Patrick Varine stories, Page 155
Lyme groups will rally in Harrisburg to support legislation extending insurance coverageVideo
Advocates for those affected by Lyme disease are headed to Harrisburg to support legislation that would provide for long-term treatment. The PA Lyme Resource Network and Dare 2B Tick Aware will host a rally at 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Pennsylvania State Capitol in support of House Bill 629, which...
Murrysville hires attorney to help develop ordinance addressing 5G antennas
Murrysville will hire a Pittsburgh attorney to help develop an ordinance regulating small wireless towers in the municipality. “Some municipalities have looked at it as a money grab, charging exorbitant permit fees,” Chief Administrator Jim Morrison told council members. “Others have chosen not to regulate it, which I do not...
Seton Hill dedicates Daniel J. Wukich School of NursingVideo
When the Sisters of Charity founded Seton Hill College in 1918, they placed an emphasis on the sciences being taught to female students. And while the Sisters did have a nursing education program at the former Pittsburgh Hospital, Seton Hill University never offered a formal nursing degree program. That changed...
Civil War correspondence discovered in Churchill attic
Carleton Young was going through boxes in his parents’ Churchill attic in 2006 when he made quite a discovery. “Inside the wooden box was an enormous collection of about 250 letters written home by two Vermont brothers as they fought in the Civil War,” Young said. “They were members of...
Dedicated Nursing Associates expansion could include traffic improvements in Murrysville
Murrysville council amended its traffic improvement plan Wednesday to accommodate development along Route 22 that includes an expansion of the Dedicated Nursing Associates business. “Improvements will be necessary to Manor Road and possibly Route 22,” Chief Administrator Jim Morrison told council members. “A right-hand turning lane on Route 22 westbound...
Fairview Park kicks off capital campaign, marks 75th anniversary in 2020
In 1945, a group of black church leaders from Allegheny and Westmoreland counties set out to create a place where they could come together and enjoy themselves. With segregation restricting the places African-Americans could go, the Monongahela Valley Sunday School Association created Fairview Park in Salem Township. At one time,...
Mercury to transit between the Earth, sun in November
The planets will align on Nov. 11 this year. Well, two of them, at least. Mercury will transit between the Earth and the sun on Veteran’s Day this year. “When we have a ‘transit’ of the moon, we call it a solar eclipse,” said Ken Kobus of the Amateur Astronomers...
Penn Hills, Riverview choirs will join Pittsburgh Concert Chorale for ‘Pittsburgh Sings!’
For the eighth year in a row, the Pittsburgh Concert Chorale will be joined by local high school choirs for “Pittsburgh Sings!” This year’s concert, on Sunday, Oct. 27, will feature choirs from the Penn Hills and Riverview school districts. “‘Pittsburgh Sings’ is always a special afternoon of music,” said...
Murrysville Council delays vote on renewing animal-control contract with Hoffman Kennels
Murrysville delayed a vote Wednesday night on the two-year renewal of an animal-control contract with Hoffman Kennels. Gary Hoffman, who owns and operates the Delmont-based business, proposed a $10 hike on individual calls as well as his monthly service fee. Hoffman also proposed reducing the number of days he patrols...
Bedbugs found at Penn Middle School in Penn Township
Bedbugs have been found at Penn Middle School in the Penn-Trafford School District. District officials alerted parents Wednesday that a student was found with bedbugs on their body. No additional bugs were found in the student’s belongings. When a professional exterminator and the district’s maintenance director began searching classrooms frequented...
Monessen man lived a life full of passion for music
When John Paterra of Speers was performing as a vocalist with the Graham Grubb Orchestra, he remembers chatting occasionally with the group’s bass player, Ed Dacko. “He played trombone and later he played bass fiddle,” Paterra said. “He was a character.” Edward Paul Dacko of Monessen died Friday, Oct. 11,...
Classes resume at Westmoreland County Community College’s Murrysville campus
Classes at the Westmoreland County Community College’s Murrysville campus were cancelled through 3 p.m. Tuesday but will resume at 6 p.m., according to the school’s Twitter feed. “Our facilities director has contacted the gas company and to the best of my knowledge they’re on-site looking for a potential leak,” said...
