Hwy 218 North of MP Construction 11/19/25

By Patrick Fee · Saturday, November 15th, 2025 at 6:38 am CDT

The Iowa DOT advises that construction is set to begin next week on Highway 218 North of Mt. Pleasant, which will cause some lane closures between 7am and 7pm.

A crack sealing project from near 185th Street, about three miles north of Mt. Pleasant, and County Road H18, to just south of Swedesburg will begin on Wednesday, November 19th.

The project is expected to take about a week to complete, wrapping up just before Thanksgiving. Drivers are asked to take additional caution when workers are present in the area.

 

Area Meetings Next Week

By Patrick Fee · Saturday, November 15th, 2025 at 6:37 am CDT

The City of Danville City Council will hold its regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, November 17th in Danville City Hall with call to order at 5:15pm. This meeting is open to the public.

 

The Henry County Board of Supervisors will meet on Tuesday, November 18th at 9am in the Henry County Courthouse.  This meeting is open to the public.  At 1pm, the board of supervisors will meet in closed session for IT interviews.

Sports, November 15th

By Slaten Swords · Saturday, November 15th, 2025 at 6:30 am CDT

Postseason High School Football

Two more classes held their semifinal games yesterday and a pair of upsets highlighted yesterday’s action.

Class 1A led off the action and Regina Catholic’s offense did anything it wanted to do against Grundy Center, compiling 289 rushing yards in the 31-12 victory. Savion Miller rushed for 167 yards and a score for the Regals as Kyle Tracy added three scores of his own. 

What has become a theme for most of the playoffs, South Hardin struck first but ended up being no match for the defending Class 2A champs as West Lyon powered their way to a 21-7 win. Evan Hildring did most of the work for the Wildcats, running for 174 yards and two touchdowns in the winning effort. 

The Class 1A state title game between West Lyon and Regina Catholic is slated for Thursday, November 20th, at 4 pm.

In the Class 5A semifinals, Dowling Catholic’s passing attack finally broke through Valley’s defense for enough big plays in the second half to take down the Tigers 14-10. Joey Nahas found his brother Jimmy for a 28-yard touchdown pass and Jeffrey Roberts for a 69-yard dagger in the 3rd quarter to lead the Maroons. 

Lastly, in the nightcap, Iowa City Liberty controlled the game from start to finish as they upset Waukee Northwest 31-15. Reece Rettig picked apart the Wolves defense for 210 passing yards and three total touchdowns, while the Lightning’s defense limited Waukee Northwest to just 202 total yards. 

The Class 5A championship will wrap up action on Friday, November 21st, with kickoff at 7 pm between Dowling Catholic and Iowa City Liberty.

The Class 2A semifinals will lead off today with Osage and Van Meter playing at 10 am and Kuemper Catholic squaring off against Wilton at 1 pm. The Class 3A semifinals will follow with Bishop Heelan kicking off against Wahlert Catholic at 4 pm and Solon taking on Nevada at 7 pm.

#1 Bishop Garrigan and #2 Woodbine will meet on Thursday at 9:30 am for the Eight-Player state championship.

The Class A championship contest is set for Thursday at 1 pm between Saint Ansgar and MMCRU. 

Pella and Xavier will meet at 7 pm on Thursday for the Class 4A state title. 

High School Girls’ Basketball

Mt. Pleasant will host their jamboree on Monday, November 17th, with Columbus, Mediapolis, and Winfield-Mt. Union also participating.

New London will scrimmage against Fairfield and Van Buren County will take on Sigourney at a jamboree held by Cardinal on Tuesday, November 18th.

Southeastern Community College

The women’s basketball team will face off against Moberly Area Community College today at a tournament held by John Wood Community College. 

The men’s basketball team lost a heartbreaker last night against Oliver-Harvey College, 79-77. Prophet Fields had a busy night, collecting 15 points, seven rebounds, and six assists in the effort. The Blackhawks will stay on the road to take on Richard J. Daley College today at 1 pm. 

The men’s and women’s wrestling teams will travel to Luther College today for a tournament. 

College Football

#21 Iowa returns to action today in a road showdown against #17 USC at 2:30 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM will be on the call.

Iowa State is now on a bye week. 

College Basketball

The #21 Iowa women’s team will travel to Cedar Falls to take on UNI tomorrow, November 16th, at 2 pm.

