Patrick Varine stories, Page 83

Western Pennsylvania has seen an increase of more than 80% in antisemitic incidents, the highest figures recorded in the state since tracking began in 1979, according to a report from the Anti-Defamation League. ADL officials released the report this week highlighting 20 incidents in which antisemitism was considered a significant...

The latest round of plants added to Pennsylvania’s noxious weeds list reads like a directory of popular landscaping options. Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii), callery or Bradford pear trees (Pyrus calleryana) and Ravenna grass (Saccharum ravennae; Tripidium ravennae) have been staples of urban and particularly suburban landscaping for decades. All three...

When the next group of boxers organized by Monroeville promoter Derek Gionta enters the ring on May 7, it will include first women’s fights he has organized. That makes the venue – Murrysville SportZone on William Penn Highway – all the more appropriate. “It’s great because they have a women’s...

The covid-19 pandemic had several unplanned lessons for U.S. educators, who were required to adapt to a wide variety of “classroom settings” that blended in-person, virtual and asynchronous instruction. For some students and parents, learning from home was a stressful, unproductive experience that showed them the value of in-person education....

Colin Miller has pretty much had his fill when it comes to being killed off in Franklin Regional stage performances. “I’ve died multiple times in multiple shows, plus I was in ‘Clue’ my freshman year,” Miller said. So how about in his senior year, for the upcoming production of “The...

Submit news, briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Clay target team seeks new members The Franklin Regional Clay Target team is accepting new members for youth in grades 6-12. With support of the West Penn Sportsmen’s Club in Murrysville, and startup funding from the National Rifle Association, the team is...

A teen squirt gun game has resulted in several calls to Murrysville police in the past week. The “FR Assassins” game, which has its own Twitter feed, involves teens “eliminating” one another by ambushing a randomly chosen participant with a squirt gun. A video on the group’s Twitter page shows...

Four miles of Route 22 just east of Delmont are among the top 10 deadliest stretches of road in the state, according to recent data compiled by the personal finance website MoneyGeek.com. The 4.3-mile stretch of Route 22 — or William Penn Highway — between Scenic Drive and Hannastown Road...

Joe Sedlak is happy to be part of more than a quarter century of organizing a community cleanup day in memory of his father, former Monroeville Councilman Jack Sedlak. And as far as he’s concerned, this year’s clean-up day on April 30 can’t come soon enough. “This is probably as...

When Emilie Morton was younger, she can recall being obsessed with the cartoon character Dora the Explorer. “Just like her, I wanted to explore,” said Morton, 17, a junior at Yough Senior High School. That made it easy to channel a young person’s excitement and desire to emulate their heroes...

Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli said she views one of her primary responsibilities as doing “anything we can to stop the free flow of drugs through Westmoreland County and beyond.” According to Murrysville police Chief Tom Seefeld, a significant portion of that flow comes through the “Gateway to Westmoreland...

An Indiana University of Pennsylvania graduate now shares his name with a new species of dinosaur, discovered in 2017 in China’s Yunnan province. Molecular biologist John J. Kopchick is now the namesake of Yuxisaurus kopchicki, an armored dinosaur that is a distant cousin of the Stegosaurus. It lived between 174...

The graphic novel “Persepolis” might be back on the list of approved books for freshman honors English students at Franklin Regional, but the parents and residents pushing for its removal do not plan to stop there. “That, I believe, is only the tip of everything going on,” said Gretchen McGee....

Submit news, briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Garden club plant sale set for May 5 in Murrysville The Murrysville Garden Club will host its annual plant sale from noon until sellout May 5 at the Murrysville VFC No. 1 pavilion, 3235 Sardis Road, Murrysville. The club will be selling...

Murrysville officials will put plans to build an amphitheater in Murrysville Community Park on hold, and are in the process of returning a $300,000 state grant to pursue one double its size. “We got back together and decided to take another look at this,” Murrysville Chief Administrator Jim Morrison said....

When Export officials introduced the idea of a $100 annual license fee for rental property owners, it was met with a good amount of push-back from not just local landlords but also borough council members with rental units. Since it went into effect, however, some borough officials said they can...

While rock climbing has become increasingly popular at two state game lands in Fayette County, state game commission officials are restricting it to the animals that grew up there. The Pennsylvania Game Commission and state Fish & Boat Commission announced the closure of all rock-climbing activities at State Game Lands...

A Derry Borough man has been indicted by a federal jury on nine counts related to sexual exploitation of minors, U.S. Justice Department officials announced Tuesday. According to the indictment, Michael Wilson, 43, persuaded or coerced multiple minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct in order to create photos and...