On December 19th, 2023, the Henry County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a hit and run collision in the 300 block of East Oak Street in Salem, IA. An investigation into the incident determined a 2010 Toyota Scion XD had been legally parked along the curb. Sometime between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m., the night before, the vehicle was struck and received damage to the driver’s side rear. During the investigation, a suspect vehicle was located. The offending vehicle, a 2008 Hyundai Veracruz, was also located in the 300 block of East Oak Street. Owners of the vehicles were notified, and a collision report was issued to the involved parties.
Disabling Damage to Vehicle During Two Car Accident in Salem
On December 20th, 2023, at approximately 12:31 pm, the Henry County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a two-vehicle collision in the 200 block of Main Street in Salem. An investigation into the collision determined a 2016 Chrysler Town & Country, driven by Mercedes Ellard, 31, of Fairfield, was travelling northbound on Main Street and at the same time a 2015 Chevrolet Equinox, driven by Michael Woll, 20, of Salem, was travelling east on W Van Buren Street. The Woll vehicle failed to yield at a stop sign and drove out in front of the Ellard vehicle causing a collision. The occupants of both vehicles were uninjured.
The damage to the Woll vehicle was estimating to be $8,000 rendering it disabled and the damage to the Ellard vehicle was estimated to be $6,000.
Vehicle Rollover on Tuesday Afternoon
On December 19th, 2023, at approximately 12:20 pm, the Henry County Sheriff’s Office received multiple reports of a single vehicle collision in the 3000 grid of Franklin Avenue. An investigation into the collision determined a 2015 Chevrolet Equinox, driven by Dawn Tomson, 54 of Salem, was traveling southbound on Franklin Avenue when the vehicle left the roadway. The vehicle crossed over northbound lane entering the east side ditch. The vehicle collided with the embankment of 300th street and rolled onto its side. The occupant had to be removed by non-mechanical means and was transported to an area hospital.
The damage to the vehicle was estimated to be $10,000, rendering it to be a total loss. The Henry County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Iowa State Patrol Commercial Motor Vehicle Unit, Salem Fire and Rescue, and the Henry County Health Center Ambulance.
Washington Woman Arrested On a Warrant
A woman was arrested in Washington yesterday evening on a warrant around 9:30pm. 42 year old Carrie Paramo was arrested after a deputy received a report of a violation of a no contact order. Upon arrival, the deputy found Paramo and arrested her on a warrant for violation of a court order. She was also charged at that time with Contempt – Violation of a No Contact Order. Paramo was transported to the Washington County Jail, where her warrant was cleared from the system and she was transported to the hospital.
Heads Painted as KHS Students Meet Food Drive Goal
The 2023 Wise Men Holiday Food Drive at the Keokuk High School was a great success and the organizers reached their goal. Because of this success students earned the prize of be allowed to decorate the smooth and shiny heads of Mr. Nathan Harrison, KHS principal, Mr. Matt McGhghy, KHS teacher, and Mr. Tim Carter, KHS guidance counselor.
There were 850 cans donated in two weeks that will be sent to the Salvation Army and two cash donations of $500 each donated by Keokuk XII and First Christian Church Disciple Women’s Fellowship.
The annual food drive ran through Dec. 15 and was sponsored by Konnections, YLT, StuCo and Interact at KHS.
Keokuk Community School District Considers Four Day Week
The results of a recent school calendar survey that included a four-day week option was shared at the meeting of the Keokuk Community School District Board of Education on Dec. 18 by Dr. Kathy Dinger, Superintendent of Keokuk Community School District.
“We were pleasantly surprised at the level of engagement we saw,” Dr. Dinger reported during Monday’s meeting.
The survey included a choice between a four-day week, both with and without a spring break, and a traditional five-day week, both with and without a spring break. The questions were based on feedback gathered from staff and parents in the district, and was distributed by email on Wednesday, Dec. 13, to over 300 staff members and nearly 1,200 parents with a closing date of Sunday, Dec. 17. More than 600 staff and parents responded to the survey.
