David Albert Bell, 63 of Bonaparte, passed away on Thursday, February 8, 2024. Funeral arrangements are pending with the Schmitz Funeral Home in Farmington
Janice Brown
Janice Brown, 95, of Wapello passed away peacefully on Saturday, February 3, 2024 at Southeast Iowa Regional Hospice House in West Burlington, after suffering a stroke. As staying with Janice’s wishes there will be a private family graveside service in the spring where Janice will be laid to rest next to her husband Don, at Wapello Cemetery. Janice was always very concerned about others, she never wanted anyone worrying about her. It only seems fitting she did not want to trouble others with inconveniencing them with missing work or unsafe travels to attend her services. Memorials have been established for First Presbyterian Church of Wapello and Wapello Fire Department in Janice’s name. Memorials may be sent to Janice’s family in care of the funeral home, at 209 Franklin Street, Wapello, Iowa 52653. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.sandhfuneralservices.com. Snyder & Hollenbaugh Funeral & Cremation Services of Wapello are assisting the family with arrangements.
Janice Elaine Marie Bloomer was born on November 15, 1928 in Burlington, the daughter of John Oscar and Olive Florence (Miller) Bloomer. Janice was a 1946 graduate of Wapello High School. On June 22, 1947, Janice was united in marriage to Donald Raymond Brown in Wapello and to this union five children were born. Janice was a stay-at-home mom who enjoyed and cherished being at home with her kids and seeing Don when he came home for lunch every day. In 1974 Janice went to work for Louisa Publishing Co. as a typesetter, retiring at the age of 87. Janice was a faithful member of the First Presbyterian Church of Wapello, playing the piano and organ for Sunday church services. She was also a member of PEO, active in Girl Scouts and Wapello Music Boosters. She found her greatest joy in time spent with her husband, Don, their kids and grandkids. Janice and Don cherished each other and had a wonderful marriage. Janice thoroughly enjoyed attending her kids’ and grandkids’ sporting events and band concerts. A story has been shared that Hal Cross, the band director at the time, told the audience, “We can now start, Janice Brown is here.” Janice had a love for music all of her life, beginning with high school band and choir continuing throughout her life playing the organ and piano at church, singing in the church choir and accompanying David as he played the guitar at home. Janice also enjoyed being outdoors and sitting on her porch. She was a true home body, loving home and family. They meant the world to her.
Those left to cherish Janice’s memory include her children, Greg (Regina) Brown of Wapello, Joan Thompson of Winfield, David Brown of Iowa City, Mary (John) White of Mason City and Martha (Dirk) Wilkerson of Wapello; grandchildren, Clint Brown, Ashley Brown, Joy (Josh) Sparrow, Julie (Jeremy) Hunold, Kendra (Caleb) Connop, Shelby (Craig) Halverson, Abra (Brandon) Kammrad, Lisa Wilkerson and Brady Wilkerson; great- grandchildren, Noah and Nick Sparrow, Kaylen and Brant Hunold, Briar and Rowan Connop, Easton and Adri Halverson, Mac and Baylor Kammrad.
Janice was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Don on October 26, 1991; brother and sister-in-law, Joe and Betty Bloomer; son-in-law, Paul Thompson and daughter-in-law, Julia Ryan Brown.
To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.
Pickup Truck Driver Arrested After Crashing into Two Vehicles in Fort Madison
On February 8th, 2024, at 8:50 AM, a Fort Madison officer attempted to stop a pickup truck in a westside residential neighborhood for an equipment violation. The driver abruptly fled, emerging onto Business 61 without stopping, and accelerating wildly. It was observed weaving through traffic as it traveled westbound, attaining an estimated 80 MPH, and continuing for another 5 blocks before losing control. Subsequently the truck overturned in a parking lot and struck two unoccupied vehicles. The driver emerged from the vehicle, apparently uninjured, and was immediately apprehended.
Ronald Edwin Stegall, age 62, of Fort Madison was charged with Eluding, Possession of Methamphetamine, a probation warrant, and multiple traffic offenses. He was initially taken to the Fort Madison hospital for examination before incarceration at the Lee County Jail. The damaged vehicles were removed from the scene. Fort Madison Fire and Lee County EMS assisted.
