Tanisha Thomas stories, Page 6
Sinkhole on Saxonburg Boulevard reduces stretch in West Deer to single lane
Part of Saxonburg Boulevard in West Deer is reduced to a single lane after a large sinkhole opened between Russellton-Dorseyville Road and McClure Road. West Deer police posted on Facebook Monday morning cautioning motorists to be careful driving on Saxonburg Boulevard in that area. The sinkhole is in the northbound...
Leechburg Area gets $38K grant for additional social, emotional and mental health services
Leechburg Area School District Superintendent Tiffany Nix is fully aware of the challenges facing students in this era of the covid pandemic. At a school board meeting last week, she related the story of a student having a mental and emotional breakdown during class. “It is real, and it is...
Building the Valley: Barnyard Coffee & Creamery brings ice cream and more to No Offseason Sports complex in Russellton
What started as a vision for an ice cream shop evolved into a coffee shop and cafe, Barnyard Coffee & Creamery, offering experimental taste twists at the No Offseason Sports complex in Russellton. Barnyard owner Holly Johnston, a Richland resident and Shaler native, worked for years as a sales rep...
Leechburg High School baseball field to remain unplayable rest of season
The Leechburg High School baseball team will not be able to play games on its home turf for the rest of the season. The announcement came during an April 13 school board meeting as the school’s solicitor Amy Schrempf gave a status update on the condition of the field, which...
New bike shop wheels its way into Leechburg
Market Street in Leechburg continues to grow, as a new shop has wheeled its way along the street. Allegheny Township resident Tim Carson opened his new bike shop, Spokes, in February. Customers can browse a range of bikes, from trail, mountain, women’s, kid’s and e-bikes. Bike repairs and accessories are...
Dillner Family Farms in West Deer becomes Allegheny County’s 40th preserved farmland
Dillner Family Farms in West Deer has become the 40th farm in Allegheny County to be protected by a conservation easement. Following the state Department of Agriculture’s decision in October to support the farm, the Allegheny County Conservation District and county Agriculture Lands Preservation Board made the preservation official Monday....
Teen shot in Stowe Township expected to survive
A 15-year-old boy is expected to survive after being shot Wednesday in Stowe Township. The Allegheny County Police Homicide Unit responded to reports of a shooting at 3:50 p.m. on Ninth Street and Bennwood Avenue, according to a press release. Police said first responders found the victim had been shot...
East Deer officially joins Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department
The East Deer Police have officially become part of the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department. East Deer is joining Springdale Township and Cheswick, which created the combined police department in July 2019. East Deer’s addition goes into effect Friday. East Deer Commissioners Chairman Tony Taliani and Commissioner Rick Stoneburner will...
Evergreen Road in Gilpin to close April 18 for bridge replacement
Evergreen Road in Gilpin will close April 18 from Pershing Avenue (Route 66) to Ice Pond Road. Evergreen Road is expected to reopen Aug 2. The bridge, which carries Evergreen Road over Brady’s Run, will be closed while crews replace the existing structure with a multi-girder bridge. Mekis Construction Corp....
Harrison Cub Scouts help stock trout for fish commission at Deer Lakes Park in West Deer
When Ethan Borland heard he would be helping to stock trout at Deer Lakes Park, he didn’t get excited. He had no idea what that meant. The 9-year-old’s perspective would change as he held a white bucket filled with trout to toss into the water. “It was pretty fun,” he...
Leechburg parents frustrated by unplayable high school baseball field
Parents of boys on the Leechburg Area High School baseball team are frustrated their kids don’t have a field at which to play home games. West Leechburg resident Adrianne Burke, who has two boys on the team, said most parents are disappointed because they’ve been waiting on improvements to the...
Deer Lakes mom inspires Curtisville elementary students with her children’s book
When Brandy Donze’s daughter, Zoey, asked to take the children’s book she illustrated to school to share, Donze was delighted to say yes. That copy of “Willow Wings” didn’t make it home from Zoey’s school, Curtisville Primary Center in Deer Lakes School District in December. “I was like, ‘Oh, you...
