Longtime Irwin art teacher enjoys camaraderie with students
Patricia Vaughn loves teaching others to paint. “I really enjoy the people. It’s the camaraderie. It’s fun watching them grow, year after year” said Vaughn of North Huntingdon, who has been a teacher at the Norwin Art League since 1977. Vaughn teaches classes three days a week in the cozy...
PennDOT reminds motorists of Route 28 lane restrictions from East Deer to O’Hara
PennDOT is reminding motorists of single-lane restrictions on Route 28 in O’Hara, Harmar, Springdale, Frazer and East Deer will continue Friday, weather permitting. Single-lane restrictions will continue in both directions on mainline Route 28: • Northbound: Restrictions from the RIDC Park (Exit 10) interchange to the Russellton/Creighton (Exit 13) interchange...
Former agent with the state AG’s Office accused of stealing $174K
A former agent with the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office is accused of stealing $121,000 from the agency’s North Huntingdon office, according to a criminal complaint filed Thursday by Westmoreland County detectives. Brenda D. Sawyer, 61, of North Versailles also is accused of stealing $52,650 from the McKeesport branch of the...
Carnegie man gets 12-24 years in prison for slaying outside Club Erotica
A judge Thursday took a Carnegie man to task as she sentenced him to prison for a fatal shooting outside a McKees Rocks strip club three years ago following a dispute in the parking lot. Charles Becher, 27, was sentenced to 12 to 24 years in prison by Allegheny County...
Gainey pitches major affordable housing reforms, draws councilman’s ire
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey on Thursday unveiled sweeping reforms to boost the city’s supply of affordable housing, seen as a key strategy to combating homelessness. The reforms, which involve changing the city’s zoning code, would force new housing developments or those undergoing major renovations anywhere in the city to set...
79-year-old Hempfield man whose farm tractor overturned into a creek dies
A Hempfield Township man died late Thursday afternoon when a farm tractor he was using to mow grass overturned and fell into a creek, according to Westmoreland County Coroner Tim Carson. Clifford E. Schweinsburg Jr., 79, was mowing grass in Hempfield along Township Line Run Creek — a tributary of...
West Deer No. 3’s fire hall renovations include indoor training, decontamination room
This time next year, West Deer Volunteer Fire Company No. 3 firefighters will be able to practice rappelling and rescue techniques without leaving the fire hall on Gibsonia Road. An indoor training space is among the highlights of ongoing renovations at the hall, which is a transformed commercial building that...
Hockey dad sentenced after attack at Monroeville hotel over affair left man severely injured
Jerry McCool’s face was so badly beaten that trauma physicians initially thought he’d been shot. He was placed in a medically induced coma, given a tracheotomy to breathe and a feeding tube to receive sustenance. His family did not know if he would survive the April 14, 2023 assault outside...
Sprankle’s Octoberfest on tap Friday through Sunday at Lernerville Speedway
For the first and possibly only time, Lernerville Speedway in Buffalo Township has transformed into a miniature Munich ahead of the sixth annual Sprankle’s Octoberfest. Organizers expect this iteration of the German-themed festival on Friday, Saturday and Sunday to be bigger and better than ever. “The whole aim of this...
Saint Vincent coverlet exhibit to spotlight bird patterns
Saint Vincent College’s Foster and Muriel McCarl Coverlet Gallery fall exhibit will open Thursday. An opening reception for “Flights of Fancy: A Menagerie of Handwoven Birds” will be held 4 to 6 p.m. on the ground floor of the Fred M. Rogers Center in Unity. The exhibit will run through...
Rev into reading: Pine hosts Touch-a-Truck, library center opening
Get ready for Revving Into Reading. That’s the theme for festivities scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 14, when the grand opening of Northern Tier Regional Library’s Pine Center runs in conjunction with a Touch-a-Truck event. More than 15 trucks and other vehicles will be parked outside the...
Watercolor artist featured at Murrysville library art gallery
Drawing and painting have been part of Darlene Miklos’ life for as long as she can remember. “Even as a child, I thought of myself as an artist,” said Miklos, 81, of Murrysville. “I went from pencil drawings to charcoal to oil painting and finally to watercolors.” Her watercolors will...
