Joyce Hanz stories, Page 28
Buffalo Township woman crowned queen of weight loss
Michele Malkowiak loves being called a loser. The Buffalo Township grandmother and homemaker shed more than 100 pounds over a two-year period during the pandemic. As a result, she is Pennsylvania’s reigning 2021-22 Take Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) queen. “I was blindsided,” said Malkowiak, 56. “I found out the day...
Incumbent Leechburg mayor to face primary challenge from councilwoman
A Leechburg councilwoman is running against the incumbent mayor in the Democratic Party primary May 16. Leechburg Mayor Tony Roppolo is seeking election to the position he was appointed to last March, while Councilwoman Doreen Smeal is trying again to become mayor. After the death of Mayor Wayne Dobos last...
Longtime incumbent supervisor faces Republican challenger in Allegheny Township
A political newcomer is on the May 16 primary ballot and challenging longtime Republican incumbent Supervisor John Rennick “Ren” Steele in Allegheny Township. Republican challenger and Allegheny Township businessman Jeff Pollick said he decided to throw his hat into the political arena to support residents, promote proactive measures and strengthen...
Quilting club combines socializing and sewing for charity in Allegheny TownshipVideo
A vibrant yellow T-shirt emblazoned with “Yes, I really do need all these sewing machines” is seamstress Veronica Rempuszewski’s go-to outfit on sewing outings with fellow quilting club members in Allegheny Township. “Take a picture of my shirt,” Rempuszewski, 73, said Wednesday during a sewing session in the Allegheny Township...
Fox Chapel native and comic Eddie Ifft returns for homecoming show
Eddie Ifft was voted funniest student as an eighth grader at Dorseyville Middle School. “I don’t think my parents were very proud of that because it was my second time in the eighth grade,” Ifft said. “I had attended St. Scholastica School in Aspinwall and was told I wasn’t ready...
Southern Armstrong Regional Police Department receives Governors Award
Two participating municipalities of a newly formed regional police force have received the Governor’s Award for Local Government Excellence. The Southern Armstrong Regional Police Department, chartered on Oct. 12, 2022, was honored with the award in the Intergovernmental Cooperation category. Freeport Borough and Gilpin Township were nominated for the award...
Allegheny Township police take delivery of new township-issued guns
Police officers in Allegheny Township soon will swap out their personal firearms for township-issued guns. Since the 1960s, township officers have carried their own guns on the job, as is the case with many small municipal forces. Allegheny Township police Chief Duane Fisher waited more than a year for the...
Public hearing set to discuss potential alcohol sales at convenience store near Kiski Area High School
Beer could be sold at a convenience store across the street from Kiski Area High School if a request for a liquor license transfer is approved by the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. Anna K. Holdings, the transfer applicant, is applying for the license to sell malt and/or brewed alcoholic beverages...
Building the Valley: Moonlight Inn restaurant in Vandergrift stands test of timeVideo
Jim Baker of Carrick doesn’t mind taking a road trip for a hearty meal. Baker recently drove 40 miles to meet with former classmates from his 1973 Kiski Area High School graduating class for an evening of food and fellowship at Moonlight Inn in Vandergrift. He ordered a Franco’s Ribeye...
PennDOT approves installation of more visible, lighted yield sign at ‘confusing’ Leechburg intersection
Mayor Tony Roppolo is taking steps to improve safety at a busy intersection in downtown Leechburg. Roppolo met with PennDOT officials last week at the island intersection along Route 66 and Market Street. On Monday, they notified Roppolo that the installation of a lighted yield sign was approved to replace...
Good Friday Community Cross Walk stops at 10 locations in Leechburg to pray, plant crosses
The faithful flocked together Friday for a walk with a monumental message in Leechburg. The Good Friday Community Cross Walk, hosted by the Leechburg Ministerial Association, began at 2 p.m. on Main Street. It proceeded down Third Street and circled back through the business district on Market Street. About 30...
Allegheny Township officials to host town hall meeting on recycling
Allegheny Township never had a recycling program, but that could change depending on the outcome of a town hall meeting set for April 13. Supervisor Mike Korns said the board approved the formation of a recycling committee in August 2021. Committee members are Tonia Clark, Denise Conforti, Maryanne Griffin, Patrick...
