Mitchell receives Amy Boley Heiter Scholarship Award

By John Burbridge sports@charlescitypress.com

CHARLES CITY — Talk about hitting the ground running.

Or rather Bailey Mitchell has never stopped running.

Only several days removed from competing with the Comets’ state track meet-qualifying 4-by-800 relay team, the Charles City four-sport athlete is already getting ready for opening day.

“We play North Butler (on Tuesday),” said the Comet shortstop, who is one of the key returners from Charles City’s state qualifying softball team.

Unfortunately for former Comet Amy Boley Heiter, she did stop running. But by the time Synovial Sarcoma — a rare and aggressive form of soft tissue cancer — caught her on April 29, 2014, she had already crossed the finish line.

“She had just graduated from UNI but she was still working on her teaching certificate,” said Jean Boley, Amy’s mother. “She was undergoing chemotherapy at the time, and it was getting hard for her to think straight for test, but she wanted to get that certificate.”

While working as a student teacher at Washington Elementary School in Charles City, Amy was able to pass her final test.

Duane Magee, director of the Iowa Board of Education, came down to Charles City to personally present Amy with the certificate after hearing about her persistent and courageous fight.

Last year, Amy’s family started a Amy Boley Heiter Memorial Scholarship.

“Since Amy was a basketball player and was pursuing a career in education, we thought we should give it to a senior basketball player who also is going into that field,” Jean said.

Mitchell will attend Iowa State University where she will major in English Education.

“I’m honored that I get to help keep her legacy going,” Mitchell said. “Her family has gone through so much, but it’s great they can give back to the community.”

Amy was a forward and a major 3-point shooting threat for the Comets. After graduating in 2008, she continued her basketball career at NIACC before going onto UNI where she double majored in Early Childhood and Elementary Education.

She was diagnosed in late October of 2013 shortly after marrying Jeff Heiter.

Charles City girls basketball coach Danielle Rippentrop, who was a senior teammate when Amy was a Comet freshman, said that they will try to honor future scholarship recipients during the Charles City girls varsity basketball regular-season finales.

The first award recipient was Sarah Barry.