Patrick Varine stories, Page 154
Greensburg counselor aims to connect clients with disabilities to the communityVideo
Toward the end of his nine years as a certified nursing assistant, Elliott Howe had begun noticing recurring back pain. “I enjoyed it, but I was having a lot of back issues because of the labor,” Howe, 30, of Greensburg, said of his work. About the same time, two of...
Washington Township man sets state record for largest green squash
It’s the great pumpkin, Charlie Brown! Or rather, it’s the great green squash! Whatever it is, it’s officially the largest of its kind in Pennsylvania — and it was grown in Washington Township by the Yohe family. “This is my fourth year growing them,” Jay Yohe said. “My father was...
Penn-Trafford Drama Guild courts cynical politics with ‘The Mouse That Roared’Video
A tiny, fictitious European-ish nation starts a phony war with the United States — in the hopes that they can immediately surrender and the Americans will pay to rebuild their country and economy. That might sound a bit political for a high school play, but it’s nothing new for the...
Pivik Elementary hosts Halloween paradeVideo
Halloween was so popular at Plum’s Pivik Elementary that the elementary school’s parade had to wind from the gym to the cafeteria so that everyone’s parents had a chance for photos. From the standard ghosts and goblins to inflatable T-Rexes and unicorns, there was no lack of creativity or cuteness....
Murrysville Cantata Choir to present 2nd annual ‘Patriotic Thanksgiving’ concert
The Murrysville Cantata Choir will present “A Patriotic Thanksgiving” concert Nov. 10 in First Presbyterian Church, Murrysville, and will also perform the concert a week later in Heinz Chapel in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. “We were very pleased by the warm reception that last year’s concert received and we look forward...
Franklin Regional youth football teams will play for two championships this weekend
When Big East Youth Football League teams get together for four championship games this weekend in Vandergrift, squads from Franklin Regional will have a chance to win half of them. The Franklin Area Midget Football Association’s 7/8 and 11/12 teams will go up against Gateway and McKeesport, respectively, on Saturday...
California lab develops test for ‘tick-borne relapsing fever’
The series of events that happen inside the human body when someone is bitten by a disease-carrying tick is immensely complex. Spiral-shaped bacteria from the Borrelia family can lead to a variety of medical conditions including the notoriously difficult-to-diagnose Lyme disease. A recent report in the medical journal Healthcare also...
State legislation would expand first-responder tax credit to the county level
This April, state Rep. Bob Brooks, R-Murrysville, donated $16,000 of his state salary to fire departments in his 54th District. Brooks wants to continue helping first responders with House Bill 1839, which would authorize counties to issue a property tax credit to active firefighters or emergency medical responders. The bill...
Franklin Regional Panther Foundation gets $18,000 donation, plans 2020 fundraisers
The Franklin Regional Panther Foundation has big plans for 2020, which were bolstered in late October by the announcement of an $18,000 donation from a local car dealership. Officials at the nonprofit foundation received the donation from Robert Thomasson, general manager for Spitzer Toyota in Monroeville. It will help fund...
Delmont library officials will break ground next month on new building
Delmont Public Library officials will break ground on a brand-new building on Nov. 16. Following a roughly four-year capital campaign, library officials raised just over $1 million through grants and community donations that will help fund a new, 4,150-square-foot library with multiple eco-friendly “green” features. “It’s amazing and phenomenal,” said...
Family offers $50,000 to match donations for new Delmont library
Delmont resident Bill Lendl and his family value their local public library and want to see it thrive. That’s why Lendl announced a matching fundraising challenge, where he agreed to match community donations up to $50,000, which will be put toward the building fund for the new Delmont Public Library....
‘Sinkhole Sundae’: Pittsburgh immediately memes the Port Authority bus
Once it was established that no one was injured Monday when a Port Authority bus fell partially into a sinkhole in downtown Pittsburgh during the morning commute, the jokes and memes started rolling in on social media. At least one local business, Millie’s Homemade Ice Cream, decided to take advantage...
YouTube video leads to criminal mischief charges at Murrysville golf course
Murrysville police arrested six men after a video surfaced online showing damage to golf carts and turf at the Rolling Fields Golf Club in Murrysville. The men have been charged with criminal mischief and conspiracy. Video posted to a YouTube channel called WTR, which police said stands for “White Trash...
