Obituaries
SPORTS

FM girls tangle with BHS in opening round Feb. 19

FORT MADISON - Fort Madison High School’s girls basketball team will get another chance to face Southeast Conference regular-season champion Burlington this season. The Bloodhounds (13-5) will …

Sports Briefs - Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025

Hellige goes for 42 at HTC win in Missouri KAHOKA – Holy Trinity Catholic’s Luke Hellige outscored Clark County with 42 points in a 61-39 interstate matchup Monday night in Kahoka, Mo. …
LEE COUNTY - Holy Trinity is the No. 2 seed in Class 1A District 8 and Central Lee is the No. 4 seed in Class 2A District 9 in the boys basketball pairings released Monday by the Iowa High School …
DES MOINES -  A rare regular season game at Wells-Fargo gave the Fort Madison Bloodhounds a glimpse of what it would be like to play at the state tournament. But if a return trip were in the …
LEE COUNTY NEWS
Lee County News

Agriculture Digest

Eighty-five counties adopt Master Matrix DES MOINES -- Eighty five of Iowa's ninety nine counties adopted the livestock Master Matrix for the upcoming 12 months. Confinement sites who need a …

For the Record

For the Record - Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025

Fort Madison Police Report 02/11/25 – 7:43 p.m. – Fort Madison police responded to a report of vandalism in the 1700 block of Avenue L. 02/12/25 – 3:47 p.m. – Fort Madison …

Opinion

The right place... the right time

Sometimes people just get put in our paths. Over the last five years through Feb. 20, fate, or God, or whatever force, entity, or being that may be in play, I’ve had people put in my path that …

We need those wand things - not MRIs

I’m beginning to think an MRI is in my future. I hate the thought of that because I’m claustrophobic. I had some back issues a few years ago and a specialist said, “Well, we need to …
EMPTY NEST - By Curt Swarm

The Ghosts of Groundhog Day Past

Like thieves in the night, Groundhogs were our enemy when growing up on the Maple Hill farm west of Monroe.  Those little pigs dug tunnels around the foundations of farm buildings and made quite a …
Education News
CENTRAL LEE NEWS

Central Lee has open-enrollment spots for 2025-26

DONNELLSON, IA — The Central Lee Community School District is now accepting open enrollment applications for the 2025-26 school year. Families interested in enrolling students in grades 1-12 …

Fort Madison junior/senior high school releases honor roll

FORT MADISON - The following is the second quarter honor roll for Fort Madison Jr/Sr. High School. Pen City Current congratulates the students and staff on these academic accomplishments. A …

Arevalo wins Special Recognition at Quincy Art Fair

QUINCY – Fort Madison's Iris Arevalo received a Special Recognition Award at the annual Quincy Art Center. Arevalo's Blooming, in oil pastel, was one of three to receive the honor. The Quincy …
LATEST NEWS
FORT MADISON – She’s been the main thread in the fabric of local news for more than four decades. Friday that fabric becomes a throw around the shoulders of Robin Delaney, the Daily …
Jeffory Leo Waterman, 68, of Farmington, Iowa, passed away at 7:50 p.m. Friday, February 7, 2025, at his home in Farmington. He was born on July 17, 1956, in Macon, Missouri, the son of Ned G. …
WEST BURLINGTON – Southeast Iowa Regional Medical Center, West Burlington will host A Time To Heal Survivorship 101, a nine-week program for cancer survivors. The program will start March 12, …
Norma “Jean” Brilon, 84, of Keokuk, IA passed away on February 8, 2025. Jean was born at home in Keokuk, IA to Margaret Neuweg Walte and John L. Walte on February 5, 1941.  …
DES MOINES— Today, Governor Kim Reynolds signed an executive order launching Iowa’s DOGE Task Force—the next step in Iowa’s ongoing efforts to successfully improve …
Health News
Trump ices federal funding
LEE COUNTY – A federal freeze on grants, including local government grants, has Lee County officials searching for answers about how the freeze will affect local grants in place. The largest, …
Construction on the Lee County Health Department/EMS facility is fully underway despite the cold temperatures. An update provided Monday said roofing is near completion on the EMS bays and walls will be ready to go up after flooring is finished this week. The project received another $250,000 donation from the North Lee County Community Foundation Monday.
North Lee foundation gives another $250K to LCHD/EMS build
LEE COUNTY – The new Lee County Health Department/EMS facility got another boost from a local non-profit Monday. At the regular meeting of the Lee County Board of Supervisors, now being held at …
County EMS looks at substantial rate increases
LEE COUNTY – A consulting firm contracted by Lee County to look at the county’s ambulance service may have triggered a substantial increase in ambulance rates. At Monday’s regular …
Business News
Paula Ellis, of Donnellson and a member of CommonGround Iowa, stands on her combine platform Wednesday inside the Ellis' barn on the family's farm near Primrose.
Women finding CommonGround in fields
Editor's Note: The following is a Lee County Farm Bureau sponsored article and part of a series of stories Pen City Current will be doing taking a deeper look at agricultural issues in Lee County. …
Block apartment project gets a tweak
FORT MADISON – A senior housing project that was unveiled last week at a city commission meeting got an early nod from the Fort Madison City Council Tuesday night. The James Block Apartments, …
The architectural renderings of the James Block Apartment development in the former Lincoln Elementary were presented to the city's Planning and Zoning Commission Tuesday night.
City hears details on new apartment plans
FORT MADISON – Fort Madison residents aired some concerns Tuesday night about the former Lincoln Elementary School playground. A resident who lives on the block said she has encountered heavy …