Stephen Burden

By Slaten Swords · Friday, January 9th, 2026 at 4:07 pm CDT

Stephen Burden, 67, of rural Mount Union died Tuesday, January 6, 2026, at the Southeast Iowa Regional Hospice House in West Burlington.

Stephen was born October 31, 1958, in Mount Pleasant, the son of Robert F. and Patricia J. (Mathews) Burden. He graduated from Mount Pleasant High School in 1977. Stephen attended the University of Iowa, then later on attended Indian Hills Community College and received a degree in Robotics and Automation. On December 14, 1985, Stephen was united in marriage to Dianna Wagner in Denmark, Iowa. He began working for local farmers, then a seed company, worked on cars and Kubota tractors for Jerry and Doris Boeddeker, then for Arlo Raid Scrap. He worked for 25 years at Henry County Health Center as maintenance, bio-med technician and boiler operator. He then worked at Mount Pleasant Water Treatment Plant, followed by COBO in Burlington. He went on to be a boiler operator at Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility, worked for West Liberty Foods, then Sigma in Mt Pleasant before retiring.

Stephen and Dianna were former members of New London Christian Church and current members of Harmony Bible Church in Danville, where Stephen was very active. He volunteered in all aspects at Midwest Old Threshers along with Midwest Central Railroad, and City Hope.

Stephen is survived by his wife Dianna; daughter Corliss Burden (Tyler Blind) of New London; sister Jane Burden; and many other family members.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and his brother Paul Robert Burden.

Funeral service will be held 10:00 a.m. Saturday, January 17, 2026, at Harmony Bible Church in Danville. Burial will follow at the Trinity Cemetery in rural Mount Union. Visitation will be held 3:00 – 7:00 p.m. Friday, January 16, at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be directed to Harmony Bible Church and Southeast Iowa Regional Hospice House.  The Olson-Yoder Funeral Home and Crematory is caring for Stephen and his family. Messages may be sent to the family at www.olsonyoderfh.com

MP Utilities – Planned Water Shut Off in NE Mt. Pleasant for 01/12/26

By Shelbi Swinscoe · Friday, January 9th, 2026 at 10:31 am CDT

Mt. Pleasant Utilities Water Department issued an alert about a planned water shut off for Monday, January 12th, from 9am-3 pm in Northeast Mt. Pleasant.  Residents in an area including Winfield Avenue, N. Main Street, Harlan Street, North Lincoln Street, N. Palm Street, and the surrounding area may be affected.  Pleasant call MPMU with questions at 319-385-2121, option #2.

WMU Announces Opportunities for a Career Fair

By Shelbi Swinscoe · Friday, January 9th, 2026 at 8:38 am CDT

The Winfield Mt. Union School District is promoting career exploration for 9th and 10th grade students on March 25, 2026 from 8:30am – 3pm.  Local businesses interested in hosting students for a visit gives them the opportunity to learn about the different industries and career paths in the Mt. Pleasant area.  The goal is for students to walk away with an understanding of the business and opportunities for a career in this community.  Contact the WMU school district for more information and to get your business involved.  Melissa.anderson@wmucsd.org, jill.blake@wmucsd.org, gaige.gill@wmucsd.org, sierra.wyse@wmucsd.org

The Winfield Mt. Union School District 3rd annual Career Fair is scheduled for March 27th in the gym with all middle and high school students in the area invited as well as any businesses who would be interested in participating.

MPCSD Finance Committee Meets Today

By Shelbi Swinscoe · Friday, January 9th, 2026 at 8:36 am CDT

The Mt. Pleasant Community School Board Finance Committee meeting is scheduled for 2pm this afternoon at the district office, 1010 E. Washington Street. Items on the agenda include Financial Reports from December 2025, Modified Supplemental amount and plan for at-risk/dropout prevention, and Iowa School finance comprehensive financial projections model.  This meeting is open to the public.

“Ask a Nurse” Program Scheduled for Monday, 01/12/26

By Shelbi Swinscoe · Friday, January 9th, 2026 at 8:35 am CDT

Henry County Public Health presents “Ask a Nurse” on Monday, January 12th at the Crew Public Library, 107 E. Cherry St. in Salem.  A registered nurse will be available to answer questions, health education will be offered on topics such as chronic disease management, nutrition, and general wellness.  Blood pressure screening is also available.  “Ask a Nurse” is a monthly, informal session with a public health nurse who provides a relaxed, supportive environment for people.  A new topic is discussed each month and on Monday, the topic is Neurological Health.

Triple A Fuel Report

By Shelbi Swinscoe · Friday, January 9th, 2026 at 8:34 am CDT

The weekly fuel report published by Triple A and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship shows that the price of regular unleaded gasoline fell by one cent and averages $2.37 across the state. The national average on Wednesday was down 2 cents from last week’s price. Retail diesel prices in Iowa fell 5 cents this week and the current Iowa diesel price is 29 cents lower than the national average. Taking a look at heating fuels: natural gas prices were down 27 cents and propane prices averaged $1.56 per gallon in Iowa. Tips for saving energy on the road or at home are available at energy.gov

Mt. Pleasant Woman Arrested on Drug Charges

By Shelbi Swinscoe · Friday, January 9th, 2026 at 8:29 am CDT

A Mount Pleasant woman was arrested on felony drug charges in Brighton on Tuesday this week.   52-year-old Kathleen Lyon was arrested by Washington County Sheriff’s deputies on charges out of Henry County. The charges include violation of probation on the original charge of possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, and controlled substance violation, both class B felonies.

According to court documents, the Henry County Sheriff’s Office conducted a drug investigation in September of 2025. During that investigation, a search warrant was executed at Lyon’s residence in Mt Pleasant where drug paraphernalia, a scale and packaging was found, as well as a large amount of money.  Lyon’s phone was seized and messages were discovered alluding to the sale of methamphetamine.

