Tawnya Panizzi stories, Page 8

Part gallery, part toy shop is the best description for the Illustrious Order of Makesmiths, a quirky new addition to Blawnox. Opened by West Deer residents Chief and Steve O’Hearn, both artists, the storefront at 334 Freeport Road welcomes visitors to find joy in professional art as well as bizarre...

The Pittsburgh Field Club, known for its lush greens and opulent setting, dates to the late 1800s when it was known for a sport other than golf — cricket. Established as the Pittsburgh Cricket Club in April 1882 in the Brushton-Homewood section of the city, it was reincorporated as the...

Choices — and their infinite trajectories — are explored in Riverfront Theater Company’s fall production of “Constellations.” The two-person show takes the audience on a spellbinding, romantic journey that follows decisions of a physicist coming to terms with a cancer diagnosis and her beekeeper husband. Written by British playwright Nick...

A cornucopia of florals, wreaths and plants will be table- and mantle-ready at this year’s Glitter & Glow, the premier holiday shopping bazaar by the Fox Chapel Garden Club. “We use greens from our own gardens, and we make arrangements that you can literally put on your table and enjoy...

Author Annie Kayser of Springdale took more than two decades to pen her first novel, and now she can’t wait to celebrate it. “Out of the Ashes” is a 500-plus-page book that details a journey of self-fulfillment. Kayser’s first effort in writing, released in October, spanned 26 years as she...

The struggle is real for some elementary children. A fledgling tutoring program, organized by Deer Lakes School District students and open to people across the Alle-Kiski Valley, aims to help with classroom challenges. KFIVE is an initiative for children in kindergarten through fifth grade. Services are free and offered from...

West Deer residents hoping to get involved with local government have their chance. Supervisor Vernon Frey resigned from District 1, creating a vacancy to be filled this month. Frey remains in the township but is building a home in another district. His resignation was effective Tuesday. Frey could not be...

A Harmar manufacturer of artificial lungs has found a new home just 5 miles from its startup space at the Pittsburgh Applied Research Center (U-PARC), sold by the University of Pittsburgh in September. Advanced Respiratory Technologies signed a five-year lease in O’Hara’s RIDC Park. The company will take a previously...

The St. Margaret Foundation and Blawnox Community Food Pantry came away big winners as the primary beneficiaries of this year’s Charity Golf Classic by the Fox Chapel Area Rotary. The record-breaking fundraiser brought in more than $65,000 during the event Sept. 16 at Hill Crest Country Club in Lower Burrell....

Fox Chapel Democrat Mandy Steele has won second term representing the 33rd state House District in Harrisburg. Steele, 47, collected 55.65% of the vote to Republican challenger Gary Lotz’s 44.18%, according to unofficial tallies that show 100% of precincts reported in the district. The 33rd District includes Harrison, Brackenridge, Fawn,...

A popular West Deer restaurant has closed without explanation. La Vite Ristorante shuttered its doors Oct. 30 according to social media posts. Joe Voloch, director of operations at No Offseason Sports, where the restaurant was located, confirmed the eatery had closed and said he doesn’t foresee it reopening. “It surprised...

It’s been 40 years since Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison cared for its first premature baby. Levi Price already knew that. His 40th birthday was last week. He was that baby. According to his mother, he looked like a baby bird at birth. “He looked like he fell right out...

Longtime Martin Elementary secretary Kim Greco retired from the New Kensington-Arnold School District and decided downtime wasn’t her style. On a whim, albeit a researched one, Greco purchased the Zoup franchise in Fox Chapel Plaza, near The Waterworks. “I always wanted to own my own business. I thought maybe an...

Dawn Wyble doesn’t live in Tarentum, but that didn’t stop her from helping borough children cheated out of trick-or-treating Thursday after a chilling dog mauling. Three pit bulls got loose just before 6 p.m. on Halloween in the area of East Sixth and Seventh avenues at lower Ormond Street. The...

Faith Valasek was setting up for trick-or-treaters on Thursday when she noticed two dogs walking toward her East Sixth Avenue house in Tarentum. “I went up on my front porch to get a chair and I turned around there they were, at my feet,” said Valasek, 69. “I love dogs....

A man was rescued Saturday after a medical emergency left him stranded in a 30-foot-deep ravine in Harrison. Emergency crews responded at about 11:15 a.m. to Cherry Bark Drive, off Oak Manor Drive near Harrison Hills Park, for a man stuck about 200 yards in the woods. “He was working...

A peek into late-1800s O’Hara shows how drastically different life looked compared to present day. Before the township became a draw for wealthy industrialists who summered along the Allegheny River, residents mostly consisted of farmers tending to large tracts of land. The area’s first settler, James Powers, arrived in the...

Updated Tasers, radios and other equipment are expected to bring Harrison police into “modern times,” according to police Chief Brian Turack. Knowing they have the latest technology will give the township’s 14 officers a confidence boost, Turack said. “If you have an officer who is equipped to safely do their...

More than 3,000 shoes collected by Fox Chapel Garden Club will find new life. The fundraiser, in its 18th year, diverts new and gently worn shoes from landfills and repurposes some for a second life with people in need. Garden Club member Christine Bennett said the initiative is win-win for...

Harrison police are investigating after a flurry of gunshots rang out early Wednesday. Officers responded just after midnight to the area of Park Avenue, near the Sheldon Park housing plan, an Allegheny County-run apartment complex behind Heights Plaza. “We responded after several people called to say they heard gunshots. We...

Tarentum officials are one step closer to ensuring a long-term solution to the borough’s aging water system and avoiding a tax increase to pay for it. Manager Dwight Boddorf said the failing distribution system, with 100-year-old lines and routine collapses, can’t guarantee access to clean water in future years. He...

A vigil will be held Wednesday night in Harrison for Roxanne Bonnoni, the 11-year-old girl who was killed by a vehicle Aug. 20 near her home along North Canal Street. Amber Bonnoni, Roxanne’s mother, said people can attend to honor her daughter on what would have been her 12th birthday....

It appears another big-name national tenant will fill the vacant Walmart anchor space at The Waterworks. Dick’s Sporting Goods is expected to open in the 80,000-square-foot store, according to The Business Times. J.J. Gumberg Co. spokeswoman Mara Mrvos confirmed a new tenant is coming to The Waterworks but declined to...

Police are seeking help to identify the person who robbed a Par Mar Gas station on Saturday in Brackenridge. Police posted a video of the incident to Facebook. The incident happened at about 7:40 p.m. at the gas station’s convenience store near ATI at Mile Lock Lane and First Avenue....

Harrison officials are moving forward with a storm sewer project that has been deemed a critical concern. The project will target 60-inch pipes along Garfield and Chestnut streets. “Over the years, debris accumulation has reduced the capacity, likely compromising its integrity,” Township Manager Amy Rockwell said. Work is expected to...