Patrick Varine stories, Page 152
New Franklin Regional school board members will be sworn in Dec. 5
Newly elected Franklin Regional school board members will be sworn in at the board’s December meeting. The Dec. 5 meeting is shifted from the traditional Monday time slot because district staff and officials still will be on Thanksgiving break. The meeting will encompass board reorganization as well as both the...
2 injured in Saltsburg Road crash in Washington TownshipVideo
Saltsburg Road was closed late Friday night near Pfeffer Road in Washington Township after two people were injured in a crash that left one car on its roof. Washington Township police said they believe one of the two cars involved was pulling out from Pfeffer Road into the eastbound lanes...
‘Wings Over Westmoreland’ unveiled at Overly’s Country Christmas openingVideo
The Westmoreland Cultural Trust added another angel — or at least its wings — to Overly’s Country Christmas in Mt. Pleasant Township this year. The trust kicked off its “Wings Over Westmoreland” initiative Friday night, coinciding with the opening of Overly’s annual holiday display, which paints the Westmoreland County Fairgrounds...
Westmoreland ‘Science Scholars’ will compete for $12,000 in Pitt-Greensburg scholarships
Students from five Westmoreland County schools will compete Monday for $12,000 in scholarship money to attend the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg at the college’s Science Scholar Showdown. The four-member teams will put their scientific knowledge and teamwork to the test as they participate in three rounds of competition. Students...
Monthly Honky Tonk Jukebox show coming to BloomfieldVideo
It’s easy to tell how much fun the monthly Honky Tonk Jukebox show is just by watching the members of the 339 Band rehearse at Liveburgh Studios in Glenshaw. As the band shuffles through Merle Travis’ hilarious ‘“Shut Up and Drink Your Beer” — “Shut up!/And drink your beer/There’s a...
‘Santa at Sardis’ moves annual holiday celebration to Murrysville’s newest park
Murrysville’s annual “Night of Lights” holiday celebration is a dream for those in attendance, with carols, hot chocolate and visits with Santa. But it was a potential nightmare for public safety officials, attracting thousands and taking place near one of the municipality’s busier intersections, Old William Penn Highway and Sardis...
Franklin Regional band returns to Macy’s parade for the first time since 2009Video
Franklin Regional students Amanda Zegarelli and JoJo Huczko have a name for the piano they will push 2-1/2 miles along New York City streets in the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade: “Persephone Priscilla Zegarelli Huczko.” “It’s so we can call her by her full name when she misbehaves,” said senior...
Family holds second annual fundraiser for son’s scleroderma nonprofit
Laurie Churma of Washington Township was joined by friends and family Tuesday as they paid tribute to her son Kody and raised money to fund research into the disease that took his life. In less than two years, Kody Churma went from a healthy young man to one who was...
Latrobe woman loved travel, history
One year in the late 1990s, Olive Hostovich learned she’d be hosting the extended family for Christmas in Latrobe. “We came from all over the country,” said her daughter Laura Braun, of Glenmoore, Chester County. “California, from Texas; we lived in Philadelphia; my sister lived in Williamsport; aunts, uncles; it...
Ski slopes at Seven Springs, Hidden Valley to open this weekendVideo
A late Thanksgiving means an early start to the ski season at Seven Springs and Hidden Valley resorts. Sort of. “Typically the past few years, we’ve been opening on Black Friday (Nov. 23, 2018, and Nov. 24, 2017), which we’ve called ‘White Friday,’” said Katie Buchan, spokeswoman for Seven Springs,...
Illinois man’s hacking conspiracy tied to 2016 Franklin Regional cyberattack
An Illinois man was sent to in prison last week for his role in providing access to illegal “booter” services, including one said to have been used in a 2016 hacking attack on the Franklin Regional School District and several other regional computer systems. Sergiy P. Usatyuk, 20, of Orland...
Cops: McKees Rocks woman tried to smuggle drugs into Somerset prison
A McKees Rocks woman has been charged with attempting to smuggle drugs into a Somerset County prison on Nov. 14. State police charged Christine Guy, 26, of McKees Rocks, with felony counts of drug possession and bringing contraband into a prison, along with related misdemeanors, after they say she tried...
