Services for Beth Briggs

By Theresa Rose · Wednesday, June 22nd, 2022 at 10:59 am CDT

Elizabeth “Beth” Ann Briggs, 75, of Winfield, died Saturday, May 21, 2022 at the Southeast Iowa Regional Hospital, West Burlington.

Her body has been cremated. Services will be held Saturday, June 25 at 2 pm at the Mt. Union United Methodist Church.

Beth was born on January 2, 1947 in Mt. Pleasant, the daughter of Robert Horace and Mary Elizabeth Eckey Stevens. On July 25, 1965, she married Donald E. Briggs in Winfield. She was a 1965 graduate of Winfield/Mt. Union High School.

Beth, a loving farm wife and mother, was a pastor at Kingston United Methodist Church for a number of years. She was an avid reader and thoroughly enjoyed driving the combine in the fall. She also volunteered as a hospice volunteer with Southeast Iowa Regional Hospice.

She is survived by husband, Donald; two sons: Steve Briggs of Davenport, IA and Scott (Gretchen) Briggs of Lafayette, IN; three granddaughters: Amanda, Rachel and Leah Briggs; two brothers: Paul (Sheila) Stevens of Pace, FL and Mark (Dawn) Stevens of New Market, AL; sisters-in-law: Karen Stevens of New London, IA and Mary Stevens of Denver, IA; aunt, Wilhelmina Terry of CT; one brother-in-law, Keith (Barb) Briggs of Grinnell, IA; and many nieces, nephews and cousins.

She was preceded in death by her parents; daughter, Sue Ann; and brothers: David, Tom and Michael (in infancy).

 

Sports, June 22nd

By Parker Testa · Wednesday, June 22nd, 2022 at 9:07 am CDT

Mount Pleasant

Mount Pleasant Varsity Softball will have a matchup tonight with New London. The game is set to start at 7:00 PM at the Mapleleaf Athletic Complex in Mount Pleasant. You can catch live coverage of the game on 105.5 KILJ.

Mount Pleasant Varsity Baseball will be on the road tonight as they will head to Bloomfield for a matchup with Davis County. That game is set to begin at 7:00 PM.

New London

New London Varsity Softball was defeated by a score of 13-2 Tuesday night in their contest with Holy Trinity Catholic. Tiger Softball will be in Mount Pleasant tonight for a matchup with the Panthers scheduled for 7:00 PM.

New London Varsity Baseball remains undefeated as they won their game over Don Bosco by a score of 12-2 last night to improve to 18-0 on the season. Senior Ryan Richey went 2 for 3 at the plate with a double and 5 RBIs. Senior Dereck Santiago pitched 5.2 innings, allowing 2 earned runs on 5 hits with 1 walk and striking out 10. Tiger Baseball is back on the field tonight as they will host West Liberty, that game is set for 7:00 PM.

Winfield-Mt. Union

Winfield- Mt. Union Varsity Baseball is back on the field tonight against Burlington Notre Dame following a 10-6 loss against Wapello on Monday night. The game tonight is scheduled for 7:00 PM at Winfield-Mt. Union Community School.

Iowa Wesleyan Men’s Basketball

Iowa Wesleyan Men’s Basketball will host a 3 vs. 3 basketball tournament on July 4th at Ruble Arena on the Iowa Wesleyan University campus in Mount Pleasant. All ages are welcome from 3rd grade on through adult ages. There will be a DJ playing music during the event and concession stand availability. The cost to enter is $60 per team. Each team must have at least 3 players with a maximum of 4 players. Payment is required before the start of the first game. Checks can be made payable to Iowa Wesleyan Men’s Basketball. Each athlete must sign a waiver of liability and complete a health information form prior to competing. That form can be sent via email (listed below).

Registration, questions, or concerns may be directed to Head Men’s Basketball Coach, Jordan Ashton, at jordan.ashton@iw.edu

This Day in Sports History

1939 – The first U.S. water-ski tournament was held at Jones Beach, on Long Island, New York.

1979 – Former WHA teams the Edmonton Oilers, Hartford Whalers, Quebec Nordiques and Winnipeg Jets joined the NHL. The NHL had expanded to 21 teams.