The Iowa men’s team bullied Xavier last night in an 81-62 victory. The Hawkeyes scored 50 of their 81 points in the paint as Bennett Stirtz dumped in 21 points to go along with eight rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Iowa will square off against Southeast Missouri State on Tuesday, November 18th, at 7:30 pm at home.

The #16 Iowa State women’s team will face off against Norfolk State tomorrow at 1 pm.

The #16 Iowa State men’s team will compete at home against Stonehill College on Monday, November 17th, at 7 pm. KILJ 98.5 FM and AM 1130 will be on the call.

This Day in Sports History

1970 – Paul Brown, as head coach of the expansion Cincinnati Bengals, defeats his former team the Cleveland Browns, a moment he calls his “greatest victory.”

1992 – Richard Petty drove in the final race of his 35-year career.

1998 – Emmitt Smith (Dallas Cowboys) moved into third place on the all-time touchdown list when he got his 127th.

Johnie Lee Arbogast

By Patrick Fee · Friday, November 14th, 2025 at 4:47 pm CDT

Johnie Lee Arbogast, 89, of Washington, died Thursday, November 13, 2025, at the Halcyon House in Washington.

Graveside Services will be at 11:00 AM, Wednesday, November 19, 2025, at the Schrock Cemetery. The service will be livestreamed on the Beatty-Peterseim YouTube channel and Facebook page. Visitation will begin at 2PM and family will be present 4-6:00PM Tuesday, November 18, 2025, at the Beatty Funeral Home in Washington. A memorial in the name of Johnie Arbogast has been established to Hospice of Washington County or Brighton 1st responders.

Johnie was born on July 20, 1936, the son of John and Ada (Turner) Arbogast. He attended school through the 8th grade and joined the Navy. Johnie was united in marriage to Elanor Jean Beauregard on October 2, 1959. After serving in the Navy Johnie worked driving a feed truck, Farm Service, and Crane Valve in Washington.

He had a small farm at home where he raised horses. He took this opportunity to teach his children the valuable lesson of hard work. Johnie enjoyed taking care of the horses, especially his horse Little “Dusty” Star. On their free time Johnie took his family to local rodeos and horse shows.

Survivors include son Terry Arbogast of Brighton, two daughters Deb Barnett of Wayland and Cindy Arbogast of Brighton: siblings Mildred Wilson of Ainsworth, Dorothy Jacob of Wellman, Charles Arbogast, Stanley (Shelly) Arbogast both of Washington, sister in-law Fonda Arbogast, grandson Trevor Barnett, granddaughter Breann Barnett, great grandson Westyn Albert.

He was preceded by his parents, wife Jean, Son in-law Jim Barnett, two sisters Elizabeth Troutman, infant sister, four brothers Howard, Dean, Richard, Edwin Arbogast, two nephews Doug and Jeff Arbogast, niece Carla Arbogast, great nephew Zachary.

 

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Beverly June McFall (Duvel)

By Hayden Douglas · Friday, November 14th, 2025 at 12:17 pm CDT

Beverly June McFall (Duvel), 90, of rural Montrose, Iowa, passed away at 6:29 a.m., Thursday, November 13, 2025, at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics  in Iowa City.

She was born on November 25, 1934 in Udell, Iowa, the daughter of Otha and Myrtle (Dochterman) Fenton. Bev graduated from Moravia High School in 1952. On June 5, 1955, she married Jerry Charles McFall in Centerville, Iowa, where they made their home for several years. Together they raised three children before Jerry’s passing in 2014 after fifty-nine years of marriage. Beverly then met Thomas Edward Duvel and they married on November 26, 2016.

Survivors include her husband: Tom of Montrose; son: Randy (Lisa) McFall of Donnellson; daughters: Kathy (Duane) Kramer of Donnellson and Pamela (Fletcher) Fett of Fort Madison; step-sons: Randy (Bonnie) Duvel of Cedar Falls, Iowa, Mike Duvel of Troy, Missouri, Terry (Trisha) Duvel of Warrenton, Missouri; step-daughters: Debbi (Keith) Schwaab of Wentzville, Missouri, Becky (Terry) Roberts of Wentzville, Missouri and Tina (Cliff) Tucker of Troy, Missouri; one sister: Colleen Bryant of Niceville, Florida; many grand, great grand and great-great grandchildren. Also surviving are several nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband: Jerry; son-in-law: Craig Hayes; brothers: Otha Fenton, Jr., Lyle Fenton and Paul Fenton; two sisters: Barbara Allen and Lela Ponsetto.

