Harry Funk stories, Page 23

The Stars will be on parade. During Bethel Park’s annual Memorial Day extravaganza, keep an eye out for a group of folks who are making their large-scale public debut after a couple of months of practice. Emily Columbus serves as instructor for the South Hills Stars Color Guard, a special-needs...

Picture a 125-pound, nearly three-foot-tall mechanical creation climb unassisted onto a set of monkey bars, amid a throng of folks who are rooting for it to succeed. “It’s as exciting as a hockey game or a football game,” Upper St. Clair resident and Scott Township native Ellen Simon said. “When...

On an almost daily basis in the 1980s, Karen Watkins and her children would walk up the hill leading to the Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall. “Now, my daughter brings her children here, and they enjoy the library,” she said. “It’s great to know that our library is...

The schedule for the Gateway High School marching band usually calls for a trip to central Florida every other year. While 2022 was supposed to be one of them, the lingering effects of the covid-19 pandemic prompted some caution among the powers that be for one of Orlando’s premier destinations....

While the debilitating effects of arthritis most commonly are associated with aging, consider what happened to Allie McGinnis when she was just 5. “I fell at a bowling alley, and my arm, it was stuck at a 90-degree angle. It wouldn’t move. My joints were so stiff that my arm...

Today’s kindergartners represent tomorrow’s Class of 2035. On Arbor Day that year, plans call for certain Bethel Park students who by then will be high school seniors to have their photograph taken with a particular tree. For Arbor Day 2022, Abraham Lincoln Elementary School kindergartners participated in a planting and...

Old St. Luke’s Church already had passed its bicentennial when Scott Quinn began driving by it circa 1976. At first, he didn’t even notice the venerable Scott structure, it being located amid dense overgrowth off Old Washington Pike, near the long-since-replaced engineering anomaly known as the Crooked Bridge. “It goes...

Make before you buy. That’s a major consideration with regard to the maker lab at Monroeville Public Library, where a variety of state-of-the-art software and equipment is available for use. “What we’re focusing on is providing resources that people don’t necessarily have on their own but want to try out,”...

What eventually became Acclamation Brewing in Verona traces its origins to an appropriate place. “The story I always tell is that we were at a brewery, and it was packed,” Jason Yahnke said. “And the beer was very average.” His wife, Danni Piccolo, asked his thoughts. Drawing from his background...

Not so long ago, the area behind Dr. Cleveland Steward Jr. Elementary School looked nothing like it does today. “We had blacktop and we had grass,” third-grade teacher Emily Levine said. “So that’s why we wanted this playground so badly. It’s like a complete makeover, and we couldn’t feel more...

Solicitors have an extra two hours each day to visit Hampton residences and businesses that do not opt out of such activities. Hampton Council on April 27 approved an amendment to the township’s peddling and solicitation ordinance, establishing permissible hours between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. The change came about...

The group of Gateway High School students who stepped outside on a chilly but sunny Wednesday afternoon had the surprise of their lives. In front of the school’s main entrance were two bus-sized limousines, ready to transport them for an excursion around the greater Gateway campus. “The limo ride was...

In 2019, plenty of youngsters — grownups, too — had the opportunity for close encounters of the vehicular kind during the Touch A Truck, the Plum Chamber of Commerce’s largest event to date. Chances for a repeat were delayed two years, but plans call for a convoy to gather again...

Technology and a walk in the woods tend not to mix. “We usually promote putting your phone away while hiking,” Lindsay Dill said, ready to produce hers as she traversed a tree-canopied trail. “But sometimes it can help.” Her stroll led her through the lower reaches of the Barking Slopes...

In a time-honored spousal activity, Bob and Nicole Freyer were relaxing in front of the television, watching a show called “Pumpkin Wars.” “It’s not that hard,” Bob said about the participants’ creative endeavors. “They’re just connecting lines.” To which Nicole replied, “I’ve never seen you do anything artistic.” Actually, Bob...

Coloring books are for kids. True, but older folks can enjoy them, too, especially when they’re the creations of illustrator Diana Zourelias. For example, the latest book by the Aspinwall native and Cecil Township resident provides an educational component that can be of value and interest to readers and crayon...

Get ready for some particularly interesting sights around Bridgeville. As of May 1, an outdoor sculpture exhibition will be in place at various locations as the first endeavor of a new organization that looks to cultivate creativity in the borough. Public Art Bridgeville is spearheaded by nearly half-century professional sculptor...

The name that Scott musician Dave Molter chose for his latest album drew questions of concern from at least one of his friends. “It’s a title,” he told her. “Don’t worry about it.” Actually, the idea for what to call the nine-song release came from Molter’s co-producer, Al Snyder, who...

Finishing a piece of her artwork less than 24 hours after she started is something out of the ordinary for Linda Barnicott. “Normally, I’m the type of person who sketches it out, then I do a pen-and-ink. Then I’ll maybe do a watercolor wash, and then I’ll paint it with...

With the most popular month for weddings approaching, future wives are taking great care in selecting their ideal rings. Their future husbands, not so much. “It’s not that special to them,” Hampton resident and entrepreneur Craig Cowan said. “But their bride always says, ‘Hey, you’ve got to walk down the...

In 1970, the nation’s first Earth Day ushered in an era of American conscientiousness on behalf of the environment. Well, maybe that finally will start happening in earnest a few generations down the road, thanks to people like Kassandra Poliziani. The kindergarten teacher at Gateway’s Dr. Cleveland Steward Jr. Elementary...

After leading art lessons for more than half a century, Jean Benson still tends to downplay her role. “I don’t really teach,” the Bethel Park resident said. “Everybody comes in and paints their own things. I just help ’em out.” Whatever she wants to call it, she’s back in action...

The mission of the nonprofit Always B Smiling, as would be expected, is to put perpetual grins on people’s faces. More specifically, founders Dean and Kristin Huibregtse of South Fayette seek to brighten the lives of children with special needs and, by extension, their caregivers and family members. “Dean and...

By April 20, any remnants of Punxsutawney Phil’s wintertime prognostications should be long gone. “It’s supposed to be spring,” artist Sara Kirsch said. “So let’s hope the world hears us say that.” She spoke as the temperature dropped and rain clouds gathered yet again a few weeks prior to a...

A pertinent number for the Glenshaw Century Club is 76, the years that have passed since its founding as a Shaler-based philanthropic group. An impressive sum is $750,000, the total amount the club has awarded in scholarships since the 1940s. Perhaps the most intriguing figure is 100, as in “century.”...