Quincey Reese stories, Page 30
Scottdale Fall Festival to kick off 150th birthday celebrations
The Scottdale Fall Festival is a 49-year tradition in the borough. And because 2024 is the sesquicentennial of the borough’s founding, this weekend’s festival has a second purpose — to kick start a year of birthday celebrations for the borough. This year’s festival is also slated to be one of...
Monongahela mother charged after death of infant son
A Monongahela mother was charged with homicide following the death of her 12-day-old son Tuesday. Monongahela City Police and Tri Community Ambulance Service were dispatched to the home of Darian Helmantoler, 22, of Monongahela, just before 9 a.m. Tuesday, according to court documents. The Washington County 911 Dispatch Center reported...
Penn Township Fall Festival to continue 17-year tradition
The 16th annual Penn Township Fall Festival aims to live up to its original motto this weekend. “Our original concept was to continue bringing the community together,” festival co-chair Robert Kuster said. Kuster and fellow co-chair Michael Ginsburg came up with the idea for a fall festival when the township...
Export distillery to lead 3rd Bushy Run ‘History Speaks’ event of year
Bushy Run Battlefield will host the White Valley Distilling Company at a speaker event next week as part of its History Speaks series. Jimmy Battaglia, owner of the Export distillery, will teach attendees the history and techniques of whiskey distilling using a hands-on approach, said Scott Perry, member of the...
Penn Township gym to host fundraiser for children with cancer
Gianna Wilkie wants her two passions — fitness and Penn State’s THON — to “stay collided” in a spin class fundraiser slated for this month. As a Penn State student, Wilkie was highly involved in THON, an organization that raises money and offers support to families facing childhood cancer. In...
Bedford County turnpike plaza to close gas pumps for eight-week maintenance project Monday
The gas pumps at the Pennsylvania Turnpike’s westbound North Midway Service Plaza in Bedford County will close on Monday. The pumps will be unavailable for about eight weeks while the fuel provider, 7-Eleven, replaces the underground fuel tanks, lines and dispensers, spokesperson Crispin Havener said in a statement. While there...
Aldi in Hempfield nears opening day
The Aldi grocery store announced for Hempfield in February will open in a week. The store, located at 6207 Route 30 in the Hempfield Plaza, will be open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily starting Sept. 14. Customers can arrive at 8:45 a.m. for the official grand opening of the...
Community Bands of Westmoreland County brings ‘familiar’ music for all ages to community college
The Community Bands of Westmoreland County has performed in Washington, D.C., Gettysburg, Lancaster County and at the Flight 93 Memorial, but their at-home shows have been limited. This weekend, the group will bring its set of classic rock, marches, show tunes and patriotic selections back home for a performance at...
Hanna’s Town to host fifth Antiques & Collectibles market in 50th season
Historic Hanna’s Town will host its fifth Antiques & Collectibles market of the season this weekend, continuing its 50th year of the tradition. The market, which started in 1974, will feature more than 100 vendors offering a variety of vintage items, ranging from $1 to hundreds of dollars in cost....
‘Truly honored and very humbled’: Penn-Trafford nurse selected as grand marshal for township fall festival
Lisa Popovich was selected as a grand marshal for the Penn Township Fall Festival in 2008 for her efforts to bring a new, inclusive playground to McCullough Elementary. But when her mother-in-law died unexpectedly the night before the parade, she had to step down. Now, 15 years later, Popovich will...
Blackthorne clubhouse owner attempts to resolve dispute with golf course, lawsuit states
The owner of the clubhouse in Penn Township’s Blackthorne Estates community made an effort to resolve a dispute with the golf course owner, according to amended court documents. An update to a lawsuit filed by the township in May indicates that the clubhouse owner, Jeannine Schemm, was “willing to allow...
Salem weighs sewage treatment options, amid resident concerns
Lisa Segina likes the rural feel of her Salem home. But, as the township considers joining a growing countywide sewage authority, Segina worries Salem will be subject to property development in the future. Since parting ways with the Crabtree Sewage Authority, the township has relied primarily on taps into the...