Whether a parent or an employee, the favorite calendar option was the four-day week, with a spring break. Collectively, 229 of the 607 who responded chose this option. Overwhelmingly, the least favorite calendar option was the 5-day week, with no spring break, option with 226 respondents selecting this as their last choice.
As explained in the calendar survey, the four-day option is being considered as a way to recruit and retain staff, improve open enrollment numbers, and support student and employee mental health, all while maintaining a focus on strong instructional hours.
The conversation about the 2024-2025 calendar will continue at the Board’s meeting scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024.
Sports, December 21st
High School Basketball
The Holy Trinity Catholic girls’ team will travel to take on Mt. Pleasant tonight at 6:45 pm with KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, on the call with the pregame show at 6:30 pm. The Holy Trinity Catholic boys’ team enters winter break with a 6-3 record.
The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team heads into winter break with a 5-3 record and a 4-0 conference record.
The WACO girls’ team will head into winter break with a 4-5 record, while the boys’ team will host North Linn tonight at 7:30 pm as they recognize the contributions Bob Hilmer made to both communities.
The Winfield-Mt. Union girls’ team is 3-8 heading into winter break. The boys’ team heads into winter break with an 8-1 record.
The New London boys’ team will travel to Regina Catholic tonight at 7:30 pm, while the girls’ team will compete against Columbus tonight at 6 pm at home.
The Danville boys’ team will host BGM tonight at 7:30 pm. The girls’ team will head into winter break with a 5-4 record.
The Central Lee girls’ team heads into winter break with a 3-5 record. The Central Lee boys’ team is 2-6 entering winter break.
The Mediapolis girls’ team heads into winter break with an 8-1 record. The boys’ team touts a 5-3 record heading into winter break.
The Van Buren County boys’ team will face off against Columbus on January 4th at 7:30 pm and the girls’ team will travel to Fairfield on January 2nd at 7:30 pm.
High School Wrestling
The WACO boys’ team will compete in a meet at Washington on January 4th.
The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, Mt. Pleasant, and WACO girls’ teams will compete at a tournament after winter break on January 5th at Highland.
The Mt. Pleasant boys’ teams will have to wait until after winter break with the Panthers competing on January 4th at Sigourney.
The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union boys’ team will compete Saturday, December 23rd, at Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont.
New London will wait until after winter break to compete in a quad at Cascade on January 4th.
High School Bowling
Mt. Pleasant will take on Washington on January 4th.
College Signings
Abram Edwards and Cam Buffington made history for Winfield-Mt. Union as the school had never had one player sign on to play Division I football, they now claim two as of yesterday.
Edwards officially signed on to play football at Army, while Buffington will be heading 45 minutes north to play for the Hawkeyes at the University of Iowa. Edwards talked about why he chose to attend college at West Point. Buffington spoke about how he’s ready to get back out onto the field.
Head basketball coach and Abram’s father Klay Edwards was beyond proud of these two representatives of the community.
College Football
Iowa State University will take on Memphis in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl in Memphis on December 29th at 2:30 pm. The Cyclones defeated Memphis in the 2017 AutoZone Liberty Bowl 21-20.
#20 Iowa will face off against #25 Tennessee in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on January 1st at noon.
College Basketball
The #4 Iowa women’s team will face off against Loyola-Chicago tonight at 5 pm at home.
The Iowa State women’s team took down UNI last night 87-70. The Cyclones were led by Kelsey Joens and Audi Crooks, who each scored 16 points. Addy Brown has now had four straight games of tallying a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds last night. The Cyclones will begin conference play on December 30th at 2 pm against Oklahoma State on the road.
The Iowa State men’s team will host Eastern Illinois tonight at 7 pm.
The Iowa men’s team counted on Tony Perkins’ 23 points in their 103-81 victory over UMBC last night. Ben Krikke (17 points and 12 rebounds) and Payton Sandfort (18 points and 10 rebounds) each finished with a double-double in the winning effort. The Hawkeyes will take on Northern Illinois on December 29th at 6 pm at home.