Sunday hunting bill heads to Gov. Wolf’s desk
A bill that would allow hunting on up to three Sundays per year in Pennsylvania is headed to Gov. Tom Wolf’s desk. Senate Bill 147 would provide for hunting on three Sundays annually: one during rifle deer season, one during the statewide archery deer season and one determined by the...
Murrysville teen sets multiple records at powerlifting competition
Weightlifters often pursue “gains” in a variety of categories. For 15-year-old James Swift, of Murrysville, those gains have come at quite a rapid pace. He began working with trainers at Dean’s Fitness on Old William Penn Highway in July 2018. Less than a year later, the Franklin Regional freshman won...
Groundbreaking held for new Delmont library
Delmont native Bill Lendl can remember his father, Milt, placing the first book on the first shelf of the former borough library, on Delmont Street at the time. “My father loved reading, and my family does as well,” Lendl said. That would explain why the Lendls donated about a quarter...
Tax credits will help Indiana County demolitions, renovations
Tax credits for two redevelopment projects in Indiana County will pave the way for public space and a renovated community center. A $56,250 tax credit will go to the Friends of Blairsville Communities group for the demolition of the G.C. Murphy building at the corner of Market and Stewart streets...
Hempfield volunteer fair recruits quite the hype man: Andrew McCutchenVideo
When you’re trying to get your first-ever student volunteer fair off the ground, it’s always helpful to have good collaborators, people who can get others excited for the event. Landing former Pittsburgh Pirate Andrew McCutchen as a spokesman, for example, is a pretty good way to draw attention to Hempfield...
Penn Middle Drama students will stage ‘A Christmas Story’
This holiday season at Penn Middle School, not one but two Ralphies will be at risk of shooting their eye out with that Red Ryder air rifle. Students at the school will stage the classic holiday tale of “A Christmas Story,” and interest in the play was so strong that...
Rewind Reuse Center in Export aims to turn odds and ends into arts and craftsVideo
Val Paulisick of Murrysville is a maker. She sees a box full of paper scraps and odds and ends, and begins imagining the possibilities. “I want to save things from ending up in the landfill,” she said. She wants others to do the same, which is why she opened the...
Murrysville receives nearly $300K grant to help fund amphitheater at community park
The plan to continue developing Murrysville Community Park got a shot in the arm on Friday with the announcement of a sizable grant from the Community Conservation Partnerships Program. The municipality will receive $299,800 for the development of an amphitheater, parking area, pedestrian walkway and more at the park off...
Penn-Trafford students prepare to air ‘Wishes for Warriors’ telethonVideo
Penn-Trafford High School’s third annual Make-a-Wish telethon has already granted one child’s wish, even though it won’t be broadcast until Dec. 19. “We have already raised more than $5,000 in less than two weeks,” said Steve Vinton, high school video production teacher. “Last year we raised $60,000 and granted 13...
Hempfield’s World of Values packs 10,000 meals for the hungryVideo
Each year at its two annual trade shows, Nationwide Marketing Group officials challenge their network of independent retailers to pack as many meals as possible for delivery to hungry children around the country and world. This year, in partnership with No Child Hungry and as part of the National Week...
HUD: Homeless veteran numbers drop this year in Pennsylvania
Veteran homelessness in Pennsylvania dropped by nearly 13% in 2019, according to the annual Homeless Assessment Report by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Those numbers mirror the national trend, which HUD officials say continues to decline. “In Pennsylvania, we’ve made great strides over the years in our efforts...
Mt. Pleasant nurse loved volunteering, telling a great story
Patricia Miller wanted to take care of others, whether it was her medical career, volunteering at the local food bank or caring for her mother. “She went to school at Westmoreland County Community College and wanted to be a nurse because she had seen the love and care our family...
Norwin Play It Forward Fund plans 10th annual ‘Wind-Up, Wine Down’ event
The Ziemski family of North Huntingdon has good reason to give back to their community. “When we were young and our kids were in school, my husband lost his job and someone anonymously paid the balance of our children’s parochial school tuition,” said Paula Ziemski. “We never found out who...
