A-K Valley

A team is being formed to bring back a program recognizing distinguished graduates of the New Kensington-Arnold School District and its predecessor districts. The team is expected to include area historians, former district administrators and teachers and community leaders, school board member Sarah Yurga said. “Once we form that team,...

Ashleigh Schmidt could have returned to Penn State Behrend next season, taking advantage of the NCAA allowing athletes an extra year of eligibility because of the covid pandemic. But the Freeport graduate has a job waiting for her as a nurse at Children’s Hospital. Plus, it’d be hard to top...

Robert Morris’ Alaina York has some serious range in center field. How serious? “It’s kind of a running joke that any time a ball gets hit in the air, it automatically seems like Alaina is calling for it,” Colonials coach Jexx Varner said of York, a Burrell graduate. “It could...

Vandergrift No. 1 Volunteer Fire Department turns 125 years old this year and organizers plan to host a daylong community celebration. Alexandra Berger, company member and fundraising committee chairperson, said she was motivated to organize a birthday bash for the firefighters of the borough when she did the math and...

Fifth-generation Tarentum resident Cindy Homburg relishes memories of time spent in her grandmother’s kitchen. “Her creamed cucumber recipe with the sauteed onions, that’s one that our family still makes today,” Homburg said. “She would add a touch of sugar and enough vinegar to make it bite.” Homburg is hoping that...

Harrison residents in the 2nd Ward have a chance to build up their neighborhood through a series of small group get-togethers hosted by Commissioner Jamie Nee. Nee was elected to represent the 2nd Ward in November. “I wanted to find out what’s important to them, what will make us strong,”...

After years of delays, the renovation of Low Grade Road appears to be around the corner. The traffic artery, jointly owned by Harmar, Cheswick and Springdale Township, is set to receive work this summer. Construction bids will be sought, and a contract will be awarded by the Allegheny County North...

For the first time as a competitive runner, Faith Remich is trying to slow down. The Burrell graduate and Washington & Jefferson senior’s career is nearing its end, and she is trying to soak in as much as possible. “I feel like in general, due to covid, I have a...

When Kennedie Montue finally got her shot this season with the Oakland University basketball team, she made it count. That should come as no surprise since making shots is what the Plum graduate does best. Montue, a freshman guard, played five total minutes in the Golden Grizzlies’ first 11 games,...

Following the recent retirement of two veteran police officers, Allegheny Township is hiring three younger, full-time officers and spending less money at the same time. Officials Monday night unveiled a plan to expand the staff of full-time officers from 10 to 11 but with law enforcement budget savings of $11,650,...

Not too many kids grow up wanting to be triple jumpers. But when Kiski Area graduate Jalen Cloud got a taste of the event as an eighth grader, he was hooked. “I like the fact that a lot of people can’t do it, that it’s an unorthodox movement,” said Cloud,...

Ben Pollock often dominated the competition while playing at Cheswick Christian Academy. Pollock then went to Mount Vernon Nazarene, an NAIA program located about 45 minutes northeast of Columbus, Ohio, but adjusting to the college game took time, and he decided being closer to home would be better for his...

Six years ago, Steve and Amy Boop decided to turn their experience working in restaurants into their own venture: a food truck with gourmet wraps. But another opportunity was knocking, right around the corner. “We had everything pretty much ready to do that,” said Amy Boop, 35, of the food...

In basketball, a “brick” is typically not a good thing. But for Meaghan Volek and the Penn State New Kensington women’s basketball team, they’re hoping to pile them up. “Our slogan for our program is that we’re building brick by brick,” said Volek, a Kittanning grad who coached at Burrell....

Santa and several sidekicks will make the long trip from the North Pole to tour three local communities Dec. 4. The Santa Neighborhood Parade will feature fire trucks carrying the big guy in his red suit, along with a DJ playing music and elves tossing candy. The event, from 3...

A love of numbers is adding up as the right answer to one couple’s professional pursuit. Jason and Monica Dunkel, married for 20 years, both teach elementary math at the same school, in the same department, in the Kiski Area School District. And they also share a number: 1976, their...

The Plum girls soccer team had to endure a pair of 170-mile round trips — two excursions to Hollidaysburg’s Tiger Stadium, near Altoona — for the first two rounds of the PIAA Class 3A playoffs. Those trips, long as they were, did yield winning results: a first-round 3-1 victory over...

Burrell School Board added four students as nonvoting members last month to its nine-member board. A school board director, LeAnn Guido, brought up the idea last year, and high school Principal John Boylan opened up the opportunity to juniors and seniors this school year. The four students, in teams of...

Dominating intramurals at Clarion wasn’t enough for Kaison Branch. So when the opportunity to walk on to the basketball team presented itself, the Highlands graduate took it. Three years later, the player nicknamed “Sensei Kaison” is starting at point guard. “It’s like having a coach on the court every time...

When the No. 8-seeded Highlands Rams fell to No. 9 New Castle in the first round of the WPIAL Class 4A football playoffs, it might have marked a disappointing ending to the season. It also gave a glimpse into a promising future. “I feel like we changed the narrative at...

Vandergrift is prepping for a visit from the big guy himself. Santa will cruise around the borough in a firetruck from 6 to 8 p.m. on Nov. 26, the day after Thanksgiving. Called “Santa Around Town,” the event is sponsored by the Vandergrift Improvement Program (VIP) with the borough’s two...

A grant to the Brackenridge Salvation Army from a Fox Chapel service organization will help put holiday meals on dozens of tables and distribute warm clothes to those in need, Captain Alex Senak said. The Salvation Army along Brackenridge Avenue received $3,000 from the Rotary Club of Fox Chapel area....

They came early … and they stayed late. That’s the best way to describe the Leechburg football faithful and the atmosphere surrounding the first home playoff game in the history of Leechburg Veterans Stadium and the first WPIAL playoff victory since 1978. The Blue Devils broke open a close game...

Erica Lampus Class: Senior School: Freeport Sport: Volleyball Report card: Lampus is the lone senior starter on the Freeport volleyball team, which won it sixth WPIAL volleyball title Saturday with a 3-1 victory over section rival Hampton. Lampus had the clinching kill in a 25-22 win in the second set....