Dewain Allan Wixom (final arrangemets)

Dewain Allan Wixom, 61, of West Burlington, died Thursday, May 18, 2023 at his home.  He was born June 11, 1961 in Burlington, the son of Francis and Betty Joan McCabe Wixom.  He married Kathy Norton and they later divorced.

He graduated from Morning Sun High School in 1979 and enlisted in the Air Force in 1980.  He served five years as a communications expert. He returned to Burlington and worked as an electronic technician at GE for the next 33 years, retiring at 59.  He enjoyed target shooting, woodworking, building computers, playing with electronics, and especially his pets.

Dewain is survived by his mother of New London; three sons, Chad Wixom of Muscatine, Daniel (Jenna) Wixom of Mt. Pleasant, and Cody (Bambi) Wixom of New London; grandchildren Delania, Troy, Savannah and Izabelle; three brothers, Gary (Darcie) of Morning Sun, Roger of Burlington, and Jeff (Tina) of Tucson, Arizona; and four nephews.  He was preceded in death by his father.

Graveside services will be held at 2:00 PM, Wednesday, May 24, 2023 in Burge Cemetery, New London.  Pastor David Mixon will officiate with Military Rites  presented by the Henry County Honor Guard.  Visitation will begin after 9:00 AM on Wednesday at Elliot Chapel in New London, with the family greeting friends from 1:00 – 2:00 PM, followed by a procession to the cemetery.  A memorial has been established to the Des Moines County Animal Shelter.  Online condolences may be left at www.elliottfuneralchapel.com

State Track and Field: Class 1A and 4A Results, One State Champion and Two State Records

State Track and Field- The Class 1A and 4A section of Friday’s events are completed and here are the results for our local teams.

The boys’ Class 1A distance medley relay had three local teams running in Winfield-Mt. Union, Danville, and New London. The Wolves team of Lane Genkinger, Abram Edwards, Ty Scorpil, and Kohlby Newsom took 20th place with a time of 3 minutes and 46 seconds.

Danville finished in 11th place with a time of 3 minutes and 41 seconds with the team of Drake Nicholson, Ayden Doyle, Ashton McCane, and AJ Bonnesen.

New London captured their first points of the meet with a 7th place finish with the time of 3 minutes and 40 seconds. The team of Boden Pickle, London Franklin, Brigham Porter, and Rylan Martin captured two points for the Tigers.

In Class 4A for the boys’ distance medley relay, Burlington’s team of Derrick Watson, Laderrias Shealey, Keshawn Wyldon, and Sam Morehead finished with a time of 3 minutes and 41 seconds, which was good enough for 20th place.

Keetyn Townsley of Winfield-Mt. Union ran in the girls’ 100 meter hurdles for Class 1A. Townsley grabbed 19th place with a time of 16.91 seconds.

Triston Miller of Columbus took down the boys’ Class 1A 110 meter hurdle state record that has stood since 1997. Miller sprinted to a time of 14.12 seconds making him the favorite for the finals. Simeon Reichenbach of WACO also qualified with the 6th fastest time of the preliminary, 15.11 seconds a personal record. The finals will begin at 1:15 pm.

Burlington’s girls team of Kierah Wiseman, Christella Boyer, Sophie Brown, and Mylee Stiefel in the Class 4A 4×200 meter relay, finished in 13th place with the time of 1 minute 45 second.

The team of Braden Spain, Isaac Oswald, Mason Miller, and Clayton Miller took 12th place with a time of 1 minute and 33 seconds in the 4×200 meter relay for Class 1A for WACO.

Burlington’s boys’ 4×200 meter relay team of Watson, Wyldon, Shealey, and Caden Schisel took 20th place with a time of 1 minute and 31 seconds.

Ottumwa’s boys 4×200 meter relay team of Brock Brinegar, Luke Graeve, Javen Rominger, and Mason Farrington grabbed 23rd place with a time of 1 minute and 32 seconds.

Gabriel Hemsworth of Winfield-Mt. Union earned a point for his 8th place finish in the boys 400 meter hurdles with a time of 55.42 seconds. Spencer Nelson of Danville took 19th place with a time of 58.59 seconds.

The girls 4×100 meter team of Wiseman, Boyer, Brown, and Stiefel for Burlington qualified for the finals on Saturday with a time of 49.06 seconds, a season best time. The race will be run at 3:25 pm.

Columbus took home another state record in the boys 4×100 meter relay with a time of Jeff Hoback, Riley Kaalberg, Miller, and Kaden Amingon with a time of 42.69 seconds, which qualified them for Saturday’s final at 3:45 pm.

