Yorke Prough · Friday, March 22nd, 2024 at 2:50 pm CDT

Make plans to attend the Sixth Annual Bonaparte Music Bonanza on Saturday April 6th. held in the gymnasium of the historic Bonaparte school building. Showtime is at 7 pm with doors opening at 5:30 Tickets at the door are $15.00 with no reserved seating. A Soup Supper will be in the cafeteria (for a free will donation).  All proceeds from this event go toward the upkeep of the historic school building. The building is owned and operated by the non profit group Bonaparte Community Improvement Association (BCIA). The building has become a hub for many community events and activities.

Director Bonnie Cass states, “Every year the show just gets bigger and better. We are so fortunate to have such amazing local talent in Southeast Iowa. All of the people volunteer their time to put on a show that is geared for the entire family. If you’ve been to a show in the past, you’ll want to come back and see the new individuals and bands that have joined the cast for this year’s show.”  The 2024 Music Bonanza will be performing music from a variety of genres and of course there will be a little comedy mixed in as well.

This year there are three new bands that will be performing.  One of the bands is actually called The Band With No Name- this group of individuals have been performing at class reunions and even had  some backyard performances. Full Course is a band of Van Buren high school students that have been performing in the area as well at Van Buren Community School District (VBCSD) high school basketball games. Some additional VBCSD students have formed the Van Buren Youth Praise Band. This group of young people play a variety of instruments and sing Christian praise music. They have been performing at many local churches and events.

Singing in this show for the first time are sisters Emily McIntyre and Melanie Norton.  These two talented ladies have been singing and acting for many years as part of the Van Buren Community Players. In the recent presentation of Grease.  Emily played the part of Rizzo and Melanie played the part of Marty.

Two other members of the cast also performed in Grease this month.  Tom Allen played the part of Vince Fontaine and Isaiah Meek played the part of Sonny.  Tom will be playing guitar and singing again. Isaiah is a multi talented young man that was recently selected into the University of Iowa Honor Band where he played French horn. Isaiah will be playing piano and singing a solo, as well as performing with the Full Course band.

Singer and songwriter Shannon Shepard joined the cast last year. He was such a delight to listen to and he even participated in some comedy acts with other members of the cast. He has quite a following on Spotify and YouTube. In 2019 he wrote, recorded and released a fun tailgating song called Cold Busch Latte. The song has been streamed almost 120,000 times on Spotify alone. Shannon formerly performed with Aces and Eights, a country band out of Washington, Iowa.

Kathy Dye from Donnellson brought her dynamic vocals to the show for the first time last year. She has been singing for the past 16 years at the Annual Montrose Watermelon Festival.  She has been singing since the age of 5 at her church. She has appeared in the Keokuk Kardiac Kapers, Donnellson DEC Hands and at the Back Alley Band Fest in Keokuk. Kathy says, “being on stage is my home away from home.”

Heathers & Co. a band from Lee County composed of Heather Fuger singing lead vocals, Heather Madsen on keyboards, Lily Hayes on drums, guitar, and vocals, and Keating Hissem playing bass. They provide musical entertainment at several venues throughout the year with music from all genres and with some original songs written by Lily Hayes. All members of the group are in other bands, as well, including Hissem Family Campfire and Double Vision. Keating was a member of the former Ozone Ramblers.

There are many talented guitar players in the show. Brenda Hendrickson will be singing some additional gospel pieces accompanied by Joe Short on guitar. Brandon Cochenour will be accompanied by Michael Browning.

Melvin Green sings a solo every year and has fun with some of the cast members in comedy skits that make for a lot of laughs.  Emcee for the show will be former KILJ radio personality, John Kuhens. He brings a little humor of his own to the show with his interviews with the performers.

William “Ed” Shepherd

By Yorke Prough · Friday, March 22nd, 2024 at 2:38 pm CDT

William “Ed” E. Shepherd, 79, of Washington, was welcomed into death on Friday, March 22, 2024, at Parkview Manor in Wellman, surrounded by his family. His funeral service will be held Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at 11:00 AM at the Beatty Funeral Home in Washington. Visitation will be held Tuesday, March 26, 2024, from 1 – 7 PM at the Beatty Funeral Home in Washington, where the family will greet friends from 5 – 7 PM. A general memorial fund has been established.

William Eduard Shepherd was born August 8, 1944, in Burlington, Iowa, the son of George and Marie Jane (Cocayne) Ingrahm. He graduated from Washington High School and attended automotive trade school. Ed retired from the United States Army National Guard, after serving 25 years.  On September 3, 1965, he was united in marriage to Gwenyth Wolfe in Washington.  Ed was a self-employed truck driver, most recently contracting with Knupp Trucking. He and Gwen enjoyed wintering in Texas and were part of a camping group. Ed was fond of camping, fishing, boating, and driving. He will be greatly missed by his family and fondly remembered for his wonderful sense of humor.

