Joyce Hanz stories, Page 42

The Vandergrift Public Library wants you out the door — for a good cause. As a fundraiser, the library will hold two escape room events, on Feb. 11 and 25, in its historic building in downtown Vandergrift. People are invited to register in teams of four to six to compete...

Live theater is back with an annual talent show returning to the Kiski Area School District. The Kiski Area annual Key Club Talent Show will showcase the talent of students with a variety show on Friday. All proceeds from the event, which is sponsored by the Key Club, will be...

Leonard Rocco “Lenny” Calderone, a Vandergrift native known for intense pride in his hometown, died on Sunday. His sister, Elizabeth Calderone, said he died suddenly at home from a heart attack. He was 78. While Calderone never held a position in local government, he was widely considered the unofficial ambassador...

A Kiski Area High School student is hoping to raise big money for a charity close to her heart. Junior Allison Thompson of Washington Township formed Team WISH (Warriors of Invincible Strength and Hope) on a mission to raise $100,000 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. For her efforts, Thompson...

There’s a new preschool in Vandergrift. Westmoreland Community Action has opened a Head Start classroom in the lower level of The Center on Franklin Avenue, in the former Trinity United Presbyterian Church. Teacher Abby Wilcox of Kiski Township welcomed new students Monday. Head Start prepares children ages 3 to 5...

Calling all cat lovers. Two local groups dedicated to helping homeless and feral felines are in need of additional helpers. Cat Crusaders of Leechburg and Homeless Cat Management Team of Tarentum both work to feed, house and tend to cats in need — with a primary focus on providing low-cost,...

The beat goes on for the Sarra family. Bob Sarra and his two sons, Jason and Justin, are co-owners of N Stuff Music, a music instrument store at 468 Freeport Rd. in Blawnox. The business recently expanded to the two buildings on either side of it, which were remodeled into...

A local businessman is hoping to fill two Allegheny Township storefronts with family-friendly businesses after purchasing the spots in the high-traffic area in September. Keith Fetterman bought two commercially zoned buildings at 181 and 183 Hyde Park Road, situated across from Kiski Area High School. Fetterman, who lives in Allegheny...

A generous high school graduation gift has served Todd Veselicky well. Veselicky, 53, graduated from Kiski Area High School in 1986 and was pondering his next move. “I was not college material,” said Veselicky, a lifelong resident of East Vandergrift. Veselicky was friends with numerous police officers and first responders...

The first significant snow of the season blanketed the Alle-Kiski Valley on Thursday evening leaving motorists with a mixed bag of road conditions for their Friday morning commute. Almost 2 inches of snow fell in New Kensington, and Westmoreland County saw a snowfall of between 2 and 5 inches in...

A shortage of school bus drivers continues to wreak havoc on transportation routes in the Kiski Area School District. In a post Wednesday to the district’s Facebook page, officials described the problem as “extreme.” The driver deficit has resulted in frequent morning and afternoon bus route pickup cancellations and delays....

The Fox Chapel Area School District has set an all-time annual fundraising record for a local charity. Students helped raise more than $107,000 during a monthlong districtwide campaign that culminated in a livestreamed telethon Dec. 23. Over the past 32 years, the district has raised more than $1 million for...

Construction on a new fast-food dining option is progressing in Allegheny Township. A new Taco Bell restaurant is expected to open as early as next month at 500 Hyde Park Road in Allegheny Plaza, but project officials are keeping mum on an opening date. On Tuesday, a spokesman from PBI...

From an early age, Tommy Scanga felt at home in a kitchen. “I cook. That’s what I do,” said Scanga, 62, a lifelong Vandergrift resident. Cooking alongside his mother, Mary Ann Scanga, Tommy Scanga learned at an early age how to make Italian staples such as homemade sauce with meatballs,...

The Dodgefathers arrived dressed to impress. The five-member dodgeball team, made up of middle school-age boys from Wheeling, W.Va., journeyed Saturday to West Deer to compete in the inaugural New Year Smash Em Dodgeball Tournament. Sporting matching custom T-shirts with a sporty play on the classic Italian mafia film, the...

These days, Vandergrift Area Meals on Wheels is rolling along with fewer volunteers. The independent nonprofit with a mission of providing fresh and wholesome meals to older folks in Vandergrift and Allegheny Township is in “great need” of volunteers, according to food service director Buster Burnham. Burnham, a one-man chef...

The National Weather Service said the loud boom and shaking ground reported Saturday by people across a large swath of suburban Pittsburgh likely was caused by an exploding meteor. Shannon Hefferan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Moon Township, said a flash was reported on satellite data about...

Lora Trenney of Kiski Township is feeling lucky. The 40-year-old bartender at Cicero’s Bar and Grill in Leechburg bought a Powerball ticket Tuesday during her work shift. The lottery jackpot swelled to an estimated $441 million with a cash option of $317.5 million for the Wednesday drawing, according to the...

A longtime public servant in the Alle-Kiski Valley is retiring. Police Officer Anita King will wrap up her law enforcement career of 31 years on Jan. 3, her last day of active duty with the Allegheny Township Police Department. King has, who has served with the department since 1990, was promoted...

Allegheny Township residents can expect to see a lot of newly elected Supervisor James Morabito. “I plan on being here at the township building weekly,” said Morabito, 58, a small business owner for 35 years. “I’m going to be hands-on, going over details of daily and weekly activities.” Morabito, who...

A new Italian market is coming to Vandergrift. Fasano’s Italian Store and Deli is set to open next fall in the former Fazio’s Italian Store, at 301 Longfellow St. Fazio’s shut its doors in 2015 after co-owners Joseph and Teresa Spina made the decision to close for health-related reasons. Fasano’s...

Students from the Kiski Area School District have been having fun, fundraising. The district’s annual Cav-A-Thon wrapped up this week, raising more than $12,500. The event raises money for Alle-Kiski Valley charities. “It will be shared with the Alle-Kiski HOPE Center, Kiski Valley Food Bank and the Stuff-A-Bus organization,” said...

A flagpole in Gilpin has a unique holiday addition, compliments of a former Alcoa employee. “It’s Dad’s Alcoa flagpole tree,” joked Joseph Kovalchik of his late father’s handmade aluminum creation. John Kovalchik worked for 34 years as a maintenance electrician at Alcoa’s research lab in New Kensington. He died in...

A neighborhood in Washington Township is set to glow with more than 1,000 candles on Christmas Eve. Washington Acres will host a luminary evening beginning at 6 p.m. Friday. Light Up Washington Acres is sponsored by Boy Scout Troop 211, based in Delmont. The event serves as a fundraiser for...

Some parking meters in Vandergrift are set to receive a fancy, metal makeover. The Vandergrift Improvement Project (VIP) is moving forward with plans for the Streetscape project, with 10 custom-made V-shaped metal baskets to be installed over parking meters along Grant and Columbia Avenues in the historic shopping district. “The...