New London’s team of Pickle, Franklin, Kade Benjamin, and Porter took 11th place with a time of 44.85 seconds. WACO’s team of Spain, Oswald, Miller, and Reichenbach finished right behind with a time of 45.02 seconds. Lastly, the team of Caleb Giese, Cam Buffington, Eli Miller, and Edwards grabbed 20th place with a time of 45.42 seconds for the Wolves.

Burlington’s boys’ team of Watson, Shealey, Schisel, and Wyldon finished in 21st in the 4×100 meter relay with the time of 43.94 seconds.

The Winfield-Mt. Union boys’ team of Sheaden Adams, Hemsworth, Ty Scorpil, and Newsom finished in 11th place in the 4×400 meter preliminary with a time of 3 minutes and 31 seconds.

In the field events, Delilah Subsin of Ottumwa heaved the shot put to a 4th place finish with a throw of 39 feet 1.75 inches, which earned the Bulldogs 5 points.

Benjamin of New London and Miller of Columbus were in a showdown for the boys Class 1A high jump competition as they both cleared 6 feet 6 inches. Miller failed all of his attempts for 6 feet 7 inches. Benjamin nailed his first jump for 6 feet 7 inches clinching the state title for himself. This makes it back-to-back individual state championships for Benjamin.

In the boys’ Class 1A discus, Oleh Shtefanchuk’s throw of 150 feet 1 inch was enough to get him into the finals. In the finals, he improved his mark to 155 feet on his second throw then added on to his final total as he finished in 3rd place with a throw of 158 feet 2 inches. The Warriors claimed 6 team points from the event.

In the girls’ Class 4A long jump, Madelyn Houk of Ottumwa leaped 16 feet 3.5 inches for a 15th place finish.

Team points leaders:

Boys Class 1A: Mount Ayr: 30, Akron-Westfield and Lisbon: 20, Columbus: 19

Girls Class 1A: AGWSR: 24, Pekin: 21, Calamus-Wheatland: 20

Boys Class 4A: Johnston: 47, Linn-Mar: 45, Iowa City High: 41

Girls Class 4A: Waukee Northwest: 43, Ankeny: 42, Pleasant Valley: 38

In the boys’ Class 1A, New London is tied for 8th with 12 points. Winfield-Mt. Union is tied for 10th place with 11 points and Danville is tied for 12th place with 10 points. WACO is right behind Danville with 9 points.

The Danville girls’ team has 1 point for Class 1A.

In the girls’ Class 4A team standings, Ottumwa is in 22nd place with 6 points.

Stay tuned to KILJ for more results for Class 1A and 4A tomorrow, May 20th.

Semi Roll Over

On May 17th at about 4:30 a.m., the Henry County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call reporting a commercial motor vehicle had rolled over on the s-curve on Highway 78.  The Henry County Sheriff’s Office responded to the area and located a semi-tractor and trailer on its side at the intersection of Graham Avenue and Highway 78.  The semi was traveling west on Highway 78 when the driver lost control on the southern curve.  The vehicle came to rest on the passenger side spilling some of its contents into the ditch.  The driver was injured and transported from the scene by ambulance.  The Henry County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Wayland Fire and Rescue and the Henry County Health Center Ambulance.  The collision is still under investigation and the driver’s name has not been released.

Canadian Wildfire Smoke Impacting Eastern Iowa Air Quality

 

DES MOINES – Yesterday an approaching cold front pulled smoke from Canadian wildfires down to ground level, and areas of unhealthy, very unhealthy, and hazardous air quality were measured across much of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Montana, Minnesota, and North and South Dakota. 24 hour averages of fine particulate levels that EPA considers unhealthy for sensitive groups were measured at Emmetsburg, Iowa yesterday.

Early this morning averages over a period of several hours in the eastern half of Iowa reached unhealthy levels for sensitive groups, and even levels considered unhealthy for everyone.  Currently only the extreme eastern edge of Iowa around and south of Davenport is characterized by these levels.  The smoke is expected to clear this area by mid-afternoon today.  However, intermittent and patchy smoke episodes are possible throughout the weekend.

Sensitive groups include older adults, those with respiratory or heart disease, and children. The health impacts of the smoke can be reduced by limiting prolonged outdoor exertion until air quality conditions improve.

Real-time maps of air quality and information about the air quality index can be found on EPA’s airnow.gov site.  A graphic approximation of the extent and trajectory of the smoke plume can be seen on the map at https://fire.airnow.gov/

 

Public Improvement Committee Meeting Agenda

The Mount Pleasant Public Improvement Committee will meet Wednesday, May 24th, 2023, at 4:15 p.m. in the City Administrators’ Conference Room.

