Patrick Varine stories, Page 61
Trio of Murrysville musicians headed to Portugal with Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra
A.J. Schmidt doesn’t remember why he first chose to take up flute at the end of his third-grade year. But his father does. “He came home at nine years old and said, ‘I can make a sound on it, and it’s pretty,’” said Schmidt’s father Judd, who is getting ready...
Monroeville native to open restaurant, catering business at William Penn Place
When Debbie Hoffner was 16 years old, she started a job in the dietary department at Forbes Regional Hospital. She’s worked in the food-service industry on and off for four decades, and has been told often that she should start her own food business. Next month, with the help of...
Murrysville area: Roller derby, acapella performance, local live music and more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Roller derby at Palmer Imaging Arena The WestCo Roller Derby team will host its third match of the season at 7 p.m. June 24 at Palmer Imaging Arena in Salem. The team will take on Iron Mountain Roller Derby out of Cumberland,...
Irwin man charged with homicide by vehicle, DUI in connection with fatal ’22 Churchill crash
An Irwin man turned himself in to authorities after he was charged with homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, in connection with a fatal 2022 crash, according to police. Troy Modrak, 28, of Irwin, surrendered to county detectives on Thursday after being charged with homicide by vehicle while...
Delmont awards paving contract for work on Suncrest Drive
Delmont council members awarded a $74,000 contract for paving on Suncrest Drive this summer but opted not to include several additions, citing prohibitive costs for materials. “The pricing this year is at an all-time high,” borough engineer Kevin Brett told council at its June 13 meeting. “Locally, they’re slowing production...
Roller derby team goes up against Maryland squad in Salem
The WestCo Roller Derby team will host its third match of the season at 7 p.m. June 24 at Palmer Imaging Arena in Salem. The team will take on Iron Mountain Roller Derby out of Cumberland, Md. “Both teams have worked hard to rebuild coming out the pandemic. For some...
Delmont library receives $20,000 grant to expand autism services
Delmont Public Library officials will lead a community conversation about autism, and the feedback they receive will be used in conjunction with a $20,000 grant to provide resources and programs for those affected. “This grant requires you to talk with members of the community you’re looking to serve, about what...
Hempfield Area School Board may vote on book-challenge, acquisition policies at next meeting
After nearly 18 months of meetings, debates and changes, Hempfield Area School Board members sent two controversial policies back to their policy committee for additional tweaks. The policies are centered around the purchase of resource materials, with a particular focus on books available in the district’s libraries, and the procedure...
Air Force Thunderbirds return to Westmoreland with new show
For Westmoreland Air Show attendees who caught the Air Force Thunderbirds when they last visited in 2017, the F-16 pilots have some new moves in store. “During 2020, when all of the airshows got canceled, we spent the whole year redesigning our show,” said Maj. Jake Impellizzeri of Cincinnati, who...
Girl Scouts donate sensory board to Murrysville libraryVideo
Descriptions of the Girl Scout Bronze Award encourage participants to find a project that can “make a difference in their community.” For Troop 16380’s Minnoli Bhatt, an idea sprung immediately to mind. “I have a friend at school with intellectual and development disabilities,” said Bhatt, 10, of Murrysville. “He doesn’t...
State museum commission grants will help preserve history at West Overton
It’s possible that part of a Keystone Historic Preservation Grant from the state may go toward repairing an actual keystone, depending on what needs to be fixed at the West Overton Village & Museum in East Huntingdon. Most of the $100,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission will...
‘The Boxcar Children’ brings long-running children’s book series to Pittsburgh stage
Author Gertrude Chandler Warner wrote the first book in what would become her “Boxcar Children” series in 1924. It would go on to spawn more than 100 books with the plucky children typically solving mysteries. Prime Stage Theatre’s Sprouts program will bring the stories to life on stage as they...
Export officials look toward summer paving, construction projects
Export officials will use part of their allocation of federal pandemic funding to upgrade the borough’s winter salt storage. “We’ve been talking about doing it for years,” said solicitor Wes Long. The borough has just under $45,000 in American Rescue Plan funding, the first half of a proposed two-part federal...