The public is reminded that charges are an accusation of a criminal act, and that persons arrested are presumed innocent until convicted in a court of law.
Upcoming Acres of Opportunity Conference
Beginning farmers know the substantial initial investment it takes to farm, and those who currently farm are facing a projected 25% cut in their net farm income compared to last year. These situations have prompted interest in niche opportunities that require less land or can complement an existing family farm.
To meet this rising interest, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation’s Acres of Opportunity conference provides a space to learn from and network with farmers who have taken a diversified path.
The conference is slated for March 16 at the Bridge View Center in Ottumwa and will cover niche areas such as specialty meats, small grains, flower farming, regenerative grazing and more. Industry experts will also be present to talk about beginning farmer loans, branding opportunities and e-commerce.
Keynoting the event is Sarah Frey, CEO and founder of Frey Farms, the nation’s leading grower, shipper and marketer of fresh fruits and vegetables. Frey will share the importance of learning from each other’s challenges and drawing on the inspiration all around us.
Registration is free for Farm Bureau members and $60 per person for non-members. Register online by March 3 and view a full agenda at www.iowafarmbureau.com/acres.
Attention Henry County 4-H Members!
For our 4-H seniors, make sure to submit your Senior Spotlight Form as well as a high quality photo to Kristen by March 1st! The Senior 4H banners will be on display at the Fair as usual. Like previous years, the Henry County Iowa State University Extension and Outreach will be giving Senior Spotlight shout-outs to all of the 4-Hers on Facebook.
Form: https://www.extension.iastate.edu/henry/4h
Kristen’s Email: kbrinck@iastate.edu
Two Vehicle Crash Blocks Traffic in Mount Pleasant
The Mount Pleasant Police Department responded to a two-vehicle collision on February 6th at the intersection of E Baker St and Beavers Drive.
Officers arrived at 12:54pm a found that a Buick Sedan, driven by Carolyn Dorothy of Mount Pleasant was westbound on E Baker, when it failed to stop at a stop sign. The Buick struck a Nissan Sedan driven by Brodie Wenger, also of Mount Pleasant. The Buick came to a stop on N Gran Avenue, temporarily blocking northbound traffic.
Total combined estimated damage is $7000. No injuries were reported at the time of the accident.
InMotion Traveling to Keokuk for Power City Classic
The Mount Pleasant InMotion show choir travels to Keokuk tomorrow for their second competition of the season. After a very successful home invitational last weekend, it seems excitement surrounds the group as they continue their charge this season.
The group, comprised of freshmen through seniors, and led by director Makenzie Kauffman-Ho is sure to put on a great show. According to the program, you can catch InMotion at 1:50pm on Saturday at the Keokuk High School. They are sandwiched between the only other 3A groups, Springfield and Fort Madison. Tickets are $10 for adults and children under 5 are admitted for free.
Sports, February 9th
Girls’ Basketball Regional Pairings
The first round of Class 1A Regionals tipped off last night across Iowa and here’s how our local teams fared.
Class 1A Region 7 produced a contentious conference showdown between Danville and Burlington Notre Dame and despite the Nikes battling back from an 8 to 0 deficit to tie the game at halftime, the Bears outscored the Nikes 20 to 8 in the third quarter to win 65-55.
It was a battle of the seniors as the Bears had Jaeda Molle cash in for 18 points, tally a couple key steals, and was a vacuum on the offensive glass. Head Coach Matt Morris talked about her performance after the game. Kenna Furnald added 19 points for Danville.
For Burlington Notre Dame, Lauren Krieger finished her career with over 1,000 points after an 18 point performance to complement six steals. Taryn Stephens finished with 11 points and Nadiya Jones scored 7 points. Head Coach Cory Stephens discussed the leadership of the seniors after the game.
Danville will travel to Lone Tree on Tuesday, February 13th, after the Lions clobbered Winfield-Mt. Union 73-14 last night.
