West Burlington Phone Store Burglary and Robbery

At 9:11pm on Saturday, May 6th, police were called to a Cricket Wireless store in West Burlington, at 411 W. Agency Rd. Suite 3, for a reported burglary. When officers arrived, they found many cell phones had been taken, as well as money.

On Monday, May 8th, West Burlington Police were called to a Verizon Wireless store at 116 W. Agency Rd. Suite 7. Reportedly, an armed robbery took place where the suspect took many cell phones before leaving the store. The suspect had brandished a firearm according to the police.

If you have information regarding these cases, please call the West Burlington Police Department at 319 754 8555, or email Detective Schlueter at SchlueterC@WestBurlington.org or email Officer Menner at MennenB@WestBurlington.org

If you wish to submit an anonymous tip, call Crime Stoppers at (319) 753-6835.

Karen (Beard) Lemke

Karen (Beard) Lemke

Winfield

Karen (Beard) Lemke, 66, of Winfield, passed away surrounded by family in her childhood home on Monday, April 24, 2023. Graveside services and interment will be held at 4:30 p.m. on June 3, 2023, at the Winfield-Scott Cemetery in Winfield, Iowa. A memorial has been established for expenses. Please send memorials to Karen Lihs c/o Susan Beard, 210 N. Olive Street, Winfield, IA 52659. Sympathy notes may be left for the family at www.sandhfuneralservice.com.

Karen Beth Beard was born on June 2, 1956, in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, the daughter of Richard D. and Evelyn (Degen) Beard. Karen was a 1974 graduate of Winfield-Mt. Union High School. On October 19, 1975, she was united in marriage to Harlan “Pork” Lemke in Winfield. They later divorced.

Karen worked in the restaurant business most of her life. She was the co-owner of Pork’s Hometown Restaurant in Winfield. She was involved in Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts for many years, women’s church groups and activities and Santa’s Gift Shop at WMU. She loved WMU, Iowa Hawkeyes, especially Gabbie Marshall on the women’s basketball team, Chicago Cubs and the Kansas City Chiefs. She also enjoyed fishing, playing solitaire, coloring and word searches.

Karen will be deeply missed by her three sons: Brian Lemke and Robin Wheeler of Guthrie, OK; Greg Lemke and Jennifer Wade of Winfield, IA; and Richard and Bob Littleton of Independence, MO; four grandchildren: Dayton, Jaycee, Tayze and Khaid Lemke; seven siblings: Rich, Debbie, Cindy, Bruce, Susan, Linda and Cheryl; and aunts, one uncle, cousins and many nieces and nephews.

Karen was preceded in death by her parents and grandparents.

Oakland Mills: South-Shore Shower and Dump Station Closed

On behalf of the Henry County Conservation Department and Henry County Conservation Board we wanted to inform park users that the South-Shore shower house and dump station will be closed until further notice.

Due to the unforeseen  circumstance, park users are encouraged to use the “Top of Hill” shower house and bathroom or the restroom at the Virden Disk Golf area. County officials are looking at ways to resolve the issue. We apologize for any inconvenience
this may cause.

High School Girls’ Soccer: Preview of Postseason Games this Week

Prep Girls’ Soccer- Girls’ postseason soccer is underway and here’s a preview of games to come this week.

For Class 1A, Washington will host Mediapolis at 5:30 pm tomorrow, May 17th. Ella Russell leads the Bulldogs in goals with 19 on the season, while the Demons have Angeline Anderson, Audrey Anderson, and Giselle Marcelino all tied for the team lead with 7 goals on the season. The winner will travel to Assumption High School to face off against either the host school or Northeast.

Central Lee will have to take on the 10-6 Mid-Prairie Golden Hawks tomorrow at 7 pm. The Golden Hawks tout two goal keepers who have a save percentage north of 80% with Kina Miller nearly at 90% for the year at 105 saves. The Hawks will count on Aburee Boyd who leads the team in points with 25. The winner will battle against either Van Meter or Centerville.

In Class 2A Region 3, Mt. Pleasant will host Maquoketa on May 19th at 5:30 pm. The Panthers are led by the two-headed offensive attack of Charice Auwerda and Elly Manning. Auwerda leads the team and conference in goals with 22 on the season. Manning has netted 19 on the season, which places her second on the team and conference. The Cardinals has only scored 14 goals in 11 games. The winner will travel to play Central DeWitt on May 23rd.

Burlington Notre Dame will host Clinton on May 19th at 7 pm. The River Queens enter the game with a goal differential of -48. Aviana West leads the Nikes in goals with 12 on the season. The winner will take on North Scott on May 23rd.

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 on May 19th at 7 pm. The Bloodhounds have won the last 8 matchups against the Chiefs. Teagan Snaadt is the big goal scorer for the Bloodhounds with 18 on the season. Camryn Atterberg has scored 10 of the Chief’s 15 goals this season.