Fish, game commissions warn of spoof license websites
With hunting season ramping up, state Fish and Boat Commission and Game Commission officials are warning anglers and hunters about online scams related to buying a license. Both commissions have received reports of consumers purchasing “licenses” through third-party websites not connected to the state. “Even though consumers didn’t suspect the...
Penn-Trafford senior named finalist at international short-film competitionVideo
When Ryan Mickey of Penn Township was in middle school, he remembers getting together with his cousins during the holidays. “We had our little iPods, and we’d make these little two-minute videos,” Mickey said. The 18-year-old’s early interest in multimedia is paying off: Mickey’s three-minute short film, “Mirror Image,” was...
Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh will premiere Police drummer’s oratorioVideo
Stewart Copeland wasn’t satisfied simply being the drummer for international pop sensations The Police. Following the band’s breakup in the mid-’80s, Copeland went on to compose film and television soundtracks, collaborated in a band with Phish’s Trey Anastasio and Primus’s Les Claypool (the supremely weird Öysterhead project) and recorded music...
Franklin Regional readies for homecoming this FridayVideo
Mid-October means homecoming for many of the high schools in western Pennsylvania. Franklin Regional will celebrate homecoming at its Friday night football game against McKeesport. But first, the district will mark the occasion with its annual homecoming bonfire. This year’s bonfire is set for 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. in...
Franklin Regional students balance gore, goofiness with production of ‘Dracula’Video
Franklin Regional Thespians Club students are working to strike a fine balance between the hard-R frights of Francis Ford Coppola’s vision of Dracula and the occasional unintentional camp of the original Bela Lugosi film. It’s not always possible, according to director Richard Sunny. “There are some parts of the script...
Murrysville police, Franklin Regional partner to emphasize school bus safety
Drivers who are too busy or careless to stop for a school bus may find themselves on the wrong end of a pricey traffic ticket later this month. Murrysville police will partner with the Franklin Regional School District to promote National School Bus Safety Week from Oct. 21 to 25....
Plenty of art shows coming to Murrysville this fall
Art enthusiasts will have more than enough places to go in Murrysville during the next month, with art shows and standing exhibits all over the municipality. On Oct. 18 and 19, the Murrysville Woman’s Club will sponsor its annual art show at Redstone Highlands. It will run from 10 a.m....
Murrysville historian, Freeport Theater Festival founder to receive St. Clair Awards
Local historian Charles Hall is one of two recipients of this year’s Arthur St. Clair Historic Preservation Awards, presented by the Westmoreland Historical Society. Hall has documented the history of the Murrysville area through books and articles. His writing has been published by the Murrysville Historical Preservation Society and elsewhere....
Delmont mulls options for Shields Farm cabin
Difficulty finding suitable, period-appropriate lumber and the cost of doing so has Delmont officials considering their options when it comes to the log cabin on East Pittsburgh Street. Borough council has been seeking to replace several old, damaged logs on the cabin for a couple years, but the road has...
Litter of kittens, cat abandoned behind Hempfield shopping center near Route 30Video
A litter of kittens and an adult cat were abandoned during the weekend near a large trash bin in a Hempfield shopping complex. The people accused of leaving the animals behind were caught on camera and investigators are working to learn their identities. The animals were found behind the Greengate...
Traffic-light control box damaged in Murrysville crash
Murrysville police are continuing to advise residents and motorists to avoid the intersection of Route 22 and Berlin Farm Road after a crash on Tuesday damaged a control box containing the operating equipment and power source for the intersection’s traffic light. “It is a very extensive repair,” department officials responded...
Plenty of spooky fun planned for Murrysville, Delmont and Export residents
Looking for some spooky fun this Halloween season? There are plenty of seasonal events taking place in the Star’s coverage area. Here are just a few: • Kings Family Restaurant off of Route 66 in Delmont will host a trunk-or-treat event from 6-7 p.m. on Oct. 21. There is no...
Florists plan to ‘Petal It Forward’ to spread positivityVideo
Generally speaking, the floral industry is invested in making people happy. On Oct. 23, a handful of flower shops in western Pennsylvania will open with the goal of making as many people happy as possible, helping the Society of American Florists to promote “Petal It Forward.” “We’ll give out two...