Syrian family cooking for North Hills community
Former Syrian refugee Sumaya Antar, who has recently resettled in the North Hills with her three children and husband, is inviting everyone to dinner. She is the featured host of THRIVE’s Supper Club, being held from 5 to 7 p.m. Sept. 22 at North Hills Community Baptist Church, on Thompson...
Kamala Harris arrives in Pittsburgh, Tim Walz visits Pamela’s DinerVideo
Vice President Kamala Harris might soon be sporting black and gold with how much time she’s spending in Pittsburgh lately. Harris returned to the city Thursday afternoon, having left hardly 72 hours earlier following a quick Labor Day visit. This time, she’s expected to stay in town until her debate...
Longtime Westmoreland croquet fundraiser will contend with sticky wickets one last time
When Ernie Vallozzi started Vallozzi’s Restaurant in 1980, his very first hire was Amy Dicesere. Neither knew at the time that they would not only spend their entire careers together, but also create one of the largest sanctioned croquet tournaments in the United States. That certification is relatively recent, but...
Greensburg settles on 5 projects to improve walking and cycling environment
Five priority projects to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists in Greensburg have been identified as part of an active transportation plan. But the improvements are likely years away. City council is expected to vote on the plan Monday, but some leg work, and funding, will be needed to put...
Backyard Nature finds wonder in the wild world of Penn Hills
A sparse, high-ceiling room at the Penn Hills Library is where Maria Wheeler-Dubas often finds herself explaining nature’s most captivating quirks and mysteries, such as dolphins’ apparent ability to pass information from one generation to the next. “Do dolphins have culture?” Wheeler-Dubas wondered last month at a presentation on animal...
Upper Burrell officials planning to appraise, sell 3 acres off Milligantown Road
Vacant property owned by Upper Burrell off Milligantown Road soon will be up for sale. On Wednesday, the township supervisors directed Jim Collodi, a Lower Burrell real estate agent, to appraise the property of just under 3 acres. It’s across the road from Jack’s Backyard Bar and Grill. “It’s a...
Day of Peace Celebration coming to North Park
A procession of 195 United Nations flags will be part of the festivities of the 20th North Hills International Day of Peace Celebration on Sept. 22 in North Park. The free event is from 2 to 4 p.m. at North Park Point Grove on Lake Shore Drive. The flag ceremony...
Women’s Board fundraiser among most successful in group’s history, raising over $98,000 to benefit area children
The Women’s Board of Pittsburgh hosted one of its most successful fundraisers in the group’s 30-year history, netting more than $98,000 for children’s charities. Hosted in the spring at Fox Chapel Golf Club, the annual event was dubbed “Sunset Safari, Fashion Their Future: Support Pittsburgh’s Children.” This year’s beneficiaries are...
Allegheny Valley Hospital unveils $12 million imaging upgrade to cut patient wait times
Several times each week, a box truck arrives at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison to potentially save lives. A new mobile imaging pad outside the hospital on Carlisle Street allows rotating MRI and PET CT capabilities, opening 40 more appointments a week. The truck travels throughout the region, pulling up...
Northern Regional promotes 24-year department veteran to police chief
Bryan DeWick is the new chief of the Northern Regional Police Department, of which he has been a member for 24 years, following the retirement of Chief John Sicilia. The department serves Bradford Woods, Marshall, Pine, Richland and Seven Fields. Sicilia was given a special proclamation for his 28 years...
Neighbors divided: Highland Park duplex showcases political differences
Along a thoroughfare in Pittsburgh’s Highland Park neighborhood, there sits a house divided — and not just because it’s a duplex. One side of the duplex features yard signs in support of Vice President Kamala Harris, and the other other side features yard signs in support of former President Donald...
Biden, Harris will visit Flight 93 memorial on Sept. 11
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will visit the Flight 93 National Memorial in Stonycreek Township on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, White House officials announced. Harris is expected to arrive in Pittsburgh today, according to the White House Press Office. She and Biden were also...
Fire destroys maintenance building at River Forest Country Club
Gary Miller spent Thursday morning tallying losses — expected to be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars — caused by a fire that ravaged River Forest Country Club’s maintenance building before dawn. Items lost included 24 golf carts, at least two lawn mowers and an array of handheld maintenance...