Bev was an avid golfer in her early years and played weekly in a women’s league. She loved growing roses in her yard, baking prize winning pies and making the best chocolate chip cookies ever. One of her name-sake granddaughters lovingly referred to her as “Grandma Cookie”. Bev also devoted many years of service to the National T.T.T. Society. The group raises money to send numerous girls to camp each year to help build new life skills, self-confidence, as well as lifelong memories and friendships. Bev believed this was a very important mission and was proud of her involvement.

Bev and Jerry eventually moved their family from Centerville to Donnellson where they owned and operated Gambles stores in Donnellson and Fort Madiosn for twenty years. They later moved to Des Moines, Iowa where they both worked for Conlin Management Company for fifteen years before retiring to their current home on the Mississippi River in rural Montrose. Bev loved property management, meeting new tenants, managing the day-to-day operations of a large apartment complex and keeping all the records by hand. Even in retirement, she and Jerry owned two rental properties for several years.

Retiring to their house by the river in Montrose had been a dream of hers and Jerry’s and they loved it there. They enjoyed watching the eagles, the barge traffic and living close to all of their family. Later, Tom married and joined her there and the two of them took great care of each other, filling the last nine years with love and companionship. Through their marriage, Bev gained many new family members and friends.

A visitation will be held from 12:00 noon to 6:00 p.m. Monday, November 17, 2025, at Schmitz Funeral Home in Donnellson. The family will not be present.

The family will receive friends from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, November 18, 2025, with the funeral service immediately following at 11:00 a.m. at Schmitz Funeral Home in Donnellson with Reverend Dana Jurgens officiating.

Burial will be at the Montrose Cemetery in Montrose, Iowa.

In lieu of flowers, memorials have been established in her memory for Green Acres Country Club in Donnellson or the National T.T.T. Society.

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

Tire Blowout Causes Jackknifed Semi, Major Backups on Highway 218 Near Salem

By Hayden Douglas · Friday, November 14th, 2025 at 11:53 am CDT

A tire blowout on an 18-wheeler caused significant traffic disruption Friday morning on Highway 218 near Salem. The accident happened around 9:00 a.m. at the intersection of Salem Road and Highway 218, just south of Mount Pleasant.

According to initial reports, the semi suffered a sudden tire failure, causing the driver to lose control and the vehicle to jackknife across the roadway. The truck blocked traffic for roughly an hour as law enforcement and recovery crews worked to clear the scene.

Traffic backups extended north to Old Highway 218, worsened by construction already underway in the area. Iowa State Patrol and Henry County Sheriff’s deputies directed alternating traffic flow, allowing northbound vehicles to move for several minutes before stopping them to let southbound traffic proceed.

Just after 10:00 a.m., the semi was successfully moved out of the roadway, and normal traffic flow was restored.

No injuries have been reported.
KILJ will continue to provide updates if additional information becomes available.

Mt. Pleasant’s Cross Country Team Awards

By Slaten Swords · Friday, November 14th, 2025 at 11:49 am CDT

Mt. Pleasant, IA- The Mt. Pleasant cross country teams, led by Mitch Anderson and Lyle Murray, put together a successful season on the trails, which included a trio of All-Conference and State Qualifying runners and a top 25 finish at the 2025 State Cross Country Meet.

To officially put the exclamation mark on the season, the Panthers held their banquet last night and passed out the season awards.

Panther Girls’ Team

There’s no secret that Mt. Pleasant boasts a talented but very young team with two freshmen and four sophomores. That inexperience can be detrimental to a team’s success, unless you have a strong leader, and the Panthers had just that in their lone senior Nelle Peterson. Aptly, Peterson earned the Linnie Cornick Heart Award.

Peterson’s best run of the year was 23 minutes and 13 seconds, which ranked third on the team. The best finish of the season for the Panther squad was 2nd place at the Mediapolis Invite where Peterson took 15th place, her best of the season.

