Western PA Local News category, Page 1327
North Allegheny set to celebrate Homecoming
The Tigers Marching Band will lead a parade around the North Allegheny Senior High as part of a pregame Homecoming festival on Oct. 7. The community is invited to attend the carnival fun beginning at 4:45 p.m. at the NASH campus, located on 10375 Perry Highway. The event will feature...
Proposed soccer field in Bell Acres to be memorial for Sewickley Area Soccer founder
Leo Moss left an indelible impression on young Quaker Valley athletes. Members of the Quaker Valley Recreation Association, the nonprofit umbrella of Sewickley area soccer, baseball/softball and lacrosse athletic leagues, want to ensure his legacy lives on through a new artificial turf field. Fundraising has begun for the proposed Leo...
Quaker Valley COG launches new drop-off yard waste program with Reserve Twp. company
The Quaker Valley Council of Governments is looking to build off its recycling program with a new drop-off yard waste program. It has partnered with Michael Brothers Hauling to allow residents of member communities to dispose of grass clippings, leaves, brush, wood chips, concrete chunks, dirt and small logs at...
Three sentenced in $87 million Medicaid fraud scheme
Three people who were part of a sophisticated, $87 million health care fraud scheme were sentenced Wednesday in federal court in Pittsburgh. The three were among a total of 16 people charged for billing Pennsylvania Medicaid for in-home health care for services that were never performed. Fifteen of those people...
Haunted Mine offers hair-raising scares at abandoned Fawn site
Enter if you dare. Dark and dank, the narrow passages that wind deep underground at Tour-Ed Mine and Museum in Fawn have transformed into a frightening Halloween attraction seeking only the bravest souls to wander through. “We play off your natural phobias here, so we’re talking rats, bats and spiders,”...
Pittsburgh looks to allocate $400K to award grants directly to community groups
Pittsburgh City Council members are considering a measure that would give them over $400,000 that could be sent directly to athletic associations and community groups in their respective districts. Sponsored by Council President Theresa Kail-Smith, the legislation would reallocate $410,000 from the Office of Management & Budget and Parks &...
Suicide prevention Hope Squad introduced to Valley High School students
Hope was on the lunch menu Wednesday at Valley High School. Students were introduced to their school’s new Hope Squad, part of a national youth suicide prevention program, and asked to write positive and inspirational messages on paper hearts that are being placed on a tree in the library hallway....
Republican commissioners remove ballot drop box from Westmoreland courthouse
Westmoreland County’s Republican commissioners Wednesday refused to vote on a plan to install one drop box for mail-in ballots at the courthouse. Commissioners Sean Kertes and Doug Chew said the box that had been in place for years in the courthouse’s lobby and last spring at the rear entrance of...
Hempfield man, 62, suffers medical issue, dies following East Huntingdon crash
A Hempfield man who suffered a medical emergency while driving Wednesday morning died of injuries from the resulting crash, Westmoreland Coroner Tim Carson said. James A. Shifko, 62, of Broadway Avenue was headed south on Westec Drive shortly before 7 a.m. State police said he was believed to have suffered...
$1.4B terminal at Pittsburgh International Airport takes shape
A $1.4 billion project to build a new terminal at Pittsburgh International Airport is on pace to be completed on schedule by early 2025, officials said Wednesday during a tour of the bustling construction site. Eleven large cranes rose above the site Wednesday, and the first structures are going up....
State auditor general finds minor issues in audit of Bradford Woods Volunteer Fire Company Relief Association
An audit of the Bradford Woods Volunteer Fire Company Relief Association found three minor issues. Pennsylvania Auditor General Timothy DeFoor Sept. 27 announced the findings of volunteer firefighters’ relief associations in 18 counties throughout the commonwealth. “Relief associations provide vital support to Pennsylvania’s dedicated first responders,” DeFoor said in a...
Death penalty trial in slaying of off-duty Pittsburgh officer postponed until February
The trial for a man accused in 2019 of killing an off-duty Pittsburgh police officer has been postponed until Feb. 27. Jury selection in the capital case against Christian Bey was supposed to begin on Monday before Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Kevin G. Sasinoski. However, according to a motion...
