Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.

FAIRFIELD – Brooke and Clayton Lilley are taking over the gas and convenience stores owned by Jet Gas, including the Jet Stop in Fairfield.

The company’s president, Larry Bentler, announced in the spring of 2025 that its 10 convenience stores would be sold to Chief Operating Officer Brooke Lilley later that summer.

“I’m extremely pleased to allow her the chance to grow this business with her husband, Clayton,” Bentler said in a statement. “She will be very successful in my humble opinion.”

That’s not the only change at Fairfield’s Jet Stop. In the early summer, the business replaced its pumps and infrastructure to add E-15, gasoline blended with 15 percent ethanol. Lilley said the business received a grant to add E-15, and it also added diesel.

“We wanted to have the variety that people in the area are looking for,” Lilley said.

The Iowa Legislature passed legislation in 2022 to require gas stations to sell E-15 from at least one dispenser beginning Jan. 1, 2026.

Lilley said their renovations in Fairfield and Birmingham were their biggest projects because they had to replace the dispensers, tanks and lines at those locations. The Fairfield location was down for about a month.

“Plus we also remodeled a bathroom here in Fairfield,” Lilley said. “That was another project that we added. My husband remodeled the bathroom, and he’s done that at several other locations. He’s our maintenance crew.”

Lilley said they revamped five other locations throughout Southeast Iowa, and those were in Milton, Birmingham, Denmark, New London and Bonaparte. The company’s corporate office is in Houghton.

On June 30, Jet Stop in Fairfield held an official re-opening ceremony with raffle prizes and giveaways, including freshly baked cookies, shirts and pizza coupons. Lilley said it was the perfect time to tell patrons about the BP app, which allows them to earn points they can redeem for money back on their gas or in-store purchases. She said there’s also a BP credit card that gives them money back on gas purchases, too.

One store that Jet Gas unfortunately had to close in 2025 was the Salem Stub gas station, which opened in 1950s. The company stated in an announcement that the investments necessary to meet current regulations, plus the region’s competitive gas pricing, made it untenable to keep the station open.

Lilley said the Fairfield station is among the busiest, and she believes it’s due to the great staff who make work fun and whom the customers enjoy interacting with. She said Jet Gas appreciates the community’s support, and hopes they will enjoy the renovations and new options.