Haley Daugherty stories, Page 30
Riverview teacher’s grant will help life-skills students
Voya Financial investment company’s Unsung Heroes program has awarded Michael MacConnell, a life skills teacher at Riverview Junior and Senior High School in Oakmont, a $2,000 grant. MacConnell is the only winner in Pennsylvania. “Teachers, staff and administrators responsible for the education of children are national treasures, and educators such...
5 things to do in Westmoreland this weekend: Oct. 14-16
One of the biggest of the annual community festivals in the region returns this weekend in Ligonier and the Westmoreland Symphony comes back to life as it opens its 2023-24 season. All that and more is coming up this weekend. Fort Ligonier Days For the 64th year, the historic Fort...
Eras Tour on the big screen: Pittsburgh theaters prep for Taylor Swift takeover
The Taylor Swift takeover is far from done — the pop superstar is taking her reputation to the big screen, and Swifties are descending on local theaters. “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” is a film that captures the Pennsylvania native, now a global phenomenon, traveling and performing during the U.S....
5 things to do this weekend in Westmoreland County: Oct. 6-8
The fall weather is upon us this weekend. Here are some ways to experience it. Antiques & Collectibles Sales at Historic Hanna’s Town On Sunday, Oct. 8, Historic Hanna’s Town, 809 Forbes Trail Road in Hempfield, will host its final Antiques & Collectibles Sale of the 2023 season. The event...
6 candidates running for 5 spots on Penn Hills School Board
Editor’s note: Penn Hills Progress is featuring candidate interviews in contested municipal and school board races only. Penn Hills council and mayoral race previews will run in a future issue. In the race for Penn Hills School Board, six candidates are vying for five open spots on the ballot, all...
Interviews underway in Penn Hills School District superintendent search
Dawn Golden has been named as interim superintendent at Penn Hills School District after Nancy Hines retired with more than 25 years in public education. Hines announced her retirement in August, and the search for a new superintendent is underway. “We just started (the search),” school board president Erin Vecchio...
Fall foliage: There are plenty of Western Pennsylvania options for the season’s splendor
Fall brings pumpkin spice everything, a “Gilmore Girls” binge or two, knit beanie caps and, of course, an abundance of photos of the one thing Pennsylvania is never short of — fall foliage. A fall foliage prediction map created by Smoky Mountains, a promotional site for the Smoky Mountains region,...
2-year-old fatally struck by vehicle in Penn Hills identified
A 2-year-old girl died after being hit by a vehicle in Penn Hills on Thursday morning, Allegheny County police said. The incident on the 100 block of Lynnwood Drive was reported shortly before 8 a.m., police said. “The preliminary investigation determined a parent was leaving the residence and struck the...
24-hour spinning competition at Petersen Events Center aims to connect service dogs with veterans
For 24 hours — 10 a.m. Saturday until 10 a.m. Sunday — the Petersen Events Center in the Oakland will be a cyclist’s dream, as Team Foster, a Philadelphia-based nonprofit dedicated to connecting veterans with service dogs, hosts its third Ruff Ride in Pittsburgh. Part festival, part competition, Ruff Ride...
Krise Transportation bus driver investigated after parent complaint
Penn Hills resident and parent Ebony Gaston voiced a complaint about Krise Transportation to the Penn Hills School Board on Sept. 27 after a bus driver for the company allegedly grabbed and shook her 10-year-old daughter. Gaston said that on Sept. 12, the driver told all the children to sit...
Penn Hills School District partners with Green Building Alliance
Penn Hills School District has pledged to try to reduce its carbon emissions by 50% by 2030. At the Sept. 27 school board meeting, board members voted a resounding yes to participating in the Green Building Alliance program, 2030 District Commitment Pledge. The commitment is non-binding and according to the...
5 things to do in Westmoreland: Sept. 29 – Oct. 1
Weekend events in Westmoreland County begin on Friday with a block party at Live Casino Pittsburgh, continue with a car cruise at Bushy Run battlefield in Penn Township, and wrap up with a wet sale at The Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art (SAMA) at Ligonier Valley. Live Casino Pittsburgh Block...