In Class 1A Region 8, WACO took down Hillcrest Academy 44-32 last night. Brenna Graber led the way with 15 points while Emma Wagler finished with 14 points in the win. The Warriors will travel to Montezuma on Tuesday at 7 pm.
#15 Holy Trinity Catholic breezed past New London last night 80-14. The Crusaders will host English Valleys on Tuesday at 7 pm.
For Class 2A Region 6, Van Buren County hits the road to face off against Pleasantville tomorrow at 7 pm. Columbus will host West Burlington on February 13th at 7 pm.
In Class 3A Region 1, Mediapolis will host Central Lee tomorrow at 7 pm.
In Class 3A Region 5, Fairfield will take on the top seed Solon on the road and Washington will host Davis County. Both games will take place tomorrow at 7 pm.
In Class 4A Region 1, Mt. Pleasant will hit the road to take on Oskaloosa for the second time this season as Oskaloosa won that matchup 55-17. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 6:45 pm.
The winner of this game will take on #1 Clear Creek-Amana, who boasts a 20-0 record.
On the bottom half of the bracket, it will be a Southeast Conference matchup between Fort Madison and Burlington. These two have traded games this season with the Grayhounds winning round one 47-39 and the Bloodhounds taking the most recent contest 58-48.
The winner will be tasked with a road matchup against Keokuk. The first-round is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, February 14th, at 7 pm.
Boys’ Basketball District Matchups
District play is set to begin tonight for the Class 1A preliminary round. All games will start at 7 pm. Here’s our local matchups.
In Class 1A Substate 5: District 9, New London and Columbus are set to rumble tonight at New London in the preliminary round with the winner moving on to play the top seed, #5 Winfield-Mt. Union. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call.
The first-round games will be played on Monday, February 12th, and Danville will take on Sigourney at home. Burlington Notre Dame will host Wapello and WACO will face off against Pekin at home.
In District 10, Holy Trinity Catholic holds the top spot and will compete against either Seymour or Tri-County on Monday at home.
Class 2A, Substate 4 District 7 will be headlined by the undefeated #8 West Burlington Falcons. Central Lee and Louisa-Muscatine will compete on Monday with the winner moving on to face off against the Falcons.
On the bottom half of the bracket, Mediapolis will host Van Buren County on Monday with the winner to move on and travel to West Branch on Thursday, February 15th, for the second-round matchup.
The brackets for classes 3A and 4A will be released on Monday with their first-round matchups taking place on February 19th.
High School Basketball
The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team lost to Burlington last night 64-48. The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team will travel to Fairfield tonight to face off against the Trojans at 7:30 pm.
The Mediapolis boys’ team picked up a win to end the regular season against Tipton last night 63-47.
High School Wrestling
New London and WACO will travel to Wilton to compete in districts. Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union will wrestle at Solon, while Mt. Pleasant will travel to Fairfield with Burlington Notre Dame, Keokuk, and Mediapolis also in attendance. Districts will take place tomorrow, February 10th, at 10 am.
High School Bowling
The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will be heading to Oskaloosa on Monday, February 12th and the boys’ team on Tuesday, February 13th, to compete in the state qualifying meet. Burlington and Keokuk will also be making the trip.
College Basketball
The #2 Iowa women’s team’s offense was firing on all cylinders as the Hawkeyes defeated Penn State handily 111-93. Hannah Stuelke was unstoppable, shooting 17 of 20 from the field to finish with 47 points. Caitlin Clark and Kate Martin each finished with double-doubles. The Hawkeyes will face off against Nebraska on the road Sunday, February 11th, at noon.
The Iowa State women’s team will compete against Oklahoma tomorrow, February 10th, at 6 pm at home.
The #14 Iowa State men’s team will host TCU tomorrow at 1 pm.
Ben Krikke’s 22 points was not enough last night as the Iowa men’s team fell on the road to Penn State 89-79. The Hawkeyes will search for a win on Sunday at home against Minnesota at 2 pm.
This Day in Sports History
1971 – Satchel Paige is nominated to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1980 – Rick Barry of the Houston Rockets is the first in NBA history to score eight 3-pointers in a game.
1988 – New Hampshire begins an NCAA record 32-game losing streak at home (ends Feb 1991).