Scottdale man charged with robbery, receiving stolen property after McCandless bank heist
A Scottdale man has been arrested after, police say, he robbed a Huntington Bank in McCandless on Tuesday, according to a criminal complaint filed by McCandless police . Raymond H. Zwibel, of Scottdale, was charged with robbery and receiving stolen property. About $1,500 to $1,600 was stolen from the bank...
2 dead, 7 injured in Fayette County vehicle crash
Two people died and seven were injured early Sunday in a head-on vehicle crash in Wharton Township. The crash, which involved two vehicles, happened just before 5:30 a.m., said state police and Fayette EMS Chief Rick Adobato. Troopers said the two vehicles collided head-on when one crossed over the center...
Manor Community Day revives community tradition, engages all ages
Lois Gongaware was 5 when she first began volunteering with Manor’s Labor Day carnival. Saturday, she made the Manor Fire Department’s “famous fried dough” for Manor’s first Labor Day celebration in 21 years — and her son and grandson were there to help. The fire department hosted the Labor Day...
Hempfield lifts probation for West Point Volunteer Fire Department
The West Point Volunteer Fire Department will be taken off probation for the first time in more than two years following a unanimous vote by the Hempfield supervisors this week. Hempfield fire Chief Anthony Kovacic recommended the move. Kovacic said the department missed five calls over the last seven months....
Paws in the Park invites dogs, owners to Bushy Run
Dog owners and their four-legged companions will feel right at home during Bushy Run’s Paws in the Park event in September. Paws in the Park, which first took place in 2019, will host a variety of pet-oriented vendors, adoption agencies and activities from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 9...
Sage’s Army plans balloon release at Penn-Trafford on Drug Overdose Awareness Day
Sage’s Army will release balloons at Penn-Trafford High School this week in honor of Westmoreland County residents who have died from a drug overdose. The balloons will be released at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday — Drug Overdose Awareness Day — at Warrior Stadium in between Penn-Trafford’s junior varsity and varsity...
Manor mayor seeks to ‘unite the community’ in 1st Labor Day celebration in over 20 years
For the first time in 21 years, Manor will host its Labor Day carnival. The event used to be hosted by the borough’s fire department, said Mayor Ed Malinoski, but it ceased in 2002. For the past year, Malinoski has spearheaded efforts to revive the event, which he has dubbed...
Pittsburgh 3D Prints finds home in Harrison City storefront
Matt Lockmer had no plans to become a 3D printing expert. But when he received a 3D printer from his partner, Amanda, for Christmas in 2020, his curiosity took off. He rebranded his former computer repair and consulting business to fit his 3D printing interests. Since winter 2021, Lockmer has...
Turnpike commission announces location of Route 130 interchange
A turnpike interchange will be installed near the intersection of Nike Site Road, Sandy Hill Road, Pleasant Valley Road and Route 130 in Penn Township, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission announced. The interchange, which will fall between the Irwin and Pittsburgh interchanges, will be accessible for westbound and eastbound drivers. It...
Spiritwear store takes over former Buckets Boutique location in Harrison City
For Lori Allen, moving her spiritwear business from her home to a Harrison City storefront “just felt right.” Allen of Penn Township started LNJ Spiritwear out of her home 13 years ago to provide local school apparel to the community. Now, she is taking over the former Buckets Boutique space,...
‘It’s a small number of people who are very loud’: Local libraries grapple with book challenges, bans
Over the past few years, Librarian Sharon Coronado has been tested by select patrons who oppose the presence of certain voices in books at Ligonier Valley Library, particularly the voices of people of color and LGBTQ individuals. In one instance, Coronado recalls, a group of parents came into the library...
Penn Township ambulance ‘ahead of the curve,’ state report says
Penn Township’s ambulance service is “ahead of the curve” and could be a model for others across the state, according to a recent EMS report. The report took four to five months to complete, said presenter Ken Hellendall, a peer consultant for the state Department of Community and Economic Development....
‘Perfect timing’: Penn Township EMS, police save Murrysville man after motorcycle crash
If it were not for a Penn Township police officer stopping to investigate debris on the road and some damaged mailboxes, Steven Antolovich might not be alive. The police officer and three Penn Township ambulance personnel were honored by the Allegheny Health Network Friday for their lifesaving efforts. Antolovich, 29,...
