Joe Napsha stories, Page 106
Chatham produces food directory to help farmers
Tom Logan’s forefathers have been farming their land in Hempfield since Grover Cleveland was sitting in the White House during the last decade of the 19th century. Now, 126 years later, Logan Family Farms LLC is getting a boost from modern technology in the form of Chatham University’s online Pennsylvania...
Irwin car cruise goes virtual in wake of covid-19 restrictions
If you can’t allow people to crowd streets and peruse classic cars during coronavirus-related restrictions, there is nothing stopping a virtual car cruise. That is exactly what the Irwin Business & Professional Association has planned at noon Saturday, via the Downtown Irwin Facebook page, said Michael Pochan, an IBPA member....
Humphreys woman loved working with 4-H
Sandy L. Lucas Ruggiero became involved in 4-H many years ago when her daughter wanted to raise rabbits. Although she grew up in Pittsburgh, not out in the country, Mrs. Ruggiero took to helping Jamie raise rabbits and served as a 4-H leader for many years, said her daughter, Jamie...
Derry Area sets virtual graduation for June 10
Derry Area has joined other school districts across the state in abandoning the traditional commencement ceremony for the Class of 2020 for a virtual one. Superintendent Eric Curry told the school board Thursday that “we are fairly confident” the virtual commencement ceremony on June 10 will be held on the...
Virtual job fair May 27 to replace traditional one
With large gatherings prohibited because of the coronavirus-related restrictions, the Pittsburgh Technology Council will hold a virtual job fair on Wednesday, May 27. The event is billed as an opportunity for companies to expand their pipeline of tech talent, as well as a “time efficient solution to recruitment efforts.” The...
Pennsylvania jobless claims climb to 1.6 million
Fewer Pennsylvanians filed new jobless claims last week, new figures show, but the impact of coronavirus-related shutdowns across the state since mid-March has resulted in nearly 1.6 million workers filing claims. More than 196,000 workers filed initial claims for the seven-day period beginning April 12, down some 42,000 claims from...
Pennsylvania car dealers get limited opening for sales during coronavirus restrictions
People who have been shut out the past month from buying a car will be able to now that Gov. Tom Wolf has lifted some restrictions on dealerships. “We’ve got permission for online sales, but the showroom still will be locked down. We’re not allowed to have people coming in...
Regional AAA picks North Huntingdon woman as new president
A former University of Pittsburgh Medical Center executive is the first woman to lead the regional chapter of the American Automobile Association. Teresa “Terri” Petrick, 62, of North Huntingdon, was named president of the AAA East Central region as of April 1, the East Liberty-based organization said Tuesday. She is...
Norwin plans dates for commencement
Norwin school officials are proposing a number of dates in May, June, July and August to hold senior graduation ceremonies at the high school stadium. In an email sent to parents last week, Superintendent Jeff Taylor said the district is looking at May 22 at 7 p.m. or a rain...
Norwin proposes 2.9% hike in school taxes
North Huntingdon, Irwin and North Irwin property owners will pay 2.9% more in school real estate taxes for 2020-21 fiscal year under a $76.4 million tentative budget unanimously approved Monday by the Norwin School Board. The proposed tax increase would raise the millage by 2.4 mills to 84.8 mills for...
Norwin cancels musical for this school year, plans to recast in fall
Norwin School District has postponed its production of “The Little Mermaid” and will recast it in the fall in what Superintendent Jeff Taylor said Monday was “one of the most difficult decisions” he has made since taking over the leadership of the district in July 2019. The decision, announced Friday...
Pa. jobless rate jumps to 6% in March, expected to get much worse in April
Pennsylvania’s jobless rate jumped to 6% in March, up 1.3 percentage points from February, but a local economist believes it is just the tip of an iceberg of bad unemployment news. “It’s going to get a lot worse in April,” said Jake Haulk, an economist and president emeritus of the...
Howard Hanna offers pandemic-impacted agents advance pay on future earnings
Getting paid based on commission rather than salary, whether it is selling cars, insurance, or houses, can be tough — especially when the state closes a worker’s business as part of a sweeping effort to stop the spread of coronavirus. Howard Hanna Real Estate Service, the largest real estate firm...