AGENDA

    1. Call to order
    2. Discussion with Historic Preservation
    3. Discuss Lee Town Park
    4. Discuss Cemetery Garage
    5. Open Forum
    6.  Adjourn

New London Road Closure

The Henry County Road Department reminds everyone of the road closure of New London Road X23 south of Lowell beginning the week of May 22. Construction will consist of realignment and asphalt paving of the road. In addition Penn Avenue will also be closed to thru traffic. Work will take approximately four months weather permitting. There will be a posted detour route.  If there are any questions or concerns please call 319-385-0762.

Sports, May 19th

High School Track and Field

Day one of the State Track and Field meet is in the books and here are the highlights from yesterday’s events.

In Class 1A, AJ Bonnesen of Danville is the state champion in the 3200 meter run. Bonnesen finished with a time of 9 minutes and 10 seconds, which is a new school record and it’s the second-fastest time by a Class 1A runner and No. 27 overall on the all-time list.

In Class 1A, Cam Buffington leaped to a new personal record and won the gold in the long jump with a leap of 21 feet 8 inches. Buffington had three jumps that would have won him the state championship, but it was his 2nd attempt that would take it for him.

Simeon Reichenbach of WACO captured 3 points in the long jump with his 6th place finish. After advancing to the finals, he improved his final jump to 20 feet 7.75 inches, but it cemented his final spot in 6th place.

The Winfield-Mt. Union and Danville boys’ teams are tied for 2nd place with 10 points each.

In the girls’ 100 meter dash for Class 4A, the Grayhound’s Mylee Stiefel qualified for the finals with a time of 12.62 seconds.

Ledarrias Shealey is the second member for Burlington to qualify for the 100 meter dash finals after racing to a time of 11.36 seconds in the boys’ Class 4A preliminary race.

In Class 2A for Van Buren County, Wyatt Mertens leaped 21 feet 8.5 inches to place 8th in the long jump. Anthony Duncan claimed 6 points for the Warriors after finishing in 3rd place with a time of 50.04 seconds in the 400 meter dash.

For Mediapolis, Anthony Isley raced to a time of 22.40 seconds in the boys’ 200 meter dash, the second fastest time in the qualifier. He will run in the finals on Saturday at 2:05 pm. In the boys’ Class 2A 4×800 meter relay, the Bulldogs took 4th place with a time of 8 minutes and 4.05 seconds with the team of Jeff Campbell, Owen Schmidgall, Solomon Zaugg, and Logan Rosas. In the 400 meter dash, Isley gained 8 points for the Bulldogs after a 2nd place finish with a time of 49.97 seconds, a personal record.

Thomas Eschman of Central Lee grabbed three points for his 6th place finish in the long jump with a leap of 21 feet 10 inches.

Mediapolis is tied for 3rd place with 13 team points with Van Buren County in 9th place with 7 points for Class 2A.

Mt. Pleasant had a team run in the boys’ shuttle hurdle relay for Class 3A. The team of Bryce Wilson, Will Davidson, Avin Truong, and Gavin Kerr took 9th place for the Panthers with a time of 1 minute and 1.93 seconds.

KILJ will be bringing results throughout the state track meet today and tomorrow.

High School Soccer

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will host Maquoketa in the Regional Qualifier tonight.

The Danville boys’ team will face off against West Liberty in the second round of the postseason on May 22nd.

The Central Lee boys’ team will travel to take on Pella Christian on May 22nd for the second round of the postseason.

For girls’ soccer, Burlington Notre Dame will host Clinton tonight at 7 pm. The bottom half of the Class 2A Region 5 bracket will be a Southeast Conference battle with Fort Madison squaring off with Keokuk in round one today at 7 pm.

High School Golf

The boys’ state tournament will start on May 22nd with Mason Shelledy of New London playing at Ames Golf and Country Club.

The New London girls’ team and Olivia Hines of Mediapolis will be competing in the state tournament with day one of the two day tournament starting on May 25th.

High School Baseball

Mt. Pleasant will travel to take on Clear Creek-Amana on May 24th.

High School Softball

Mt. Pleasant will host Holy Trinity Catholic on May 22nd at 5 pm.

Iowa Wesleyan Athletics

The NAIA National Championship meet will take place on May 24th for outdoor track and field.

This Day in Sports History

1912 – AL President Ban Johnson tells Tigers if they continue protest of Ty Cobb’s suspension, they will be banned from baseball.

1974 – Stanley Cup Final, The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA: Goaltender Bernie Parent and the Flyers shut out the Boston Bruins, 1-0, to win the series 4-2, becoming the first “expansion” team to win Stanley Cup; Parent named playoff MVP.

1991 – Willy T. Ribbs overcomes numerous mechanical problems in qualifying to become first African-American driver to make the Indianapolis 500 starting grid.

