Western PA Local News category, Page 1272
First-ever meatloaf dinner fundraiser a whopping success for Harrison Cub Scouts
Meatloaf dinners are paving the way for exciting Cub Scout activities in the new year. Pack 186, based out of Guardian Angels Parish in Harrison, hosted a fundraiser dinner Nov. 6 where more than 300 meals left the church kitchen. “It was the first time we attempted this type of...
2nd mill of tax for Washington Township Volunteer Fire Company prompts 1 mill tax hike in 2023
Real estate taxes in Washington Township will rise by 1 mill under the 2023 proposed budget. The proposed $3.5 million spending plan will come up for final passage at the township supervisors’ Dec. 8 meeting. Rich Gardner, supervisors chairman, said the tax increase is specifically to benefit the Washington Township...
New Kensington artist to debut animated short on WQED
Anyone watching WQED while trying to stay warm this weekend might happen to see an animated short about a goofy-looking seagull. Just know that the animation airing at 10 p.m. Saturday on the PBS affiliate’s Filmmakers Corner is actually the debut project of Brooke Doran, a 24-year-old Point Park University...
Faith Lutheran Church in Harrison to celebrate 50th anniversary
A reluctant merger of two local churches in 1972 has led to a thriving congregation at Faith Lutheran Church in Harrison. Parishioners will mark the 50th anniversary Saturday, celebrating a unity that “accomplished many wonderful things,” longtime member Elaine Sakaluk said. “Now we’re like family,” said Marilyn Gilkey of Cabot....
Leechburg native returns home to open bookstore/gift shop
Lindsey Smith has a way with words. The Leechburg native embraced writing and English from a young age, and now she’s using her decades of experience in the publishing industry with her latest venture: a bookstore and gift shop opening soon in downtown Leechburg. One Idea Books & Gifts will...
Building the Valley: Pittsburgh Coffee Co. truck rolls into Lower Burrell with freshly roasted brews
Like many, Morgan Lineman of Lower Burrell likes a good cup of coffee or a mocha, latte or cold brew. When Lineman, 28, lost her job during the pandemic while she was pregnant, the Lower Burrell woman and her husband charted a new course. “We decided to start something on...
Edgeworth officials plan to hold the line on real estate taxes in next year’s budget
Edgeworth officials hope to stave off a real estate tax hike despite rising costs. Council voted 6-0 on Nov. 15 to approve and advertise its preliminary 2023 budget. Councilman Dan Wilson was absent. The millage rate is projected to remain at 4.15 mills. Proposed revenues and expenses were listed at...
Greater Latrobe students with disabilities to benefit from career lab
Greater Latrobe students with disabilities will soon have the opportunity to gain a plethora of hands-on, career-relevant experiences within school walls. Next year, the district plans to introduce a Practical Assessment Exploration System Lab at the high school. The $30,000 lab will offer curriculum materials and onsite training for students...
Police: Greensburg woman tried to kill 8-year-old girl with fentanyl
A Greensburg woman is being held without bail after police said she gave an 8-year-old girl the powerful opioid fentanyl in an effort to cause her death, according to court papers. Authorities said they found Skye C. Naggy, 29, and the girl Oct. 25 in a wooded area near Loyalhanna...
Merger of Excela, Butler health systems to be finalized by year’s end, officials say
Excela Health and Butler Health System completed another step toward becoming one by entering into a definitive merger agreement, moving forward with a plan expected to generate more than $1 billion in revenue. The two networks signed a letter of intent to merge on June 1. The agreement announced Friday...
Mt. Pleasant man pleads guilty to drug sale in 2017 fatal overdose
A Westmoreland County judge made no guarantees but promised he would consider imposing a sentence with no time behind bars for a Mt. Pleasant man implicated in the fatal overdose of a friend nearly five years ago. The comments from Common Pleas Judge Scott Mears came during a hearing in...
Pittsburgh man accused in North Huntingdon bank robbery
A Pittsburgh man declined to take $182 from a North Huntingdon bank police said he tried to rob and instead fled in a stolen BMW, according to court papers. The owner of the car, along with fingerprints found at the PNC Bank on Norwin Avenue, helped investigators identify Bruce M....
