Patrick Varine stories, Page 42
Franklin Regional students, staff raise money to fight pediatric cancer with Mini-THONVideo
Franklin Regional students and staff were dancing the day away on Wednesday at the school’s first Mini-THON, modeled on the wildly successful Penn State fundraiser that raises money for pediatric cancer patients and families through care, support and research. This is the first year for the Franklin Regional Mini-THON Club,...
Former Allegheny County DA detective has assault charge reduced to harassment citation
A former Allegheny County detective initially charged with simple assault and harassment after being accused of punching two women at an Export bar last year instead was given a lesser summary citation in court this week. Melanie Jones, spokeswoman for Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli, said the initial charges...
Jeannette residents continue to rally around family torn by blaze that killed 4 children and their father
Lisa Peltier of Jeannette was not surprised to see hundreds of people gathered Monday evening outside the American Legion on Fifth Street. “It’s a very tight-knit community,” said Peltier, who grew up in the city. “People will do anything for each other here.” That was evident at a fundraiser for...
Netflix series ‘3 Body Problem’ poses some big sci-fi questionsVideo
I recently finished the first book of Liu Cixin’s science-fiction trilogy, which shares its title, “The 3 Body Problem,” with the Netflix sci-fi series that debuted last week. And while this is only the first season, and I can’t say with certainty that the show will go where the books...
Solar eclipses show up across the entertainment spectrum
From the birth of a carnivorous houseplant to a time traveler using the knowledge of modern science to his advantage, the phenomenon of the solar eclipse has played a role across the pop culture spectrum from cinema to song and beyond. Here are a few examples. ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’...
Pennsylvania Game Commission managing reintroduced bobwhite quail population
In the five years that Alex Busato has been keeping his eyes peeled for local birds, he’s seen perhaps two bobwhite quails. State game commission officials are hoping to change that. Once found in all 67 of Pennsylvania’s counties in the mid-1800s, the little 10-inch-tall bird has been pushed out...
Murrysville area: Used book sale donations, library events and more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Used book sale donations The Murrysville Community Library and local branch of the American Association of University Women will host their annual used book sale April 25-27, and are collecting donations for the sale beginning March 25. Gently used books, particularly for...
4-vehicle crash on West Carson Street sends 4 to the hospital
Three adults and a child were taken to local hospitals in stable condition Thursday night after a four-vehicle crash on Pittsburgh’s South Side, according to police. Police, fire and EMS responded to the 1400 block of West Carson Street around 6:45 p.m., where a driver reportedly lost control of their...
Environmental groups scrutinize Beaver Run Reservoir water usage in the wake of drought watch
The recent drought watch in Westmoreland County caused residents, water authority officials and businesses to take a closer look at their water consumption as Beaver Run Reservoir dipped lower than usual during the summer and fall before being replenished by recent precipitation. Nonprofit citizen environmental group Protect P-T began taking...
Western Pennsylvania students learn about manufacturing through video contest
Bella Paulone and her eighth-grade classmate Alishba Raja didn’t have much of a frame of reference for what modern manufacturing looks like. “Before this, we’d have thought it was just a bunch of factory workers picking things up, assembling them and putting them down,” said Raja, 13, of Murrysville. Thanks...
Community bands converge on Murrysville for free annual festival
A classic John Philip Sousa march. Variations on the “Scarborough Fair” theme. Music inspired by the “Lord of the Rings” books. Musicians from all over the Pittsburgh area will perform music from all over the map at the 18th annual Three Rivers Community Band Festival, set for April 6 in...
Murrysville council works to refine voluntary conditions for proposed auto-body shop
Murrysville council members continued to work through a list of voluntary conditions for a national auto-body chain looking to build a shop just east of the Manordale Farms neighborhood. Over the past few months, council members have had to strike a balance between the private property rights of Caliber Collision,...
Monroeville native doesn’t let brain tumor stop career in law enforcement
Luke Skledar isn’t one to back down from a challenge. He was a skilled hockey player in high school and achieved a second-degree black belt in martial arts. The Monroeville native, 22, took on another challenge after graduating from Gateway High School in 2020 — becoming the first member of...
