Joyce Hanz stories, Page 15
Another top administrator resigns from Leechburg Area School District, plans to return to teaching
The Leechburg Area School District is losing another administrator — but not the employee. Doug Rodgers is leaving his role as middle and high school principal to return to teaching in the district next fall. The board voted to accept Rodgers’ resignation Wednesday, although school officials referred to him only...
Morning Roundup: Overnight crash cuts power in 4 Pittsburgh neighborhoods
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, March 8: Crash shuts down West Liberty Avenue; power outages reported Multiple Pittsburgh neighborhoods were left without power Friday morning following a vehicle crash along West Liberty Avenue, according to TribLive news partner WTAE. The station reports that...
Water main break results in remote learning day at Highlands Middle School; 2-hour delay for district due to power outage
Power outages and water woes disrupted school operations Thursday in the Highlands School District in Harrison. Highlands Middle School students and staff are learning remotely Thursday because of a water main break Wednesday night at the middle school. Students in grades 5-8 are affected. The remote day applies to only...
Morning Roundup: Man stabbed in East Liberty; 80+ bricks of heroin seized in Pittsburgh; 2 teens missing in separate incidents
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, March 7. Stabbing incident in East Liberty Police are investigating a stabbing incident Wednesday night inside a residence in the 700 block of Collins Street in East Liberty. According to Pittsburgh Police, responders arrived to the scene around...
Firsthand experience takes the boredom out of Western Pa. civics classes
It isn’t ego that makes Hal Biehl think his civics class at Riverview High School is so valuable for students. “I tell the kids on the first day of class, ‘This is the most important class you’ll have in high school no matter what field you go into because government...
Morning Roundup: Station Square fatal shooting victim ID’d; Monroeville police officer struck by vehicle in Penn Hills
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, March 6. Victim identified in fatal shooting Friday in Station Square The Allegheny County Medical Examiner has identified the 25-year-old man fatally shot Friday night in Station Square. According to Pittsburgh Public Safety, police responded to reports of...
Morning Roundup: 1 injured in South Park crash; motorcyclist hospitalized in hit-and-run in Duquesne
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Tuesday, March 5: 1 injured in crash in South Park One person was taken to the hospital Monday night after a crash involving a motorcycle and a vehicle in South Park Township, according to TribLive news partner WTAE. The...
Long-awaited Oakmont parking lot project scheduled to begin in June
Stephanie Grimes is tired of looking at the vacant lot along Oakmont’s Allegheny Avenue, where an Exxon station once stood. It’s been five years since plans were announced to convert the lot into much-needed public parking and Grimes, a borough resident, is frustrated because, she says, she can’t get answers...
Daycation Destination: Fly high with a helicopter tour above Pittsburgh
Burrell High School junior Billy Kowalkowski had a sky-high experience for his 17th birthday. He took a private helicopter tour of Pittsburgh last month with veteran pilot Ron Spiker of Zelienople and his mom, Danielle Kowalkowski. Danielle Kowalkowski booked a mother-son sunset tour in February with Spiker Helicopters, which has...
Almost 1,000 Lenten fish sandwiches sold Fridays at St. Irenaeus in Oakmont
Volunteer fry guy Eric Johnson knows his way around a fish fry. “I’ve been frying for 15 years,” Johnson said Friday at lunchtime while handling fish orders for a packed church hall at Holy Family Parish’s St. Irenaeus in Oakmont. Each week during Lent, dozens of parish volunteers man multiple...
Neo, the rescued Kiski River alligator, among more than 70 animals to die in South Park fire
Neo didn’t make it. The wayward alligator, only recently recovered in Kiski Township after escaping and apparently living along the Kiski River since last summer, was one of the more than 70 animals confirmed to have died in a fire that swept through Nate’s Reptile Rescue in South Park on...
Ukrainian church in Arnold on the market for $200K
The closing of a Ukrainian church serving the Arnold community for almost 100 years has left many former parishioners and residents in a state of disbelief. Holy Virgin Ukrainian Orthodox Church held its last Divine Liturgy on Aug. 27 and is listed for sale for $199,999. “I’m not doing that...