Murrysville area: Garden club scholarships, ninja workshop, local live music and more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Garden club award scholarships The Murrysville Garden Club awarded its 2023 scholarships at its monthly meeting on May 25. The Hummingbird Award went to Sydney Jackson, a Franklin Regional graduating senior. Jackson was a counselor at Rock Bridge last summer, and she...
Export will expand park programs this summer
Export will expand staff this year at its summer playground program, and the borough’s local business association will trial an outdoor film series there. Councilwoman Melanie Litz secured council’s approval to add a fourth staff member to the daily group supervising children at the annual program, which operates Mondays, Wednesdays...
Murrysville council sets public hearing date for injection well ordinance
Murrysville council will hold a public hearing in July to take community input on its proposed injection well ordinance. Injection wells accept the wastewater, brine and byproducts of unconventional drilling operations, releasing the fluid into porous underground rock formations. In much the same way as the fracking ordinance Murrysville put...
Murrysville staple Dick’s Diner under new ownership
Vasil Oblockovich’s work day starts about 3 a.m., when he turns on the lights in the kitchen at Dick’s Diner and starts a full day of pastry baking. Oblockovich is part of a new team at the longtime Murrysville restaurant, which opened in 1946 and marked its 75th anniversary in...
Delmont library to dedicate ‘Neighborhood Porch’ to former librarian
Delmont Public Library officials will unveil “Denni Grassel’s Neighborhood Porch” at 6 p.m. June 12. The porch is named for former librarian Denni Grassel, and will serve as a space for patrons to sit and relax on furniture donated by members of the library board, play chess or checkers donated...
American Red Cross: Shortfall of blood donations last month
American Red Cross officials said they experienced a “concerning shortfall” in blood donations last month, collecting 26,000 fewer donations than needed to meet patient needs in May. World Blood Donor Day is June 14, and Red Cross officials are offering a $10 gift card for donors through the end of...
Father of New Kensington cop killer accused of making sexual advances on minors in Latrobe
The father of a man on death row for killing a New Kensington police officer was arrested Sunday after, police said, the 52-year-old made sexual advances toward two 16-year-old girls in Latrobe. Gregory Baucum Jr. was charged with two counts each of unlawful contact with a minor, interference with custody...
Arrest warrant issued for Murrysville man accused of stealing Steelers QB Kenny Pickett’s SUV
An arrest warrant has been issued for the 60-year-old man accused of taking Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett’s SUV from a Monroeville auto dealership in late May. Christopher Carter, 60, of Railroad Lane in Murrysville failed to show up for a preliminary hearing Monday morning in District Judge Jeffrey Herbst’s...
1 taken to hospital following 3-truck crash on Route 30 in North Huntingdon
The eastbound lanes of Route 30 in North Huntingdon were closed for more than an hour Monday near Colony Road while emergency crews responded to a three-truck crash, according to Westmoreland County dispatchers. Responders were called to the scene at 12:30 p.m. A county 911 supervisor said one person was...
Dry conditions expected to continue in Western Pennsylvania
Wildfire season in Pennsylvania typically runs from March to May, when the lack of tree canopy means more dry brush on the ground. But with a forecast that contains barely any rain over the next 10 to 14 days, the dry season is getting an extension in the Greater Pittsburgh...
Duquesne grad student studies intersection of ‘craft, church and a life of faith’ in Appalachia
When Gwendolen Jackson was growing up in Bridgeport, Ohio, across the river from Wheeling, W.Va., along the northwestern edge of Appalachia, it seemed like everyone she knew did some sort of crafting. She also grew up in a churchgoing family, and that seemed to go hand in hand with crafting....
Scottdale man taken into custody after police standoff in Upper Tyrone
State police took a Scottdale man into custody Sunday night following an hourslong standoff in Upper Tyrone. State police responded about 7:45 p.m. Sunday to a home on Dexter Road for a report of a man who had discharged two rounds from a pistol during a verbal argument, according to...