Murrysville teen competes at regional ski championships in Vermont
During the recent rash of t-shirt weather, Becket Pottinger has been seeking snow anywhere he can find it. Pottinger, 15, of Murrysville, recently qualified for the U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s U16 Eastern Championships, taking place this week in Burke, Vt. Pottinger is one of six teens in Pennsylvania to earn...
March for Parks will raise money for park, trail projects
For more than two decades, Westmoreland County residents who use and enjoy the area’s parks have taken part in the spring March for Parks, to raise money for projects across the county’s park system. This year’s event will be March 23, 10 a.m. at Twin Lakes Park east of Greensburg....
Local, international dance companies offer differing takes on ‘Alice in Wonderland’
When Alice makes her journey to the fictional Wonderland in Lewis Carroll’s 1865 children’s novel, the world is a wild reflection of what she has known up to that point as reality. The story’s underlying theme of a journey of self-discovery makes it ripe for interpretation. Two of those interpretations...
Xylazine’s role in Westmoreland overdoses continues to surge, coroner’s report shows
A veterinary sedative that can’t be counteracted with anti-opioid medication contributed to 42% more deaths in 2023 than the year before, continuing a troubling trend even as Westmoreland County’s overall overdose figures decline. Accidental drug overdose deaths continued to drop in 2023, but the number of deaths caused by xylazine...
Get your St. Patrick’s Day playlist readyVideo
Grab your best green hat and pour a Guinness — although, were it me, we’d be pouring a Murphy’s Irish Stout, but I digress — and let’s put together an appropriate playlist for St. Patrick’s Day. Being that the holiday falls on a Sunday this year, let’s start the occasion...
Nonprofit acting troupe will hold auditions in Unity
Storyz Studios, a nonprofit theater company, will host auditions for its upcoming production of a murder mystery, “Whispers in a Dark Manor: A Whodunnit.” Auditions will take place March 21 from 7-8:30 p.m. and March 23 from 2-4 p.m. at the SpringHill Suites, 115 Arnold Palmer Drive in Unity. Auditions...
Murrysville area: Chess tournament, chili cook-off, Woman’s Club fashion show and more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Upcoming Murrysville library events • March 23: Children’s chess tournament at 9:30 a.m. The competition will have two divisions, grades 1-4 and grades 5-8. First- and second-place winners will advance to the county competition on April 13. Participants are asked to arrive...
Delmont to pursue litigation against detention pond contractor
Delmont council members authorized their solicitor to take legal action against a Latrobe construction company hired to perform work in the Apple Hill neighborhood. Council contracted with Butz Masonry and Excavation in 2021 for a detention pond project between Dogwood and Stotler drives. Nearby residents, who were initially upset at...
Monroeville area: Senior driving class, free Easter dinner, car show, more
Email event listings and news briefs to pvarine@ triblive.com or bpoole@triblive.com. Senior driver class Juniper Village at Forest Hills will host a Seniors for Safe Driving class April 16 that offers participants a chance to receive a discount on their car insurance. Drivers 55 and older can lower their car...
2 injured in Route 30 crash in Ligonier Township
Two drivers were injured Thursday morning when their vehicles collided on Route 30 in Ligonier Township. A man who was driving an SUV was taken by ambulance to Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center in Johnstown with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Ligonier Valley Police Sgt. James Friscarella. He said a woman who...
Delmont moves ahead with sewage line relocation project
Delmont officials are moving ahead with plans to address a sewage-related state consent order, after winning a court battle to condemn and secure roughly a half-acre of property in Salem Township. As part of a consent order finalized with the state Department of Environmental Protection in April 2020, borough officials...
Historical program will focus on former Turtle Creek Valley Railroad line
The Export Historical Society will host a free program March 24 on the history of the Turtle Creek Valley Railroad. Younger residents will recognize it — or at least the section running through Export — as the Westmoreland Heritage Trail, but originally the line ran west to Saunders Station in...