1990 – Billy Joel became the first rock artist to perform at Yankee Stadium.

2003 – Michelle Wie won her first USGA title at the age of 13. She was the youngest person to win any adult USGA event.

2016 – The National Hockey League’s Board of Governors voted unanimously to expand to 31 teams. An expansion team in Las Vegas was added and planned to begin play in the 2017-18 season.

The Search Continues

By Theresa Rose · Wednesday, June 22nd, 2022 at 6:21 am CDT

Emergency responders continued to search thru the night in the rain in the effort to find that missing Yarmouth Elevator employee after two grain bins collapsed Tuesday morning. Report of the collapse came into the Des Moines County Sheriff’s Office just after 8 am. Iowa Task Force One, a search and rescue united was called in to assist. A structural assessment of the area had to be done before emergency responders could safely go in. Apparently there was also a building in the way that had to be taken down. Des Moines County EMA said K-9s also assisted in the search. Investigators are working to determine what caused the collapse. The bins were older cement silos.

Multiple agencies responded to the scene in Yarmouth on Tuesday.  The fire departments from Mt. Union, Winfield, Olds, Wayland and Mount Pleasant joined Des Moines County units.  Mt. Pleasant Fire Chief Drew Schumacher said his department received the call Tuesday at about 1:30 pm and sent four firefighters.  They assisted until about 8 pm. Then at 11:30 Mt. Pleasant received another call requesting an engine and five firefighters.  They worked all night and were still on scene at 7:30 Wednesday morning. The local department remains available to swap out the crew.

About half the community of Yarmouth lost power when the accident occurred and still don’t have electricity this morning.

Jean Van Syoc (final arrangements)

By Theresa Rose · Tuesday, June 21st, 2022 at 3:10 pm CDT

Jean Van Syoc, 97, of Mt. Pleasant, died Sunday, June 19, 2022 at her residence.

The funeral service for Mrs. Van Syoc will be 1:30 PM Saturday, July 2, 2022 at the First Baptist Church, 100 East Webster Street, Mount Pleasant. The Reverends Steve English and Charles Comfort will officiate. Burial will be in the Forest Home Cemetery, Mount Pleasant. Friends may call from 12 Noon to 7 PM on Friday, July 1 at the church. The family will be present to receive friends from 4-7 PM. Family and friends are invited to a luncheon prior to the funeral service beginning at 12 Noon in the church’s Fellowship Hall.  The Kimzey Funeral Home, 213 North Main Street, Mount Pleasant, is assisting Jean’s family with the arrangements.

Sports, June 21st

By Parker Testa · Tuesday, June 21st, 2022 at 9:32 am CDT

Mount Pleasant

Mount Pleasant Varsity Softball had a pair of games last night at home against Washington. The Panthers dropped the first game by a score of 13-0. Malia Anderson was given the loss on the mound. Savana Walls went 1 for 1 at the plate. The Panthers were defeated in game 2 with the final being 18-1. Myah Starr was given the loss on the mound. Saige Burchett went 1 for 1 with a double and an RBI in game 2. Mount Pleasant Softball will be back on the field on Wednesday at 7:00 PM at home against New London. You can catch live coverage of the game here on KILJ.

Mount Pleasant Varsity Baseball split a doubleheader last night against Washington. The Panthers won game 1 in walk-off fashion 9-8. Cooper Keldgord went 5 full innings on the mound in game 1. Keldgord allowed 6 runs, 3 earned on 10 hits with 2 walks and striking out 6. Lincoln Henriksen was 3 for 4 with a double and 3 RBIs. Mount Pleasant was defeated in game 2 by a score of 12-3. Ben Newton pitched 5 full innings allowing 6 runs, 5 earned on 6 hits with 1 walk and striking out 5.

Mount Pleasant Head Coach Brent Broeker following the games, “Game one, I thought we played real well. We battled with them all seven innings and ended up getting the walk-off win in the bottom of the seventh. It was great to see the kids keep battling. Game Two, I thought we played great for four innings then the wheels kind of fell off for us. Overall, I thought we played pretty well tonight. Just had a couple of bad innings.”