Holocaust survivor, Tree of Life witness Judah Samet dies at 84
Judah Samet referred to himself as “a professional survivor.” He survived the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp after the Nazis forced him and his family from their home in Hungary when he was 7 years old. Four years ago at age 80, Samet also survived the October 2018 mass shooting at the...
Photos: Plum Fall Festival
Plum’s annual Fall Festival took place Sept. 24 at Plum Creek Park. Kids activities include a pumpkin patch, pony rides, games and more. Food trucks and craft beer were on hand as well....
Smithton teen accused in crude, vulgar graffiti incidents
A Smithton teen is facing several misdemeanor charges after police said he hand drew crude and vulgar graffiti on five properties, three of which are near churches, according to court papers. The vandalism included depictions of male genitalia and a racial slur, according to Smithton police. Jeffrey Schoaf Jr., 18,...
Plum seeking bids to tear down 4 houses
Plum resident William Sexton will be happy to see the rundown shell of a house that stands practically in his back yard torn down. Sexton said the house, riddled with broken windows, on Siple Street near the turnpike has been an eyesore for several years. “People go in and out...
Childhood friends get new lease on life thanks to directed kidney donation
Kate Shovel and Amber Sylvester have been friends for more than 35 years. They met going to school at Penn Hills in first grade and remained friends even after Shovel moved to Plum in high school. They played softball together as teenagers and became really close. Just a couple of...
3 Plum students honored with academic awards
Three students at Plum Senior High School were honored during the Sept. 27 school board meeting. Karee Jackson, Rachel Arhin and Steven Robledo each were recognized by the College Board National Recognition Program Awards. Jackson and Arhin received the National African American Recognition Award (NAARA), while Robledo received the National...
Kennywood to add chaperone policy, security protocols after shooting
Kennywood Park officials said Wednesday they will add new security protocols and a chaperone policy before reopening this weekend after a triple shooting inside the park. The chaperone policy requires anyone under 17 to be accompanied by an adult 21 or older at all times. Masks are banned after 6...
Remember When: Moon landing sparked excitement, celebrations in Apollo
With the recent announcement by NASA that the United States will resume missions to the moon, it’s a good time to recall the first moon landing in 1969. Apollo was front and center regarding celebrations surrounding the exciting event. The borough is the only municipality in the country that shares...
Sharpsburg’s police dog, Jango, dies after battle with health issues
Sharpsburg’s police dog, Jango, a 6-year-old German shepherd who retired in August after a little more than four years of service, has died. Jango “crossed that rainbow bridge” around 9:30 a.m. Sept. 26, according to a Facebook post by Sharpsburg’s K-9 unit. “Jango was not only a part of the...
Free pierogi samples at Gosia’s Pierogies in Unity this weekend
Curious to know what a sweet potato pierogi tastes like? You’re in for a treat this weekend. Gosia’s Pierogies will host a fall pierogi kickoff from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the business’s Unity distribution center. Attendees can enjoy free pierogi samples, and those who purchase 10 dozen...
Emergency responders poised to upgrade equipment via federal grant money
Volunteer fire companies and EMS organizations across Southwestern Pennsylvania continue to benefit from federal grants targeted at local emergency responders. Since 2001, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Department of Homeland Security has doled out more than 1,800 Assistance to Firefighters Grants across the country, totaling nearly $323 million. The most...
Westmoreland happenings: Apple jamboree, craft shows, car cruise
Submissions from nonprofit organizations for Briefly Speaking can be emailed to Carol Pinto-Smith at cpinto-smith@triblive.com or mailed to Briefly Speaking, 210 Wood St., Tarentum, PA 15084. Include a complete address and daytime phone number. Submissions are due at least two weeks before the event. Each announcement is printed once; there...
Group seeks to cut Norwin library funding; director says service cuts may follow
Norwin Public Library could lose about 85% of its taxpayer-generated funding if voters in the area it serves decide to cut 1 mill from the special 1.2-mill library tax on real estate. “It will impact the library’s state funding and other funding. It will have a cascade effect,” that likely...
