TribLive stories, Page 29

NEW YORK — U.S. retailers are offering more discounts on Hershey goods ahead of its biggest holiday, Halloween, according to data, as the candymaker hiked prices due to rising costs from tariffs and cocoa inflation. The discounts come as overall chocolate candy sales per unit were flat in the 12...

Actor and comedian Billy Gardell is recovering after being stricken with pneumonia that resulted in atrial fibrillation during a trip to Pittsburgh. Gardell, a Swissvale native, joined 102.5 WDVE’s Morning Show on Thursday to recount the scare. He had performed in Erie last week and came to Pittsburgh for Sunday...

I often wonder how much is spent for all the garish and elaborate Halloween decorations around our region. As a veteran I wonder if the same gusto for decorating will be put forth on Nov. 11 for Veterans Day. I urge the citizens to display the stars and stripes to...

So much for the Republicans not touching Medicare in the “Big Beautiful Bill.” They gave seniors a $6,000 tax deduction instead of not taxing Social Security Income. For most people this results in an extra $600 back on your tax return. However, if you have regular Medicare coverage (not sure...

Coaches — no matter the sport or the discipline — help make people better at what they do. Voice coaches help turn good singers into stars. Dialect coaches can be the difference between a wannabe and an Oscar winner. A good defensive line coach could turn a struggling team around...

Fundraisers • Community Church of Hecla, 537 Hecla Road, Mt. Pleasant Township, will host a Vera Bradley bingo at 1 p.m. Nov. 2 at the church. Doors open at noon. A light lunch will be served. Details and tickets: 724-396-8065 or 724-244-2586. • A pancake and sausage dinner will be...

No Stroller today Due to illness, The Stroller column does not appear today. The column will return as soon as The Stroller feels better....

Congressman Reschenthaler, It has been a few months since my last message, and still, you are nowhere to be found. You have become one of the only elected officials in our region who seems unwilling to face the public or the press. The media can’t reach you for comment on...

High schools Field hockey WPIAL playoffs Championship At North Allegheny Class 2A Wednesday’s results Fox Chapel 2, Peters Township 0 Class A Wednesday’s results Shady Side Academy 1, Aquinas Academy 0 Football WPIAL playoffs All games 7 p.m. Class 6A Semifinals Nov. 7 Canon-McMillan (4-6) vs Central Catholic (9-1), site...

Halloween is upon us, and plenty of spooky happenings will be popping up in the next few days. As we enter November, Westmoreland County is jumping with other weekend happenings, too. Here are just a few: ‘Rocky Horror’ events If you’re a fan of “Rocky Horror,” you’ve got multiple opportunities...

North Allegheny’s eight-year reign as the top Class 4A girls volleyball team in Pennsylvania came to an end in the WPIAL semifinals Wednesday night. Fifth-seeded Pine-Richland, which had lost to North Allegheny in four games twice in the regular season, pulled off a sweep of the top-seeded Tigers, 27-25, 25-17,...

President Donald Trump, ahead of his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday, said he has instructed the Department of Defense to immediately resume testing nuclear weapons on an “equal basis” with other nuclear powers. “Because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to...

Tournament host Tiger Woods will not compete in the Dec. 4-7 Hero World Challenge in Albany, Bahamas, according to the final player field released Wednesday. When the initial field was announced three weeks ago, there was hope Woods would be added later as one of three exemption spots, but he...

WASHINGTON - Nearly 42 million people are set to lose food aid due to the second-longest U.S. government shutdown, as Democrats and Republicans in Congress continue to blame each other for a weeks-long legislative stalemate. Neither party was showing signs of changing its position days before funding for the Supplemental...

After toying with the idea of running for a constitutionally prohibited third presidential term for months, President Donald Trump conceded that the law is “pretty clear” against such a scenario. “I would say that if you read it, it’s pretty clear, I’m not allowed to run,” Trump told reporters aboard...

WASHINGTON - Donald Trump’s top health official on Wednesday said evidence does not show that Kenvue’s pain medicine Tylenol definitively causes autism but that it should still be used cautiously, a month after the president said U.S. health officials would recommend limiting its use. U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy...

HAVANA/KINGSTON — Hurricane Melissa barreled through the Caribbean on Wednesday after thrashing Cuba’s second-biggest city, isolating hundreds of rural communities, unleashing devastation in Jamaica and drenching Haiti, where at least 25 were killed. Melissa struck Jamaica on Tuesday as the strongest-ever hurricane to directly hit its shores, with sustained winds...

WASHINGTON — The federal government shutdown could cost the U.S. economy between $7 billion and $14 billion, shaving up to 2% from gross domestic product in the fourth quarter because of the lapse in government spending, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said on Wednesday. The partial shutdown was in its...

WASHINGTON — A policy divide within the U.S. central bank and a lack of federal government data may put another interest rate cut out of reach this year, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Wednesday, as he acknowledged the threats that officials see to the job market but also...

Last week: 9-2 Season: 89-20 (81.7%) When the regular season ends and playoffs begin, The Birdie tends to get a little melancholy. “At this point, the season can be over in the blink of an eye,” the football fowl philosophized. So before he makes his picks for the first week...

Football WPIAL playoffs All games 7 p.m. Class 6A Semifinals Nov. 7 Canon-McMillan (4-6) vs Central Catholic (9-1), site TBD; Norwin (7-3) at North Allegheny (7-3) Class 5A First round Friday’s schedule Kiski Area (4-6) at Shaler (3-7); Armstrong (4-6) at Moon (7-3); North Hills (3-7) at Bethel Park (6-4);...

Class 3A First round 11-Derry (6-4) at 6-Highlands (7-4) 7 p.m. Friday, Golden Rams Stadium, Natrona Heights Last week: Derry 47, Yough 20; Highlands 45, Valley 0 Playoff record: Derry 5-14; Highlands 11-25 WPIAL titles: Derry 0; Highlands 0 Last playoff appearance: Derry 2023; Highlands 2024 Winner plays: 3-Central Valley...

Last week: 10-2 Season: 99-27 (79%) It is playoff time, and to celebrate the “real ones,” as he says, the Birdie is speaking the truth. Make that, truths. Westmoreland County’s prep football oracle said this is the time of year that separates the contenders from the pretenders. He finishes his...

A woman who ran two weight loss clinics in the Pittsburgh area is charged in federal court with mislabeling animal medication and giving it to humans. Nicole Millen is charged with a single misdemeanor count of drug mislabeling. A federal court docket sheet shows she is scheduled to plead guilty...

Pennsylvania Department of Transportation District 12 held winter training Wednesday in Unity for snowplow operators. They practiced using wing plows mounted on the sides of their big yellow trucks while maneuvering through a course marked by orange cones. Drivers had to back into a parking spot, avoid obstacles such as...