This Day in Sports History
1891 – First basketball game based on rules created by James Naismith is played by 18 students in Springfield, Massachusetts.
1937 – Chicago Blackhawks left winger Paul Thompson becomes the first player in NHL history to score a goal against his brother, goaltender Cecil Thompson of the Boston Bruins, with just nine seconds left in regulation; Bruins win though, 2-1.
1969 – Vince Lombardi coached his last football game, a 20-10 loss to the Cowboys in Dallas, to finish with a 7-5-2 season and a career record of 105-35-6.
From the Wolves Den to Collegiate Athletics: Abram Edwards and Cam Buffington Sign on to Play Division I Football
Winfield-Mt. Union- It was a special day at Winfield-Mt. Union as the whole community showed their support for Abram Edwards and Cam Buffington as they signed on to play Division I football.
Edwards will be taking his talents to West Point to attend Army University to join the Black Knights on the gridiron.
Buffington will be traveling just about an hour north to become a Hawkeye at the University of Iowa.
This was the first time in school history that one player signed on to play Division I football, and the Wolves got to celebrate two upstanding young men as their head football coach Scott McCarty talked about at the celebration,
“Absolutely, it’s just a super proud moment of these young men. Like I said, ‘they are the exact intersection of hard work and talent and high quality, high character young men. You know as a coach you always want to be a part of something like this… and to have two of them that’s pretty fantastic.”
Edwards and Buffington were superstars on the field for the Wolves, as they helped lead the team to an 11-1 record and their first trip to the state tournament since 1999 last season. Their career stats are simply outrageous.
Edwards: 567 rushing yards with 13 rushing touchdowns/85 receptions for 1,425 yards and 20 receiving touchdowns/defensively he totaled 158.5 tackles, 24.5 sacks, 47.5 tackles for a loss, three interceptions and three fumble recoveries with one interception returned for a touchdown.
Buffington: 512 carries for an insane 4,830 yards and 85 touchdowns/39 receptions for 950 yards and19 touchdowns/defensively he tallied 307 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 30.5 tackles for loss, and six interceptions with five returned for touchdowns. Additionally, he started at quarterback in his sophomore season and finished with 1,157 passing yards and 17 touchdowns.
It’s ironic that the event happened for these two as anyone can attest, they are soft spoken and incredibly humble.
“You know Cam helps out in first grade, he has for the last couple years, helps them read and do math,” said Coach McCarty. “Abram is never a guy to shy away from volunteering. We had a new family move in this year…he’s over there and he worked from sunup until sundown basically.”
Buffington and Edwards have competed with one another since fourth grade, and they contribute a lot of their own success to each other for always pushing one another.
“Honestly, you can give a lot of my success to Abram too because like in basketball practice ever since we’ve started in fourth grade, it’s me and him guarding each other. So, you can give a lot of success to him because he’s made me better and I’ve made him better throughout the years, so it’s just cool to grow up and be around a kid like that,” said Cam Buffington.
Echoing a similar sentiment was Abram Edwards,
“Oh, that helped me tremendously. In practice, us being able to push each other and go head-to-head. Learning from him and him telling me little things to work on that might improve me and just leadership ability and all that coming from Cam was amazing.”
Head basketball coach and Abram’s father, Klay Edwards, put it simply after the ceremony,
“Super proud of both Cam and Abram, two awesome kids.”
Both Buffington and Edwards thanked the community for showing their support and both are ready to work when it’s time to head off to college.
“I’m just excited to get to in there and just start working with the coaches in there,” stated Buffington.
“I’m excited about playing football under Coach Monken then also the friendships and bonds I’ve created with a lot of people,” said Edwards.
It is almost impossible to describe the impact that both young men have had on the community, but watching the grade school students drop off drawings and ask for autographs certainly paints a clear enough picture.