Faces of the Valley: Kiski Area fourth grader takes center stage in ninja skills competitions
A Washington Township 10-year-old is climbing to new heights in the competitive ninja sports world. Caelin Kaminski won the championship in the mature kids (9- and 10-year-old) division at the 2023 World Ninja League Premier Series Championships in November in Forox Ninja Park in Brooklyn. “It was really awesome,” Caelin...
The Saxonburg Winter Festival draws hundreds of people to enjoy pleasant winter day
Historic downtown Saxonburg was closed to traffic on Main Street on Saturday, but it was flooded with hundreds of people for the 3rd Annual Saxonburg Winter Festival. The daylong festival is sponsored by The Little Shops of Saxonburg in collaboration with the Saxonburg Area Business Association. Crafters, food trucks and...
New Oakmont library director brings experience, familiarity with borough to role
Caitlyn Boland credits the Carnegie system of libraries for exposing her to books at a young age. Growing up in Connellsville, Boland said, she was in awe when her mother took her to get her first library card at the Carnegie library in her hometown. “It was a privilege to...
10 miles of new trail from Gilpin brings regional network 1 step closer
The newest 10 miles of the Armstrong Trail aren’t officially open yet, but dozens of people got to walk along the stretch Wednesday and see its local centerpiece: the revamped railroad bridge spanning the Kiski River near Freeport. Armstrong Trails Executive Director Chris Ziegler announced Tuesday the completion of the...
Andy Warhol honored by Slovakia on anniversary of his death
On this date 37 years ago, the world lost its king of pop art. Pittsburgh native Andy Warhol died suddenly of complications after a routine gallbladder surgery Feb. 22, 1987, in New York. He was 58. The world knew him as pop artist Andy Warhol. But to his nephew Donald...
Oakmont embroidery business opens 2nd location in Penn Hills
An Oakmont woman looking to find a swift sewing solution 13 years ago is celebrating the opening of her second specialty embroidery-focused store. In an effort to help her husband, then a high school basketball coach, Teresa Stitt found herself learning how to embroider uniforms in the basement of a...
Eco-friendly dream home up for $1.25M in Clinton
Pat Hebda is saying goodbye to her beloved eco-friendly home in Clinton Township for the last time. Hebda, 74, is selling her dream home, dubbed “Dream’s End,” a 60-acre estate designed with an emphasis on being environmentally friendly. The asking price is $1.25 million. Hebda’s husband of 40 years, Jim...
Armstrong County golf resort sells for $2.5M, leaving weddings, other events in limbo
A public golf resort in Armstrong County has sold for $2.5 million, leaving many customers who had events booked at the venue scrambling to find alternate accommodations. The Inn at Lenape Heights Event Center & Golf Resort in Manor Township sold Jan. 31 to 950 Golf Course Road LLC. The...
Riverview High School set to present ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’
Riverview High School drama students are in full rehearsals prepping to showcase an all-ages spring musical production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” “This show will be a spectacle of emotions and energy,” said producer Laurie Sliben. “It’s full of meaningful themes like family, acceptance and forgiveness — all...
Deteriorating railroad bridge causes concern for Indiana Township officials, residents
An old train bridge continues to cause big safety concerns for officials in Indiana Township. The 127-year-old concrete bridge over Little Deer Creek Valley Road has been steadily deteriorating since the 1990s. Police Chief Steven Colucci said he is determined to navigate the situation with bridge owner Canadian National Railroad....
Vandals paint vulgar images, words on church property in Oakmont
Oakmont police continue to investigate a graffiti-painting incident that occurred earlier this month on a church property in Oakmont. “It contained homophobic images and words,” said Oakmont police Chief Michael Ford. Black paint covers a large section of a mural fence on the grounds of Oakmont United Methodist Church, at...
Vandals paint vulgar images, words on church property in Oakmont
Oakmont police continue to investigate a graffiti incident that occurred last week on a church property in Oakmont. “It contained homophobic images and words,” said Oakmont police Chief Michael Ford. Black paint currently covers a large section of a mural fence on the grounds of Oakmont United Methodist Church at...
Rescued alligator transported to new home, injured from months in the wild
The latest alligator rescued from along the Kiski River near Apollo has new digs. Neo, a pet alligator reported missing since September in Kiski Township, was safely captured by cyclists Friday evening along the Roaring Run Trail. Nathan Lysaght, founder and director of Nate’s Reptile Rescue, a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit that...