State Track and Field: Class 2A and 3A Results from Day 1

State Track and Field- Class 2A and 3A have finished up their day one events and here are the results for our local teams.

Mt. Pleasant and Fort Madison had a team run in the boys’ shuttle hurdle relay for Class 3A. The team of Bryce Wilson, Will Davidson, Avin Truong, and Gavin Kerr took 9th place for the Panthers with a time of 1 minute and 1.93 seconds. For the Bloodhounds, Adam Sobczak, Gavin Callahan, Kiawante Smith, and Henry Wiseman finished with a time of 1 minute and 2.37 seconds, which was good enough for 15th place.

The boys’ Class 2A shuttle hurdle team of Jackson Hutcheson, Ben Wolter, Grady Gunn, and Trent Hicks took 19th place with a time of 1 minute and 5.96 seconds for Mediapolis.

The Bloodhounds had Avery Rump compete in the girls 3000 meter run. Rump finished in 11th place with a time of 11 minutes and 3.29 seconds.

For Van Buren County, Lincoln Bainbridge grabbed 20th place in the Class 2A boys’ 3200 meter run with a time of 10 minutes and 28 seconds, a personal best. Wyatt Mertens leaped 21 feet 8.5 inches to place 8th in the long jump.

Micah Rees finished with a personal best in the boys’ 3200 meter run in Class 3A with a time of 9 minutes and 55.42 seconds. Rees grabbed 10th place.

For Fort Madison, Nik Fullenkamp sprinted to a 24th place finish in the boys’ Class 3A 200 meter dash with a time of 23.92 seconds.

Anthony Isley of Mediapolis raced to a time of 22.40 seconds in the boys’ 200 meter dash, the second fastest time in the qualifier. He will run in the finals on Saturday at 2:05 pm.

In the boys’ Class 2A 4×800 meter relay, Mediapolis took 4th place with a time of 8 minutes and 4.05 seconds with the team of Jeff Campbell, Owen Schmidgall, Solomon Zaugg, and Logan Rosas.

Washington had a girls and boys team run in the 4×800 meter relay for Class 3A. The team of Grace Voss, Lauren Horak, Kendall Henrichsen, and Iris Dahl finished with a time of 10 minutes and 16.38 seconds in the girls’ race, which placed their team in 19th. The boys team of Logan McDole, Drew Horak, Andrew Rees, and Micah Rees took 22nd place with a time of 8 minutes and 28.63 seconds.

The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team of Gabe Feldmann, Jacob Richtman, Isaac Rynders, and Ben Carthey competed in the 4×800 meter relay. The Panthers finished in 21st place with a time of 8 minutes and 28.59 seconds.

Mt. Pleasant’s Andi Scott raced to a time of 13.33 seconds in the girls 100 meter dash, which placed her 22nd.

Thomas Eschman had a successful day for Central Lee with a 19th place finish in the boys Class 2A with a time of 11.52 seconds. Eschman also grabbed three points with his 6th place finish in the long jump with a leap of 21 feet 10 inches.

Davidson of Mt. Pleasant, Jack Riley and Travain Donaldson of West Burlington-Notre Dame (WB-ND) competed in the boys’ Class 3A 100 meter dash. Davidson finished in 12th place with a time of 11.24 seconds. Riley and Donaldson both qualified for finals. Riley raced to the 2nd fastest time in the preliminary with a time of 10.94 seconds. Donaldson snuck into the top 8 with a time of 11.10 seconds. They will race on Saturday at 12:55 pm.

In the boys’ Class 2A 400 meter dash, Isley of Mediapolis gained 8 points for the Bulldogs after a 2nd place finish with a time of 49.97 seconds, a personal record. Anthony Duncan of Van Buren County finished right behind Isley with a time of 50.04 seconds, which gave the Warriors 7 total points on the day.

Cade Packard of Fort Madison finished in 21st place for the boys Class 3A 400 meter dash with a time of 52.19 seconds.

Washington’s Elijah Morris in the 100 meter dash and Alec Ulin in the 400 meter dash did not record a time.

The team of Maya Lane, Lilly Bergren, Hayley Reinier, and Isabel McCready finished in 21st place with a time 1 minute and 12.53 seconds for Fairfield in the girls’ Class 3A shuttle hurdle relay.

Shifting full focus to the field events. Eli Zillman and Ryan Giberson of Fairfield both participated in the high jump. Zillamn finished in 17th place and Giberson claimed 14th place as they both cleared 5 feet 11 inches.

Brayden Hartman of Washington took 11th place in the discus with a throw of 151 feet 5 inches. The Demon’s Grace Voss tied for 7th place in the high jump with a leap of 5 feet.

Stay tuned to KILJ for more results tomorrow and Saturday.