Survivors include his wife Gwen of Washington; four children: Mike (Suzi) Shepherd of Wayland, Lori (Mike) Baldrige of St. Paul, MN, Bill (Angie) Shepherd of Edgefield, SC, and Melissa (Orbie) Brown of Washington; 12 grandchildren; and 18 great-grandchildren.

Preceding Ed in death were his parents, two brothers Sam and Bill, and a sister Sarah Bohne.

Collins Capitol Connection

By Allison Jacobs · Friday, March 22nd, 2024 at 2:11 pm CDT

To the People of House District 95

 

This week was longer than usual in the House as debate stretched into yesterday evening. After much debate, the House amended the AEA proposal that the Senate sent over earlier in the week, incorporating much of the initial proposal that the House passed a few weeks ago after working with AEA Chief Administrators from across the state.

 

House Sends AEA Reform Bill Back to the Senate with Amendment

I agree with the Governor that our special education students deserve the very best. As I’ve learned more about this topic this year, it’s become clear that we can do better. Despite Iowa spending over $5,300 more per pupil on special education funding than the national average, we’ve ranked 30th or worse in 9 of the 12 national assessments on special education performance. The U.S. Department of Education has categorized Iowa as “Needs Assistance” in providing quality education to students with disabilities, with the risk of falling to “Needs Intervention” next year. Our system, where the money is automatically sent to the AEA’s, and the AEA’s having oversight of their own services, is unique to Iowa and leaves very little room for accountability. We know that the AEA’s are doing critical work for our schools, and we have no intention of leaving school districts high and dry without access to those services. However, we can make a few changes to improve the system.

Our plan will give school districts more flexibility, provide more accountability in the AEA system, and empowers a task force to study how to improve special education in Iowa. I voted yes on this bill because it contains some big wins for schools that the House has fought very hard for this year, and I will share many of those below.

This bill increases teacher salaries:

This bill increases the minimum teacher salary to $47,500 in the first year, and $50,000 in the second year. This will put Iowa’s minimum teacher salary at the 5th highest in the nation. When adjusted for cost of living, this puts Iowa’s beginning teachers in a great spot compared to their peers.

It also adds a second tier for minimum teacher pay. Teachers who have 12 years of experience can make no less than $60,000 in year one, and $62,000 in year two. The addition of this second tier means a lot of new money particularly for rural schools since the money it takes to get to that salary level will go to each school district accordingly.

The bill also allocates $22.3 million for the teacher salary supplemental pot of money for schools so they can increase veteran teacher pay and to help with the pay compaction concerns we have heard from some school districts as they redo their salary schedules to account for these new minimum salaries.

Most importantly, all of this money will be built into the base going forward, meaning it will increase with state supplemental aid in subsequent years.
This bill will incentivize retired teachers to help fill workforce gaps in schools:

This bill contains a policy that allows retired teachers to return to the classroom without affecting their IPERS benefits. These teachers would be able to return to schools in a limited capacity after just one month of retirement. This will incentivize experienced teachers to return and alleviate some of the workforce struggles facing our schools.

This bill raises pay for paraprofessionals:

This bill allocates $14 million to increase pay for educational support staff. The House fought tooth and nail to have this proposal included in this legislation to raise the pay for our paraprofessionals who do such important, difficult work.

This bill contains a significant amount of new money for schools:

In this bill, we set the Supplemental State Aid increase at 2.5% for this fiscal year. The House originally passed 3% SSA and that’s certainly what we would’ve preferred. However, the silver lining is that with a 2.5% SSA increase, the little over $110 Million increase to put toward salaries, and new funds we plan to allocate towards school safety, the new money for Iowa schools equates to the equivalent of more than 5% SSA for this fiscal year.

This bill creates a task force to study ways to improve special education:

The task force will review the current AEA system and look for areas for improvement. They will look for ways to improve services, consolidate buildings, provide effective oversight, eliminate redundancies, and ultimately achieve better outcomes for Iowa students.

This bill brings AEA Chief salaries more in line with Superintendents:

This bill states that the AEA Chief salaries cannot exceed 125% of the average superintendents’ salaries within their region. Currently, the 9 chiefs each make around $300,000 annually.

Wrapping Up:

There have been a lot of moving parts as this bill has morphed throughout the legislative process. I cannot blame you if you’ve had a hard time keeping track. I want to alleviate some of the concerns that have circulated around past proposals:

  • Because this bill requires school districts to use the AEA’s for special education services, there will not be any disruption to special education services.
  • Also, it does not put the AEA’s under the Department of Education which I had many concerns with.
  • Most importantly, this bill does not terminate any AEA employees.
  • Finally, this bill does not prohibit the AEA’s from performing any of the services they do now.

We took a lot of feedback from Iowans in the crafting of our original House bill, and the amendment we sent back to the Senate. We heard from parents, teachers, superintendents, and most importantly – the AEAs. I want to thank the many AEA employees in my district that have called, emailed, and attended my forums throughout this legislative session – your feedback helped in crafting this proposal, and your continued work serving Iowa’s students is greatly appreciated.