Panther Baseball will be back on the field on Wednesday night as they will go on the road to take on Davis County. That game is set to begin at 7:00 PM.

New London

New London Varsity Softball defeated Danville by a score of 19-8 last night for their first win of the season. Sophomore Sophie Malott went 4 for 5 at the plate with 2 doubles and 3 RBIs. Megan Lee pitched the complete 6 inning game. Allowing 8 runs, none earned on 10 hits with 3 walks and striking out 2. Tiger Softball won game 2 of the night 12-4 over Danville. Freshman Olivia Hester went 3 for 5 at the dish with 2 doubles and 3 RBIs. Megan Lee pitched the complete game. Allowing 4 runs, 3 earned on 8 hits with 1 walk and striking out 4. New London Softball will take on Holy Trinity Catholic tonight at home at 7:00 PM.

New London Varsity Baseball defeated Danville on the road last night by a score of 24-0 to improve to 17-0 on the season. Senior Kooper Schulte went 2 for 3 at the plate with a double, a home run, and 5 RBIs. Senior Josh Catala was awarded the win. Catala pitched 2 innings with no runs allowed on 2 hits and 4 strikeouts. Tiger Baseball will be back on the field on tonight as they will take on Don Bosco at 6:30 PM.

Iowa Wesleyan Men’s Basketball

Iowa Wesleyan Men’s Basketball will host a 3 vs. 3 basketball tournament on July 4th at Ruble Arena on the Iowa Wesleyan University campus in Mount Pleasant. All ages are welcome from 3rd grade on through adult ages. There will be a DJ playing music during the event and concession stand availability. The cost to enter is $60 per team. Each team must have at least 3 players with a maximum of 4 players. Payment is required before the start of the first game. Checks can be made payable to Iowa Wesleyan Men’s Basketball. Each athlete must sign a waiver of liability and complete a health information form prior to competing. That form can be sent via email (listed below).

Registration, questions, or concerns may be directed to Head Men’s Basketball Coach, Jordan Ashton, at jordan.ashton@iw.edu

This Day in Sports History

1939 – Lou Gehrig quit baseball due to illness.

1970 – Tony Jacklin became the second British golfer in 50 years to win the U.S. Open golf tournament.

1997 – The Women’s National Basketball Association made its debut. The New York Liberty defeated the Los Angeles Sparks 67-57.

Daily Jail Count

By Theresa Rose · Monday, June 20th, 2022 at 10:35 am CDT

In the interest of keeping Henry County residents informed, the Henry County Sheriff’s office has requested KILJ post the daily jail count. During the jail referendum campaign it was publicized that the jail would be able to house additional inmates from surrounding counties and this would generate revenue for Henry County

Date:   ____06-20-2022_____

 

  20__      Henry County Inmates

 

 48 __      Out of County Contract Inmates              

 

 68__     TOTAL

Celebrating Independence Day Safely

By Theresa Rose · Monday, June 20th, 2022 at 7:48 am CDT

We all love to celebrate the 4th of July with family, friends, food and fireworks, but all too often the festivities turn tragic on our nation’s roads.  This American holiday also brings increased consumption of alcohol and drugs which leads to impaired driving and deadly consequences.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nationally, during the 2020 July 4th holiday period (the most recent statistics available), 493 people died in motor vehicle crashes and 201 of these fatalities occurred in an alcohol-impaired crash.  According to the Iowa DOT over the holiday in 2020, 5 people lost their lives in Iowa and 4 of these were due to alcohol impairment.

Law enforcement agencies across Iowa will be participating in the national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign from July 2 to July 5, 2022.  In an effort to combat impaired driving, officers will be exhibiting zero tolerance for impaired drivers, along with addressing all traffic violations to keep those traveling on Iowa roadways safe.

Always remember to make a plan before you start celebrating with alcohol.  If you or friends are going to drink, designate a sober driver or use public transportation or a ride service to take you home.  This will ensure you, your friends and others on the roads will all be safe and alive.

The Iowa Department of Public Safety and the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau reminds you that it is NEVER okay to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs!  Remember:  If you feel different, you drive different.