Harry Funk stories, Page 4

Traveling from New Kensington to Downtown Pittsburgh hardly would seem like a picnic, especially by bus. “I usually come every day, weekdays and weekends,” Valley High School sophomore Gea Fultz said as she wrapped up running a warmup mile on a treadmill at the 3rd Ave. Gym, the training site...

Fans of Dr. Seuss may hold a special place in their hearts for his final book published during author Theodor Seuss Geisel’s lifetime, “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” Count the founder of a flourishing regional nonprofit among them. “What a fitting title for tonight, as Team Friends celebrates the places...

Skepticism, meet reality. McCandless resident Ekaterina Konovalova once was dubious of a certain piece of conventional wisdom. “When I heard things like, ‘Oh, parenting is the hardest job in the world,’ I’m like, yeah, yeah. How did we do it for generations for thousands of years?” she questioned. Then she...

The second phase of renovations to Hampton High School includes an aspect that could benefit the community at large. Part of the project involves updating two sets of restrooms, near the auditorium and cafeteria, with the intent of better accommodating public events by increasing the number of fixtures while veering...

When it comes to municipal zoning, terms like “overlay district” may seem to be more than a bit esoteric. In general, the phrase refers to superimposing an additional set of regulations over an existing zoning district, so as not to change the overall character. As part of Marshall’s efforts to...

As they say, the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Of course, such conventional wisdom applies to women and children, too. “That’s something we’ve heard from our community for a long time, that restaurants are an important part of what they want to see with our business...

One of the most heralded airborne heroes of World War I didn’t fly a plane. Cher Ami is credited with saving the lives of 194 American soldiers, for which he received the Croix de Guerre from the French government to honor bravery on the battlefield. Not bad for a bird....

Listen to a lot of what passes for popular music these days, the repetitive mouth noises droning along to minimalist synthesized sounds. When you’re ready for a change, check out Dweezil Zappa’s band. Accompanying him are genuine, living, breathing musicians: a lead vocalist who excels while alternating between his guitar...

Two Ross police officers were promoted to sergeant during the Aug. 19 meeting of township commissioners, and three other officers were presented with awards for helping to save local residents’ lives. Commissioners unanimously approved the promotions of Matthew Immekus and Peter Chuberko, while Chief Cristyn Zett commended the rapid and...

Thanks to a West View institution, plenty of youngsters became better prepared for the start of a new school year. Heyl Family Practice’s first-ever Backpack Bonanza gave students the opportunity to choose from among all kinds of items for the classroom. “For over 75 years we’ve been part of the...

Renovations to Bethel Park’s Independence Middle School include an apparently much-needed new roof. “We’re finding more and more problems, and more urgency to address some of those,” Barry Christenson, school board president, said. For potential help in paying for the project, district officials are considering applying for grants through the...

Two girls joined their male counterparts in the culminating race of the inaugural Talbot Shuffle at Hampton’s Fridley Field, and they happened to be sisters. “Are you going to tell them I beat her?” one of them inquired after pulling away near the finish line, nearly 2 miles after they...

Growing up with an older brother who is autistic proved to be a major inspiration for J.J. Ortiz. “I always saw him doing a lot of drawings. He’d do maybe 50 to 100 sketches a day on pieces of paper,” the Aquinas Academy of Pittsburgh senior said. “That’s kind of...

Growing up with an older brother who is autistic proved to be a major inspiration for J.J. Ortiz. “I always saw him doing a lot of drawings. He’d do maybe 50 to 100 sketches a day on pieces of paper,” the Aquinas Academy of Pittsburgh senior said. “That’s kind of...

Hampton Township and Deer Lakes school districts could be teaming up on the wrestling mat. The school board in Hampton is scheduled to vote Aug. 12 on approving a cooperative program between the districts. Deer Lakes has no wrestling program, but some students are interested in participating in the sport....

When photographed from space, earth looks like a big blue marble. But closer to home, another color of nature is much more prevalent. And these days, it may be the favorite of Hampton student Ruby Heitzenroeder. In her final year at Central Elementary School, she placed first in Pennsylvania and...

To maintain smaller sizes for some elementary-level classes, Hampton Township School District administrators are requesting the hiring of long-term substitutes to teach additional sections. Superintendent Michael Loughead said the number of first graders at all the district’s elementary schools has grown for 2024-25. “We didn’t expect all three, honestly, but...

You might say that it takes a parish. More specifically, it takes a significant portion of the congregation to pull off St. Aidan Parish’s Summer Festival, which opened July 31 for, coincidentally, its 31st year. “Over this festival week, we need more than 900 volunteerships to be filled, which is...

Another reason to visit the Pine Community Center is on the way. Northern Tier Regional Library is in the process of establishing a new branch at the multipurpose building, with the grand opening scheduled for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 14. “We couldn’t have asked for a better location,”...

Picture yourself in a saddle on horseback, traversing the tranquil surroundings of a wooded area. For Tarentum resident Cindy Bowser, such a scenario once ranked among her favorite activities, and she mentioned one of her favorite places to venture. “Harrison Hills Park is small, but it is gorgeous with that...

The reunion concerts continue for a gospel ensemble that once performed at Cleveland’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Praise, Worship and Deliverance traces its roots back to the late 1980s and a tuneful Martin Luther King Jr. remembrance at Penn State New Kensington, where musician Roberta Breninghouse was an...

A long-standing business soon will be gone, at least from its Ross location. Duro Cleaners has been a McKnight Road fixture since Dwayne Trimble started offering dry-cleaning services, and it continued after O’Hara resident Joe Ferrante became the owner in 2017. “The customers were great. They’ve always been great here....

As the owner of a dance school in Ross, combined with her day job at the time of elementary school principal, Cynthia Zurchin wanted to make sure she could see as clearly as possible. “I had gone for an eye appointment, and I was fully expecting that I was going...

You may think of a haircut as not such a big a deal. Carnegie resident Sandahl Taylor begs to differ. “It can really change somebody’s life,” she said. “You can see somebody be able to get a job. It can provide them with hope. And it can simply tell them...

Today’s toast of Pittsburgh sports is about to be immortalized in art. Paul Skenes, the rookie who is the first Pirates pitcher in 49 years to start a Major League Baseball All-Star Game, will be the subject of a live acrylic painting by Baldwin Township artist Kait Schoeb at a...