Tanisha Thomas stories, Page 9

Truck driver Greg Rupp, a Leechburg resident, expected his last route at 5 a.m. to be his usual quiet drive. But on Oct. 14, he witnessed a horrific event. What he did next earned him a Highway Angel award from the Truckload Carriers Association, the national group that represents his...

An Alle-Kiski Valley duo had a rockin’ good time Sunday afternoon holding their inaugural guitar show in New Kensington. The show, dubbed The Best Guitar Show, was at the Quality Inn on Tarentum Bridge Road from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. More than 40 vendors were on-site selling everything from...

A Kiski Township man is in custody after an armed standoff with police on Sunday, according to a news release from the Kiski Township Police Department. Joshua Reilly, 36, of Water Street was charged with terroristic threats, recklessly endangering another person, disorderly conduct, flight to avoid apprehension, discharge of a...

A man was shot Saturday morning in McKees Rocks, according to Allegheny County Police. Police were notified of a shooting at about 10:20 a.m. in the 400 block of Broadway Avenue. Police said they found the victim with multiple gunshot wounds, and he was taken to the hospital. County police...

Two grants from the Gaming Economic Development Tourism Fund came to West Deer last month, contributing to the township’s ongoing work on its parks and to the volunteer fire company’s station development. The township was awarded $59,000 for its Bairdford Park project. This is the second grant given to the...

Leechburg United Methodist Church will be holding its first special luncheon on Sunday to help raise awareness about food insecurity. The event, to be held at the church, is dubbed the “Souper Bowl Sunday Lunch & Special Collections.” “This is an opportunity to raise awareness for people who suffer from...

East Deer is coming closer to merging its police force with the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department after receiving two approvals for its application. The Allegheny Valley Regional Police Commission approved East Deer’s application during a special meeting Jan. 25. Then, on Friday, Jan. 28, the Springdale Township commissioners voted...

Taking a cookie decorating class three years ago has led a Springdale woman to open her own home bakery business. Amanda Monnich was an on-and-off teacher for 10 years before finding her passion in baking. She practiced baking and decorating her own cookies at home. While she was teaching, she...

Six projects across the Alle-Kiski Valley have received funding totaling more than $600,000 from the Gaming Economic Development Tourism Fund. Nearly $9.4 million was disbursed to communities in Allegheny County in this year’s round, announced Wednesday. In the Alle-Kiski Valley, these projects were named: • West Deer Township Volunteer Fire...

West Deer resident Howard Kirkbride tries to keep his visits to Bull Creek Cemetery to a minimum of once a week, but his passion for it makes that impossible. The 77-year-old has volunteered his time to the cemetery, on Tarentum-Culmerville Road, for more than 28 years. He became president of...

Penn Hills has a new police chief following the end of Howard Burton’s contract. The municipality announced in a press release the appointment of Sgt. Ronald Como as the new Penn Hills police chief. Burton’s contract ended Dec. 31. Burton was with the police department for over 50 years, serving...

Citing steady progress at its new site in East Deer, Pittsburgh Brewing Co. general manager Todd Zwicker said Wednesday he expects brewing to be underway by the summer. The makers of Iron City Beer started work at the former Pittsburgh Glass Works last year. A tour of the facility Wednesday...

It didn’t take long for Kathryn Smail and her family to decide to be a host family for a high school foreign exchange student — four days, in fact. And before long, they were taking in one student after another. Now the Smails, who live in Butler, are spreading the...

In her 14 years of being a licensed cosmetologist, Megan Keener never imagined she would open her own business. That was until an opportunity presented itself when the owner of SEK Accounting, where Keener gets her taxes done, told her a space was available in the building where the business...

East Deer Commissioners Chairman Tony Taliani learned it takes time to see your work reflected in a township. It is why the 74-year-old has been serving as a commissioner for East Deer for 50 years. “I enjoyed what I was doing and took great satisfaction in the projects we were...

The Cheswick Generating Station in Springdale Borough, slated to close on April 1 after more than 50 years of operation, has been purchased by a Kentucky firm that specializes in remediation of coal-fired power stations. Charah Solutions, based in Louisville, said Thursday it will dismantle the plant and potentially use...

It was a small gesture that turned into a bigger generosity for a Manor man who was just looking to help. Mike Weber felt compelled to do something after seeing the news on the deadly tornado that stormed through Kentucky in December. The tornado killed more than 70 people and...

The masking requirement will remain at Allegheny Valley School District. At a school board meeting Tuesday night, board members voted 5-4 to keep a mandatory masking policy in place, rather than switching to recommended masking. School board member David Buchman said the board will revisit the mask requirement if improvement...

When people hear the word “goat,” they think of the stubborn animal, or maybe the slang for “Greatest Of All Time” athletes in their respective sports. For those strolling along Market Street in Leechburg, the word soon will make them think of a sweet circular treat. Gilpin resident Jeremy Smail...

West Deer has received a $291,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to rehabilitate and develop Bairdford Park. The grant is a part of a $70 million pool helping to fund more than 300 recreation and conservation projects across the state. West Deer was among three...

The Projecting Hope Film Festival, a showcase of faith-focused movies with uplifting themes, will be held at the GQT Pittsburgh Mills Cinema from Jan. 21 to 23. Admission to all seven of the films is free — with free popcorn, too. It will be the 18th Projecting Hope festival, which...

East Deer is getting closer to joining the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department. Township officials discussed the status of the process during their meeting Thursday night. The police board will consider East Deer’s application to join the force at a special meeting on Jan. 25. The move will become official...

Court documents revealed that Penn Hills’ decision to terminate police Officer Robert Gowans in May 2021 violated protections of his probationary status with the department. “As a probationary police officer, he was statutorily entitled to civil service protections during his one year of probationary employment,” arbitrator Jane Desimone said. Gowans...

Gilpin resident Steven Senjan noticed a lack of pizza shops in the Leechburg area and wanted to change that. Senjan and his wife, Jamie, decided it was the perfect time to pursue their lifelong dream of opening a pizza shop after saving money for it. They found an ideal location...

Over the past seven years, the effort to start a bowling team at Deer Lakes School District was getting nowhere. Then Kaylee Lipp stepped in. For a class project last year in persuasive writing, the Deer Lakes student took on the cause of the bowling team. And it worked. Lipp’s...