The winner will take on Burlington on May 23rd. The Grayhounds defeated Keokuk and Fort Madison twice this season.

Crop Report Weather Summary

Weather Summary

Provided by Justin Glisan, Ph.D., State Climatologist, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship

Iowa experienced unseasonably wet conditions as a very active storm track brought several waves of showers and thunderstorms to Iowa. Multiple rounds of severe storms produced large hail, gusty winds and weak tornadoes along with heavy rains. Stations across northern Iowa registered rain totals of two to six inches above average. Temperatures were also unseasonably warm with departures from four to 10 degrees east to west; the statewide average temperature was 66.9 degrees, 7.7 degrees above normal.

Scattered thunderstorms moved across northern and central Iowa on Sunday (7th) afternoon with strong to severe storms firing towards the evening hours. Thunderstorms consolidated into a severe-warned line in eastern Iowa, fueled by highs in the upper 80s and low 90s and ample instability. A secondary line of severe thunderstorms formed in western Iowa and joined a complex in northeastern Iowa that dove through southeastern Iowa into early Monday (8th) morning. Widespread reports of large hail up to 2.75 inches and straight-line winds were found over the southern half of Iowa with a brief EF-1-rated tornado in Muscatine County. Stronger thunderstorms brought heavier rains with over 100 stations measuring an inch or more and a statewide average rainfall of 0.71 inch; 10 stations observed at least 2.00 inches with 2.54 inches reported in Le Claire (Scott County). Tuesday (9th) was a generally pleasant day with easterly winds, mostly clear skies and temperatures in the 70s. Wednesday (10th) saw southeasterly winds build in with partly cloudy skies in western Iowa as afternoon highs made it into the low to mid-80s; upper 70s were observed east. Isolated storms formed in northwestern Iowa and then, more broadly, across the Iowa-Minnesota border after midnight on Thursday (11th). A separate wave of moderate rainfall propagated north over the state through the day as clouds held highs in the mid-70s with low 80s interspersed. Rain totals were above 0.25 inch at most stations with a statewide average of 0.34 inch; early morning thunderstorms trained over Mitchell County producing a 4.83-inch reading at Osage.

Showers lingered in northern Iowa through Friday (12th) morning as temperatures gradually climbed into the upper 70s and low 80s in western Iowa. A potent low-pressure center in Nebraska forced severe thunderstorms that pushed across the western border into the evening hours, leaving behind multiple reports of strong winds and torrential downpours; 10 northwest stations measured more than two inches over several hours. A separate line of thunderstorms brought more rainfall to central Iowa early on Saturday (13th) with morning lows in the 60s. As a warm front lifted north through the day, unseasonable warmth, ample moisture and atmospheric wind shear popped discrete supercells in east-central and northwest Iowa. Several thunderstorms put down brief, multi-vortex tornadoes around Knoxville (Marion County) with more reports of weak tornadoes in Buena Vista, Calhoun and Pocahontas Counties. Weak steering flow impeded normal storm motion with several slow-moving storms producing anomalous rainfall rates; two gauges in Pocahontas County, located in Varina and Havelock, observed 4.62 inches and 4.95 inches, respectively. Statewide totals were highest over Iowa’s northern one-third and a pocket of central Iowa with many stations reporting over 2.00 inches; widespread totals between 0.75 and 1.00 inch were also prevalent. Winds shifted to the east-northeast into Sunday (14th) with rain still falling in northern Iowa as morning lows held in the 60s south to low 50s north.

Weekly precipitation totals ranged from 0.27 inch near Council Bluffs (Pottawattamie County) to 5.24 inches in Osage. The statewide weekly average precipitation was 1.72 inches, more than double the normal of 0.85 inch. Osceola (Clarke County) and Shenandoah (Page County) recorded the week’s high temperature of 91 degrees on the 7th, on average 21 degrees above normal. Rockwell City (Calhoun County) reported the week’s low temperature of 42 degrees on the 8th, three degrees below normal.

 

Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report

DES MOINES, Iowa (May 15, 2023) – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig commented today on the Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. The report is released weekly April through November. Additionally, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship provides a weather summary each week during this time.

“We had unseasonably warm and wet conditions last week across most of the state as several rounds of severe weather brought measurable rain, hail, high winds and reports of 11 weak tornadoes,” said Secretary Naig. “Farmers should have a window of opportunity in the coming week to make more planting progress, as forecasts indicate drier conditions and more seasonal temperatures.”

The weekly report is also available on the USDA’s website at nass.usda.gov.

Crop Report

Warm, but wet, weather meant Iowa farmers had just 3.6 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending May 14, 2023, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. The warmth helped crop emergence this week; however, the wet conditions marginally slowed planting progress. Farmers were still planting corn, soybeans, and oats during the dry periods of the week. Other reports of interest were concerns for isolated flooding and for a swath of large hail across the central portion of the State.