South Huntingdon woman accused of DUI, crashing into state police patrol car
A South Huntingdon woman is accused of being intoxicated when she crashed into a marked state police patrol car last month on Route 31, according to court papers. Troopers said they found text messages on a cellphone belonging to Kennedy M. Horvat, 27, in which she admitted she fled the...
Greensburg kicks off holiday season with parade, window display, raffle
When units head south on Greensburg’s Main Street Saturday for the city’s annual holiday parade, they’ll pass by a scene not witnessed in about four decades. Windows at the former Troutman’s department store at Main and Second streets will be decorated for the holiday season — for the first time...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Nov. 18-20
Holiday shopping, animal encounters and parties celebrating art and history are on tap this weekend in Pittsburgh. German-style market The Peoples Gas Holiday Market opens Friday in Market Square in Downtown Pittsburgh, with hours from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Inspired by the original German Christkindlmarkts (or “Christmas Markets”), the...
New Mars exhibition opens at Carnegie Science Center
The fascination Earthlings have long held for the neighboring red planet of Mars is playing out in a big way with a new permanent, immersive exhibition at the Carnegie Science Center on Pittsburgh’s North Side. “Mars: The Next Giant Leap,” a $4.5 million project, opens Friday, and Science Center officials...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County this weekend: Nov. 18-20
Here comes Santa Claus Special holiday entertainment will begin at 5 p.m. Friday at Westmoreland Mall, leading up to Santa’s arrival. The Hempfield High School Marching Band will escort the jolly old elf around the mall in a parade starting at 6 p.m. at the entrance on the lower level...
Police accuse Pittsburgh man of shooting at a vehicle in East Pittsburgh
Police arrested a Pittsburgh man who they say fired two shots into an occupied vehicle early Sunday morning in East Pittsburgh. Police identified the suspect as Yancy Felder, 24. They say a man was in the vehicle when he allegedly fired. They say Felder then entered the apartment of his...
Murrysville man sold drugs out of Monroeville pretzel shop, police say
A business owner has been arrested for selling prescription pain pills out of his drive-thru pretzel shop window in Monroeville, officials said. Police and federal agents said they observed Brian Schlagel of Murrysville buy and sell pills out of his business and home over the course of several months, according...
‘Like it was a video game’: Students try their hands at medical robots during Westmoreland Mall event
Textbooks and tests can help students understand the medical field only to a certain extent. On Thursday, Excela Health put surgical equipment into students’ hands. Dozens of high school and middle school students piled into the Westmoreland Mallin Hempfield to test out medical robots and learn about the dangers of...
Penn Hills student news for the week of Nov. 18, 2022
Stephen Byrne, a graduate of Central Catholic High School, is a first-year student in the game design and development program at the Rochester Institute of Technology. He received a partial scholarship to pursue performing arts in technical production. Tashawnie Ormsby of Verona graduated from Troy University during Term 1 of...
New Kensington residents mark 5th anniversary of police officer Brian Shaw’s death in line of duty
It has been five years since New Kensington police Officer Brian Shaw was killed in the line of duty. For many, like police Chief Robert Deringer, it feels like yesterday. “They say time heals all wounds,” Deringer said, standing across the police station after a memorial service Thursday night. “It...
Tarentum doubling earned income tax to compensate for budget shortfall; millage to remain the same
An updated tentative 2023 budget for Tarentum calls for an increase in the earned income tax from 0.5% to 1%. Borough Manager Dwight Boddorf blamed the increase on a projected $1.2 million general fund deficit. The overall proposed budget for next year of nearly $17 million assumes the borough will...
Pine-Richland student news for the week of Nov. 18, 2022
Pine-Richland High School seniors Sarah Pifer, Joseph DeRenzo and Breanna Franchak were recognized by the Rich-Mar Rotary Club as Students of the Month for their outstanding community service and dedication to improving their school and communities. Tisha Joshi, a seventh-grader at Pine-Richland Middle School, has earned the highest score in...
Remember When: Veterans Day celebrations in 1945 recognized A-K Valley’s heroes
Veterans Day in the Alle-Kiski Valley was observed recently with reverence and reflection. While all Veterans Days are important, one might consider Nov. 11, 1945, the biggest Veterans Day of all. It was the first Veterans Day following the end of World War II, just 71 days after Japan signed...
