Obituaries

By BRYCE KELLY Mt. Pleasant NewsThe Henry County Board of Supervisors had a full agenda as the heads of various county departments presented reports on the past month?s events. At the top of the agenda, Henry County Sheriff, Rich McNamee was happy to report his deputies were making great progress in cutting out drug abuse and drug manufacturing in Henry County.?In the last two months, several drug busts have ...

Henry County?s Relay for Life added some color to East Lake Park May 3, hosting its third annual Color Run. Whether running (or walking) individually or in groups, participants enjoyed the nice weather for a run in the park. Organizers said 250 runners and walkers registered for the event.

Mt. Pleasant School Board members will consider at their Monday night meeting establishing a consortium to jointly administer an instructional program at Christamore House.Some of the other tentative agenda items for the 7 p.m. meeting at the high school media center include contracting services to outside agencies; a middle school soccer program; approving the 2015-16 school calendar; and discussion of extending...

By BRYCE KELLY Mt. Pleasant NewsFood was at the top of the agenda at the Healthy Henry County Communities (HHCC) board meeting recently with discussion surrounding Henry County?s efficiency in keeping its citizens adequately fed with access to balanced, nutritious meals.Overall, the HHCC board felt that Henry County was making strong efforts to provide balanced, healthy meals to its citizens. In particular, ...

By BROOKS TAYLOR Mt. Pleasant News SALEM ? Salem City council members received an earful Tuesday evening.A pair of residents expressed anger about receiving letters concerning nuisances from the city.John Wagner said he received a letter in April telling him that an offensive odor was coming from his property and was given 30 days to resolve the matter. The odor later was identified as animal carcasses.?The...

DES MOINES (AP) ? The Democratic-led Iowa Senate approved a $1.9 billion spending plan Wednesday for state health and human services departments, which includes an oversight committee to watchdog the governor?s plan to privatize Medicaid.The budget was approved in a 26-22 vote. It provides slightly less overall funding than sought by Gov. Terry Branstad, but more than the proposal from the Republican-controlled ...

Nearly $50,000 worth of damage was estimated following a semi rollover on Wednesday.The Mt. Pleasant Police Department received a call of a single-vehicle accident at the southbound exit 42 off of Highway 218 at approximately 8:04 a.m., on Wednesday.Kevin Christenson, of Chariton, was driving a 2010 International semi tractor, owned by Stacy Trucking, of Fairfield. Christenson was traveling south on Highway 218 ...

In just over a month (June 5), the Early Childhood Iowa (ECI) State Board will consider final approval of the merger of two local ECI boards.The Des Moines/Louisa and the Henry/Washington Early Childhood Area boards have been working together since December 2014 to complete and submit a state application for merging into a single four-county area. The new board will operate as the DHLW Early Childhood Area.The ...

By BROOKS TAYLOR Mt. Pleasant News?If the local option sales tax doesn?t pass, it will put a lot more pressure on property tax,? warned Mt. Pleasant Mayor Steve Brimhall Wednesday, seizing the opportunity at the final city council meeting before the May 5 vote to urge residents to approve the tax.Mt. Pleasant has had the local option sales tax for 20 years and receives about $800,000 annually from the tax. ...

The Walmart Foundation State Giving Council Program opened the application period for its second cycle of giving this week.Iowa nonprofit organizations can apply for funding to support programs within the scope of the ?Focused Giving? areas that include hunger relief, healthy eating or career opportunity. In order to be considered for grant funding this cycle, applications must be received by 11:59 p.m. central ...