Topsoil moisture condition rated 3 percent very short, 14 percent short, 76 percent adequate and 7 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture condition rated 6 percent very short, 23 percent short, 68 percent adequate and 3 percent surplus.

Eighty-six percent of Iowa’s expected corn crop has been planted, 8 days ahead of last year and 1 week ahead of the 5-year average. Thirty-five percent of the corn crop has emerged, 6 days ahead of last year and 2 days ahead of the average.  One-fifth of Iowa’s expected soybean crop was planted during the week ending May 14, 2023, for a total of 69 percent planted, just over a week ahead of both last year and the average. Nineteen percent of soybeans have emerged, 9 days ahead of last year and 5 days ahead of normal. Nearly all the oat crop has been planted with 83 percent emerged, 9 days ahead of last year and 5 days ahead of the average. The first oat condition rating of the season was 1 percent very poor, 2 percent poor, 20 percent fair, 64 percent good and 13 percent excellent.

Hay condition improved to 72 percent good to excellent. Pasture condition jumped to 53 percent good to excellent. Reports of livestock turned out to pasture and grazing were received.

 

Burglary in Burlington

May 13th at 12:25 PM, Burlington Police Officers responded to 123 S. 3rd Street when the business owner observed someone inside the building on their surveillance cameras.

Upon arrival, they found Cheyenne John Stone, age 41, hiding in the basement of the building. Further investigation revealed a saw, hedge trimmers, and pry bars in their possession.

Sports, May 16th

High School Track and Field

The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team will compete in 8 events at the state track meet and the girls’ team will be in 5 events.

The Winfield-Mt. Union girls’ team will be competing in 2 events with the boys’ team participating in 9 events.

The WACO and New London boys’ teams will be competing in 7 events.

The Danville boys’ team will be in 7 events with two runners in the 3200 meter run. The girls’ team will be participating in 5 events.

The Van Buren County boys team will compete in 5 events.

Thomas Eschman will run the 100 meter dash and compete in the long jump for Central Lee.

For a look at the boys’ heat and lane assignments follow this link: Boys’ State Heat and Lane Assignments

For a look at the full list of the local teams girls’ qualifiers follow this link: Girls’ State Qualifiers

The state track meet will begin competition on Thursday, May 18th, and run through the 20th. KILJ will be bringing live results throughout those days for our local teams.

High School Soccer

The Mt. Pleasant girls team was locked in a tight game on the road against Ottumwa after a scoreless first half, but the Panthers would net two in the second half to win 2-1. Charice Auwerda and Tori Wilson each scored a goal with Elly Manning and Sonya Simon getting credited with the assist. The Panthers will host Maquoketa in the Regional Qualifier on May 19th.

The Mt. Pleasant boys team fell to Solon last night in the first round of the substate 2-1. Dylan White scored the lone goal for Mt. Pleasant. The Panthers end the season with a 4-10 record.

The Danville and WACO boys’ teams were in a battle last night, but it was a first half goal by the Bears that decided the game with a Danville 1-0 win. The Bears will move on in the substate to face off against West Liberty on May 22nd. WACO ends the season 4-9.

Dante Merschman’s 2 goals and Hunter Gregory’s 8 saves led the way for Central Lee’s 2-1 win over Hillcrest Academy last night in the first round of substate 6 competition. The Hawks will travel to take on Pella Christian on May 22nd for the second round of the postseason.

The Central Lee girls team will compete in the Class 1A Region 3 contest against Mid-Prairie on May 17th.

High School Golf

The Mt. Pleasant girls team will compete in their Regional meet tomorrow, May 17th, at Xavier.

The boys teams of New London and Winfield-Mt. Union will travel to Brown Deer course in Iowa City today for their District meet.

The girls teams of New London and Winfield-Mt. Union will participate in the Regional final hosted by Wapello tomorrow.

Olivia Hines of Mediapolis will compete at Williamsburg for the Region 4 final tomorrow.

High School Baseball

Mt. Pleasant fell on the road to Van Buren County yesterday 6-5 after the Warriors walked it off scoring three runs in the bottom of the 7th. Payton Walker tallied three hits including a double with an RBI for the Panthers. They will host Mediapolis on May 18th at 7 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

1957 – Yankees are involved in a Copacabana Incident, leads to Billy Martin trade.

1984 – The Twins sell 51,863 tickets to their 8-7 loss to the Blue Jays, but only 6,346 fans show up for the game. The skewed numbers are the result of a massive ticket-buying plan organized by Minneapolis businessman Harvey Mackay to keep the Twins in Minnesota.

1985 – Michael Jordan is named NBA Rookie of Year.