Cheswick merger with Allegheny Valley Fire Department in final stages
After a two-year process, Cheswick will soon be merging its fire department with the Allegheny Valley Fire Department. The merger agreement is in the final stages of the process. After the state approves it, Cheswick officially will consolidate with Allegheny Valley, said Kevin Funkhouser, Allegheny Valley’s fire chief. He said...
Bless A Dress to give away 3,000 prom gowns at event in Harmar
Those still in search of a prom dress are in luck: The organization Bless A Dress is holding its annual free prom gown event this week. An estimated 3,000 gently used, donated dresses will be up for grabs at the three-day event, starting Thursday, at the Pittsburgh Indoor Sports Arena...
New Starbucks in Harmar preps for opening
Harmar residents will be able to get their java at another Starbucks as the franchise is set to open its newest freestanding location on Freeport Road on Friday. Store manager Keri Chitester said her crew just started getting things organized Tuesday morning. She said the store’s focus is on hiring...
AG Josh Shapiro bans Martino Motors from selling cars
A Penn Hills used car dealership is banned from selling cars in Pennsylvania. Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced in a press release Monday that Martino Motors, 536 Rodi Road, violated an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance (AVC) that the dealership entered into in 2014. “Martino Motors agreed to play by the...
Building the Valley: New Kensington Massage Therapy business flourishing
Tonie Vaughn-Clemons had no intention of opening her own business. A trained massage therapist, she worked side jobs for income while volunteering her skills at a Sarver chiropractor’s practice, for the satisfaction of the healing work. Then covid-19 hit, and the activity she cherished was shut down amid pandemic restrictions....
Leechburg Area High School students set to perform the musical ‘Annie Get Your Gun’
Prepare to be taken back to the Wild Wild West as Leechburg Area High School students perform the musical “Annie Get Your Gun.” The two-hour musical is a loose fictional adaption of American sharpshooter Annie Oakley’s life and her romance with Frank Butler. It made its debut on Broadway in...
Progress being made as Lower Valley EMS works to address financial condition
Progress is coming along as the Lower Valley Ambulance Service works with the Allegheny Valley North Council of Governments to improve its financial condition. The ambulance service is seeking help through two consulting reviews to strengthen its administrative side and gain a better idea of how to reorganize. “No one...
Penn Hills community honors 50th anniversary of fallen officers
After a half-century, the Penn Hills community continues to honor the deaths of two police officers. Penn Hills community members, retired officers and municipality officials gathered on March 25 to honor the 50th anniversary of losing Penn Hills Sgt. William Schrott and Officer Bartley J. Connolly Jr. The two officers...
Springdale power plant shuts down, demolition work to begin
Cheswick Generating Station in Springdale is shutting down today after more than 50 years of operation. It was the the last coal-fired electric power plant in Allegheny County. Commissioned in 1970, it produced 565 megawatts of electricity. Charah Solutions Vice President Scott Reschly said Charah will take possession of the...
Penn Hills non-profit pharmacy offers affordable medications for patients
A Penn Hills couple credits God for opening a pharmacy that has helped dozens of patients afford their medications. As the pandemic impacts adults becoming uninsured after losing their jobs, resulting in being unable to afford their medications, Shannon and Sean Parsons worked to fix a similar problem more than...
Decades of duty: West Deer Officer reports for retirement duty after 33 years
After serving the West Deer community for 33 years, police Officer Brian Dobson has retired from duty. The 57-year-old got his start with West Deer as a part-time officer in 1988 before he went full time in 1993. He had a couple of stints with departments in Mars and Avalon....
Springdale High School program gives back, offers student social skills
Allegheny Valley School District administrators and teachers were able to enjoy a meal while giving to a good cause Wednesday afternoon. The meal was a part of the Empty Bowls luncheon, “a grassroots movement by artists and crafts people in cities and towns around the world to raise money for...
Penn Hills’ Griff’s Grounds Coffé offers its own unique grind
Griffann Coleman-Brewer does not drink coffee or tea, but she does enjoy making a cup for those who do. The 28-year-old opened Griff’s Grounds Coffé in Penn Hills five years ago, when she was just 23, along with her husband, K.L. Brewer-Coleman. Everything about the shop is distinct and deliberate,...