A sophomore that was consistently turning in season best times was Molly Baker and for her effort she was given the Most Potential Award. Her season trajectory was a coach’s dream. Baker started the season running around the 26-minute mark and by the end of the season turned in her personal best time at the State Qualifier at 23 minutes and 49 seconds. A two-minute improvement throughout the season is highly impressive.

For the second consecutive year, the Panthers had a freshman qualify for the State Meet. Avery Fedler had a lot of hype surrounding her rookie season at the high school level and the team MVP delivered.

Fedler was ranked as high as #3 in Class 3A for the Iowa Association of Track Coaches (IATC) and won not only the Southeast Conference (SEC) meet but the Panthers’ State Qualifying meet as well. Her best time was at the SEC meet as she turned in a time of 18 minutes and 42 seconds. The freshman claimed 24th at the State Meet in Fort Dodge.

Fedler talked about what she was working on to improve her performance heading into her first high school experience,

“I think one thing I’ve really worked on is building my mileage. So, in middle school I probably wasn’t running more than 10 miles a week, and I’ve built it up to like 30 miles a week, 10 miles is not ideal for any kind of mid distance runner, so building my mileage is definitely the key factor in my success.”

Quintrie Lee qualified for her second consecutive State Meet as well as she finished in 3rd place at the SEC meet to finish with All-Conference honors. Haylay Lydolph and Summer Winget also improved as the season progressed.

Panther Boys’ Team

Similar to the girls’ team, the boys’ team touted one senior to lead a roster that consisted of six underclassmen. With the help of Payton Wilson’s leadership, the Panthers grabbed 3rd place at the SEC meet. The senior also saved his best run for the State Qualifier as he finished with a time of 19 minutes and 17 seconds. For his hard work, Wilson earned the Panther Award.

Ben Leishman’s best time as a freshman was 20 minutes and 40 seconds. The sophomore cut nearly two minutes off his best time this season with a mark of 18 minutes and 41 seconds, which was good enough for 21st at the SEC meet. This evolution meant Leishman took home the Most Improved Award.

Last but certainly not least, the team MVP went to junior Silas Hulett. Coach Anderson had a simple way of describing Hulett’s performance at his home meet that would be the groundwork for the rest of the season, “monster race…” He turned in a time of 17 minutes-flat to win the large division.

He would parlay that victory into an All-Conference honor at the SEC meet, then a gigantic 9th place finish at the State Qualifier, which saw him cut off another 16 seconds from his run at the Panther Invite to finish with a season best time of 16 minutes and 44 seconds. Hulett would claim 53rd place at the State Meet with a time of 17 minutes and 3 seconds.

This is in spite of Hulett not running on the cross-country team until last year. He lives out exactly what he hopes to pass down to the next generation of runners,

“With enough work and enough dedication, anything is possible, and you just have to be willing to fight through the pain and power [through] and run your race and have a little fun sometimes because you don’t always run your best race. You know, you don’t always do your best all the time. Sometimes you mess up, but maybe that mess up is just to be better the next time, you know.”

Helping round out the team was Jeremiah Aguma, Max Heater, Lucas Hurd, Khanon Koller, Anthony Krzyranowski, Clark Peterson, and Oliver Rynders, who all improved throughout the season, as they all turned in sub-26 minute times.

Two-Vehicle Crash Sends One to Hospital in Mount Pleasant

By Hayden Douglas · Friday, November 14th, 2025 at 11:48 am CDT

The Mount Pleasant Police Department responded to a two-vehicle collision Thursday afternoon that left one passenger injured.

According to authorities, the crash occurred on November 13 at 4:31 p.m. at the intersection of Washington and Walnut Streets. Dispatchers reported that a passenger in one of the vehicles had been injured and was possibly trapped.

Officers arrived to find Mount Pleasant Fire Department personnel already working to free the passenger from the vehicle. Once extricated, the individual was transported by Henry County Emergency Medical Services to Henry County Health Center for further evaluation and treatment. No additional injuries were reported.

An investigation revealed that a 2007 Suzuki SX4 was traveling east on Washington Street and attempted to turn north onto Walnut Street on a green light. The Suzuki was struck on the passenger side by a westbound 2018 Ram 2500. Police determined that both drivers’ view of oncoming traffic had been blocked by another truck that was attempting to turn south onto Walnut Street.

The Mount Pleasant Police Department was assisted at the scene by the Mount Pleasant Fire Department, Henry County EMS, and Breuer Towing & Recovery.