Deer Lakes High School students set to present their spring musical ‘The Secret Garden’
A plague, British accents and garden delights are set to combine onstage in the upcoming spring musical production of “The Secret Garden” at Deer Lakes High School. Deer Lakes musical director and choir teacher Matt Derby selected the musical based on the classic 1911 novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett because...
Fox Chapel Girl Scout takes Gold Award project global to stress importance of social media literacy
A Fox Chapel teen has been recognized for helping children safely navigate the cyber and social media world. Lakshanya Rajaganapathi, 17, a junior at Fox Chapel Area High School, has been named a Gold Award Girl Scout, the highest achievement a Girl Scout can earn. Her Gold Award project, titled...
Religious-themed Easter children’s event returns outdoors at Leechburg church
There was egg-stra excitement in the air Wednesday afternoon along Main Street in downtown Leechburg. Cross Roads Community Presbyterian Church on Main Street welcomed youths of all ages to a free, Easter-themed Egg-Stravaganza event on the church grounds. The event began last year as a way to invite children in...
Leechburg Area School Board approves joining land bank in fight against blight
Leechburg officials are one step closer to joining the Armstrong County Land Bank. The Leechburg Area School Board voted 5-4 to approve joining the land bank at its regular meeting last month — a move applauded by Leechburg Mayor Tony Roppolo. “I’m thrilled the school board did pass it,” Roppolo...
Senior citizen forms nonprofit to help generations come together in Vandergrift
There is, or soon will be, a new nonprofit dedicated to helping seniors citizens and children in the Alle-Kiski community. Steve Jurovic, 85, of Vandergrift is the determined citizen behind the Kiski Valley Community Center. A retired structural designer and Army veteran, Jurovic grew up in Turtle Creek, lived in...
Daycation: Charming Volant in Lawrence County boasts 30 rural retail optionsVideo
A daycation to Volant offers a rural retail retreat with more than 25 independent shops and eateries along Main Street and the surrounding countryside. The tiny borough, home to about 125 residents, occupies land purchased from Native Americans in 1784. Its rural location once served as the hub for commerce...
Training seminar teaches police how to handle domestic violence situations
For Harrison police Officer Colton Stebler, responding to domestic violence is an almost daily occurrence. “Sometimes it’s multiple calls a day,” said Stebler, who has spent six years in law enforcement. The Alle-Kiski Area HOPE Center sponsored a free training seminar on domestic violence for area law enforcement officials Friday...
Pressed glass in Western Pennsylvania the topic of upcoming program at Heinz History Center
Before it was known for steel, before it was known for iron, Pittsburgh was known for glass. “Pittsburgh was the national center of the glass making industry beginning around 1820 and lasted more than 100 years, until the 1940s,” said Anne Madarasz, chief historian and curator at the Heinz History...
Bridge over Kiski River renamed after North Vandergrift baseball legend
A bridge spanning the Kiski River and connecting Vandergrift to Parks Township finally bears the name of a local hometown sports hero. After nearly 10 years of petitioning, the Vandergrift Bridge is now the Rudy Minarcin Memorial Bridge. “I had no idea my dad had such an impact on people,”...
Annual CDTCA fundraiser returns, promises fashion and fun in Fox Chapel
A revamped, fashion-themed fundraiser to benefit an Aspinwall Catholic school is returning from a two-year, covid-induced hiatus. The 2023 Sip & Style Fashion Fundraiser supporting Christ the Divine Teacher Catholic Academy is scheduled for May 7 at the Pittsburgh Field Club in Fox Chapel with the doors opening at 1:30...
New Kensington beefs up police department, hires 3 full-time officers
New Kensington officials are a step closer to one of their community policing goals: making officers more visible to residents. “People notice when our officers are visible and are out in the community, which we really like them to be,” said Mayor Tom Guzzo. “It’s important for us to get...
Community leaders unite to fight blight in Leechburg
Leechburg Mayor Tony Roppolo is aiming to improve the borough he serves by knocking down more blighted, abandoned buildings. “I’m concerned about the safety of the overall neighborhoods and potential downside and contamination spreading from there to adjacent properties,” Roppolo said. “It’s just an overall positive-positive across the board getting...
$267,000 grant steps up bridge replacement in Washington Township
Washington Township supervisors are grateful for state grants that make expensive bridge projects possible for small, rural communities like theirs. The township’s former Poke Run Church Road bridge was torn down this month to make way for a box culvert bridge. The new bridge is being paid for by a...