Lyon is currently being held in the Henry County Jail on a $30,000 bond. An arraignment hearing has been scheduled for January 26th.

Sports, January 9th

By Slaten Swords · Friday, January 9th, 2026 at 6:36 am CDT

High School Basketball

WACO hosted a pair of games last night and split them with the girls’ winning a 34-24 slugfest against Holy Trinity Catholic and the boys’ team falling to North Linn 56-49. In the girls’ contest, Courtney Waterhouse and Brenna Graber each put up 10 points for the Warriors, while Adalyn Kruse scored 14 points for the Crusaders. Holden Hughes led the boys’ team with 17 points. 

WACO will travel to New London tomorrow, January 10th, with game one at 5 pm.

The #10 Mediapolis girls’ team continued their undefeated season with a dominant victory over Wilton last night 77-28, while the boys’ team lost an exhibition of offense, 71-60. Grace Holsteen led the scoring effort with 21 points. 

Burlington Notre Dame will stay on the road for a showdown with Van Buren County tonight with tip-off at 6 pm. 

Wapello will face off against Pekin tonight at 6 pm on the road. 

Winfield-Mt. Union will take on Louisa-Muscatine tonight at 6 pm in a road contest. 

Central Lee will travel to Holy Trinity Catholic tonight with game one at 6 pm. 

Columbus will compete against Lone Tree on the road tonight with the night starting at 6 pm.

Danville will host Mediapolis tonight with the girls’ playing first at 6 pm.

New London will make the trip to West Burlington tonight with the matchup set to start at 6 pm.

Mt. Pleasant will head back home to take on Fairfield tonight with game one at 6 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 5:45 pm. 

High School Wrestling

Fairfield swept Keokuk last night with the girls’ team winning 30-8 and the boys’ squashing the Chiefs 60-18. Aislinn Wise picked up the win for the Trojans, while Cael McCabe, Kohda Higdon, Dusty Haynes, Aiden Holthus, and Dain Burkhart all pinned their opponents. Kenneth Houston defeated Brenden McLeod by an 11-6 decision. 

The Fairfield, Van Buren County, and Mediapolis boys’ teams will attend the Ottumwa Invitational tonight. 

The Fairfield girls’ team will wrestle at the North Mahaksa Invitational tomorrow, January 10th. 

The WACO and Wapello boys’ teams traveled to Lone Tree for a triangular last night and the Warriors pulverized the competition, handing Lone Tree a 60-12 loss and Wapello a 46-29 final. Braxton Stauffer, Tyler Rogers, Karver Rude, Tommy Unternahrer, and Ian Maize each won their match for the Warriors. 

Wapello handled Lone Tree, 47-12. Cohen Wolford, Draysin Crow, Grayson Nagle, and Jordan Chamberlin each put up a victory for Wapello.

The Wapello and Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union boys’ teams will compete at the Corky Stuart Invitational at BGM tomorrow. 

Mt. Pleasant went to Iowa Valley for a quad and finished the night 2-1, defeating the hosts 40-39 and Sigourney-Keota 53-24 but falling to North Mahaska 60-21. Levi Evans, Lane Beckler, and Charlie Bohenkamp went unblemished for the night. 

The WACO, New London, and Mt. Pleasant boys’ teams will travel to the Highland Invitational tomorrow. 

The Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team hosted a triangular last night and swept the competition with a 53-22 victory over Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union and a 68-14 clobbering of Highland. The Wildcats were able to best Highland, 43-35, to escape with a dual victory.

Kohen Dietzenbach, Ryan Rose, Colt Boyles, Jared Glendening, Kael Cook, and Bryson Burgus finished the night undefeated for the Nikes, while Kason Dopler and Ronaldo Villegas collected a pair of victories. 

The Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team will head to Maquoketa for an invitational tomorrow. 

The Mediapolis boys’ team fell to Washington (47-26) and Fort Madison (54-28) last night in the Washington triangular. Kyler Crow and Taylan Miller each collected 2-0 records for the meet.

The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, Mediapolis, Van Buren County, Mt. Pleasant, and WACO girls’ teams will wrestle at the Highland Invitational tonight.

High School Bowling

Mt. Pleasant hosted a triangular last night and the boys’ team finished in 3rd place with 2,552 pins and the girls’ team snatched 2nd place with 2,302 pins. Shyann Smith finished 3rd overall with 358 total pins. The Panthers will take on Burlington at home on Thursday, January 15th.

Fairfield will host Burlington on Monday, January 12th.

Southeastern Community College

The women’s basketball team will face off against Iowa Western Community College at home tomorrow, January 10th, at 1 pm.

The men’s basketball team will host Indian Hills Community College tomorrow at 7 pm.

The women’s wrestling team will compete at the Lakeland Scramble on Sunday, January 11th.

College Basketball

The #11 Iowa State women’s team will host West Virginia on Sunday, January 11th, at 2 pm.

The #14 Iowa women’s team will travel to Indiana on Sunday for tip-off at 4 pm.

The #19 Iowa men’s team will square off against Illinois at home on Sunday at 11 am.

The #3 Iowa State men’s team will face off against Oklahoma State tomorrow, January 10th, at 3 pm at home.

This Day in Sports History

1958 – Oscar Robertson, in his varsity debut, scored 56 points against Seton Hall inside Madison Square Garden in a 118-54 win.

1972 – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar leads the Milwaukee Bucks past the Los Angeles Lakers, 120-104, ending LA’s consecutive win streak at 33, the longest winning streak in major league sports history. 

1991 – Dean Smith of North Carolina is the 6th coach to win 700 career basketball games.