Penn-Trafford sets new dates, plans for graduation, prom
Penn-Trafford officials have set two alternative dates this summer to hold the commencement ceremonies that were canceled for May 26 because of Gov. Wolf’s order banning large gatherings and the closing of schools in the state. Commencement is now scheduled for June 26. But if that date must be postponed,...
Washington Township man accused of sexual solicitation of Maryland minor
A 59-year-old Washington Township man was accused Thursday of sexually soliciting a minor in Maryland, state police said. Donald Henry Loughner of Washington Township, was detained by Kiski Valley state police on a warrant issued Thursday by Washington Township District Judge Jason Buczak. The warrant was based on information from...
Irwin restaurant delivering meals to seniorsVideo
Caroline Leppert got lunch delivered this week to the North Huntingdon residence where she has been living with her friend for the past month under a self-imposed quarantine to avoid getting sick with covid-19. Leppert and her friend were getting a meal of ready-to-heat pasta with a meatball, courtesy of...
Region’s airports get $46.2 million in coronavirus-related grants
Pittsburgh International Airport will get a $36 million federal grant to help cope with the impact of coronavirus-related shutdowns. The grant represents the lion’s share of the $46.2 million provided to airports in Western Pennsylvania. The Federal Aviation Administration grants to the state’s 63 airports were part of the CARES...
Easter bunny hands out treats in North Huntingdon
With the traditional Easter egg hunts for children canceled because of the restrictions put in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus, a North Huntingdon couple took it upon themsleves to stage an event to give youngsters treats from the Easter bunny. The Easter bunny, portrayed by a costumed...
Coronavirus clamps down on real estate business
Zach Kocian of Southwest Greensburg might be one of the less lucky homeowners in Western Pennsylvania who is trying to sell his home this spring. Kocian, a behavior specialist at a private school, put the Stanton Street house he bought three years ago up for sale with the hopes of...
Western Pa. companies scramble to make protective equipment in coronavirus fightVideo
On a long table inside a giant complex near New Stanton, where Volkswagen assembled cars and Sony made televisions decades ago, a small crew of workers for a high-tech company is assembling face shields to meet the immediate demand for critical medical supplies. “I heard about the need for shields...
‘Shifting America off its constitutional foundations’: Saint Vincent prof critiques progressivism in new bookVideo
The demise of Democratic presidential hopefuls Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren does not mean the end of progressivism in the political spectrum, said a Saint Vincent College professor who has written a new book analyzing the movement in the United States. “Even though both (U.S. Senators) Warren and Sanders have...
Pittsburgh region jobless steady at 4.6% before business shutdowns
The seven-county Pittsburgh region posted a jobless rate of 4.6% in February, weeks before Gov. Tom Wolf shut down what the state deemed nonessential business. The 4.6% jobless rate, as adjusted for seasonal hiring factors, was the same as in January but 0.6 percentage points higher than the unemployment rate...
Pittsburgh aerial photo depicts ‘ghost town’
On Saturday afternoon, David Kahley, chief executive of The Progress Fund of Greensburg, flew his plane over Pittsburgh and snapped an aerial view of a nearly deserted Downtown. “It was unnerving,” Kahley said. “The physical center of the town, its parks, roads, museum and stadium parking lots and rivers, were...
Pittsburgh-to-Harrisburg passenger rail service out until May
The suspension of the Amtrak train between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, with stops in Greensburg, Latrobe and Johnstown, has been extended until May 4, a PennDOT spokeswoman said. Amtrak suspended passenger rail service between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia on March 19 because of low ticket sales as the spread of the coronavirus...
Irwin, Trafford cancel council meetings
Trafford has canceled its April 7 meeting because of the shutdown restrictions and Irwin has canceled its council meeting on April 8, opting for a virtual meeting on May 13, if Gov. Wolf’s order against public gatherings remains in place. Council members will meet via a social media platform that...