New gardens on view at Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art
Michael Strueber can be found in one of two places at the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art: sitting in a rocking chair on the porch, sipping coffee with just a dash of cream, or in one of the site’s seven gardens, elbow deep in soil. Director emeritus of SAMA, Strueber,...
Eradicate Hate Global Summit returns to Pittsburgh for 3rd year
The Eradicate Hate Global Summit is returning to Downtown Pittsburgh’s David L. Lawrence Convention Center this week for its third year. This year’s three-day summit, running from Wednesday through Friday, will include sessions on the challenges of regulating online hate, hate-fueled violence against the LGBTQ+ community and how video games...
Extended stay InTown Suites in Ross evacuated after pesticide exposure
Guests of the InTown Suites on McKnight Road in Ross were evacuated just before 9 a.m. Monday after being exposed to rat poison. According to Greg Porter, executive director of Ross West View EMS, seven people were transported to area hospitals and six were treated at the scene. Porter said...
Police investigating overnight Lincoln-Lemington homicide
Pittsburgh Police are investigating an overnight homicide that occurred in a Pittsburgh neighborhood Sunday morning. Police said a man showed up at a local hospital after he was shot in the chest. He was brought to the hospital by a private vehicle in critical condition around 4 a.m. He later...
Dancing, crafts showcased at annual Powwow in Indiana Township
Lenny Kaminski burned white sage on Sunday as he displayed his wares at the Council of Three Rivers American Indian Annual Pow Wow. He burns the sage, said to have spiritual powers by some Native Americans, when he carves the figures of First Nations people he sells each year at...
Police respond to false bomb threat at Andy Warhol Museum
The Andy Warhol Museum on Pittsburgh’s North Shore was evacuated Sunday afternoon after police received calls reporting a bomb threat. Pittsburgh police reported to the museum on Sandusky Street just before 2 p.m. They said that the threat was made by email, and came from a third party in Harrisburg....
Middle Road Volunteer Fire Department hosts ‘push in’ for new fire engine
Middle Road Volunteer Fire Department in Indiana Township celebrated the purchase of a new fire engine on Sunday afternoon with a traditional blessing, wet down and push in. The wet down was performed with the department’s previous first engine, a 36-year-old Sutphen. Volunteers used the old engine’s hose to wash...
2 arrested after SWAT scene, car chase in Penn Hills
Two people are in jail after a SWAT situation and car chase through Penn Hills Saturday night. Pittsburgh Police and responded to the 5900 block of Second Avenue in Hazelwood after a man called and said he had been robbed at gunpoint by a man and woman and had his...
Highlands Area Rotary Club hosts its first food truck festival in Harrison with a little help from their friends
Good food, good music and only a little rain on Saturday made the first food truck festival hosted by the Highlands Area Rotary Club a hit. Hot Ash Pizza, Wok on Wheels, Los Gallitos, Knapp-Kins and Del Vecchio’s food trucks lined the lawn of Guardian Angels Parish-Most Blessed Sacrament in...
5 things to do in Westmoreland: Sept. 22-24
It’s forecast to be a beautiful weekend — the first one of fall. Here are some fun ways you can spend it. Mount Pleasant Glass & Ethnic Festival Starting at 11 a.m. Friday, Sept. 22, the annual three-day Glass & Ethnic Festival in Mt. Pleasant will showcase the area’s heritage...
Oakmont Council passes new social media policy
Oakmont council passed a new social media and communications policy at its Sept. 18 meeting, defining what is expected of borough employees and volunteers who are active on social media. Council member Tracey Holst initiated the policy’s creation, stating that borough employees need to have guidelines for what is acceptable...
Oakmont council celebrates pastor’s retirement
Members of Oakmont Council honored the Rev. Steve Wilson at their meeting Sept. 18. “I met him over 30 years ago,” said Oakmont mayor Sophia Facaros. “He was refereeing our son’s indoor soccer game. I was a coach at the time. I remember I turned to look at him and,...
Oakmont gets a step closer to hiring new police officer
Oakmont has narrowed its search to five candidates for one available full-time police officer position. The position was originally advertised by the borough in early August with applications due in-person by mid-August. Chairman of the borough’s Civil Service Commision, Les Leasure, presented council members with an update Sept. 18. Five...