Trafford electrician loved making wine, growing peppers
Domenick Cercone’s family didn’t want flowers or memorial donations their father’s memory. They had a simple request, placed in the final line of his obituary. “Please fry up some Italian hot peppers and enjoy them with a glass of your favorite wine,” it read. If Mr. Cercone were here, it’s...
Franklin Regional Middle School welcomes vets for annual Veterans Day assembly
For more than a quarter-century, members of a Franklin Regional Middle School eighth-grade performing arts class have welcomed veterans to the school annually to honor their valor and sacrifice at a Veterans Day assembly. That tradition will continue with this year’s assembly at both 8:30 and 10 a.m. Nov. 8...
Historical society rebuilding former one-room Murrysville schoolhouseVideo
About 175 years ago, a short stroll into the woods behind the Sampson-Clark Toll House in Murrysville would bring the one-room Murrysville schoolhouse into view. The original school was built around 1836. In 1929, the family who’d purchased the property discovered the school’s original foundation. By that time, it had...
Franklin Regional will hire part-time secretary to help with Right-To-Know requests
Franklin Regional officials will hire a part-time confidential secretary to help handle the increased number of Right-To-Know requests the district has received. The Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Act, also known as the Pennsylvania Sunshine Law, is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of...
Center for Lyme launches to lobby Congress for more research, treatment options
A new nonprofit launched this week will focus on lobbying Congress to expand funding for the development of new drugs and diagnostic tools for battling Lyme disease. The Center for Lyme Action launched on Tuesday in addition to hosting a congressional forum with lawmakers from Minnesota, New Jersey and California,...
Quick action by employees helps save Derry Township millwork buildingVideo
Quick action on the part of Appalachian Millwork employees and their neighbors at the A.J. Myers bus garage likely saved the custom millwork building early Thursday evening, officials say. Fire crews were called to the building, on Menasha Lane in Derry Township, just after 4:30 p.m., according to Westmoreland County...
Mister Rogers tribute record features Micky Dolenz, Vanessa Williams, othersVideo
Oldies lead singers, “American Idol” finalists, a former Miss America and even a prime-time reality-TV host are among those paying tribute to the music of Latrobe native Fred Rogers on a new record, “Thank You, Mister Rogers: Music & Memories.” Micky Dolenz of the Monkees, “Idol” finalist Kellie Pickler, Vanessa...
Franklin Regional crowns homecoming royalty
Seniors Kara Soles and Riley Smith earned their spot as royalty in the Class of 2020 at Franklin Regional’s homecoming celebration on Oct. 18. The Panther football team lost, 31-14, to McKeesport, but it was all smiles among the home crowd at halftime during the homecoming festivities....
Franklin Regional officials praise expanded student-assistance program
Franklin Regional support services Director Jennifer DiFulvio began seeing what she called a “pretty significant need” in student referrals across the district’s buildings in 2015. DiFulvio said counselors were “doing a large amount of work, meeting with students and connecting them with resources. We saw the need for some additional...
Pennsylvania House resumes guest chaplain invocation
On Monday, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives resumed its policy of having guest chaplains offer a session-opening prayer following an August reversal of a lower-court decision by a federal appeals court. In 2016, a group of atheists, agnostics, freethinkers and humanists filed suit, arguing against the practice of limiting prayers...
Pennsylvania representative introduces ‘heartbeat’ abortion bill
Freshman state Rep. Stephanie Borowicz, R-Centre/Clinton, introduced a so-called “heartbeat” abortion bill on Monday alongside Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Fayetteville. House Bill 1977 and its companion legislation, Senate Bill 912, would require all physicians to determine if a fetus has a heartbeat before performing an abortion and immediately stop if one...
Lyme group will host congressional lunch forum on tick-borne disease
In addition to a rally Tuesday in Harrisburg aimed at drawing attention to the treatment of tick-borne illness in Pennsylvania, the Center for Lyme Action will host a congressional lunch forum to push for more efforts to address what center officials call “an invisible epidemic.” “Lyme is a frustrating and...
