Valley News Dispatch category, Page 381

Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Irish celebration to raise funds for recovery ministry Addiction Recovery Ministry will host an Irish celebration event at 4:30 p.m. March 27...

Barb Constant of Plum didn’t mince words about gas prices Thursday, which skyrocketed 12 cents to $3.82 a gallon, up from $3.70, across the Pittsburgh region. “It sucks, but there’s nothing we can do about it,” Constant said as she fueled her car at the Sheetz station on Pittsburgh Street...

PennDOT closed a portion of Sarver Road in Buffalo Township on Thursday. The closure is at the intersection Sarver Road and Monroe Road. A detour has been posted using Route 356 (South/North Pike Road). The detour is about 9 miles long. PennDOT officials said there is no estimated time for...

Barb Constant of Plum didn’t mince words about gas prices Thursday, which skyrocketed 12 cents to $3.82 a gallon, up from $3.70, across the Pittsburgh region. “It sucks, but there’s nothing we can do about it,” Constant said as she fueled her car at the Sheetz gas station on Pittsburgh...

A West Deer man was charged with felony aggravated assault after police accused him of shooting fireworks at officers before barricading himself inside his home and setting it on fire. William J. Bryar, 54, also faces charges of reckless endangerment and arson in connection with an incident at his home...

Arnold Council will consider a proposal for the redevelopment of a former gas station along Freeport Road. Mike Thakkar of Yashvi Oil said he wants to open a gas station and convenience store at 1610 Freeport Road. The property is between Woodberry Road and Warren Avenue. The property and its...

New Kensington police are investigating two fights that broke out at Valley High School on Wednesday, police Chief Bob Deringer said. According to New Kensington-Arnold Superintendent Chris Sefcheck, about 10 girls got into a shouting match that escalated into a fight Wednesday in the hallway outside the cafeteria and near...

An Arnold man will serve up to three years in prison for the sexual assault of a girl in her mid-teens. Marcel Lynne Hayes, 31, pleaded guilty Wednesday to one felony count as part of a plea bargain. Hayes initially rejected the deal but ultimately accepted after a Westmoreland County...

Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Bowlers needed for party to benefit Animal Protectors The Pins for Pets bowling party to benefit Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley will...

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been dubbed the TikTok war by some, as videos of the violence have surfaced across that and other social media platforms favored by many of today’s youths. “It makes it more real for them, not just some distant event,” said Jaime Rininger, who teaches geography...

Riley Davison’s Wednesday was filled with excitement for one reason: “smashing bots.” The Pine-Richland senior was among dozens of high school students who crowded in Robert Morris University’s John Jay Center for the 17th annual BotsIQ, a regional competition in which student-made robots fight each other gladiator-style. In one corner,...

Stuck at home for long stretches during the pandemic, Shannon Gourley picked up the craft of making candles. “It gave me something to focus on,” said Gourley, a Vandergrift resident and the mother of four. Now, she has turned that creative accomplishment into a business, selling candles and promoting other...

Leechburg Mayor Wayne Dobos, known as a tireless advocate for his borough and a driving force behind countless projects, died Wednesday. “He’s going to be a hard act to replace,” Council President Tom Foster said. “He was trying to revitalize Leechburg one project at a time.” Foster said he was...

After living in others’ fantasy worlds, Penn Hills High School graduate and Upper Burrell resident Jenna E. Faas was ready to create her own. Writing has been a core passion for Faas, who remembers her mom reading books to her before bedtime at 5 years old. Although she was unable...

A man is in custody after holding police at bay in West Deer and setting his home on fire Wednesday, according to authorities. Police had much of the 3500 block on Huntertown Road blocked off and fire crews were called to extinguish the smokey fire shortly after noon, according to...

Lexie Vigna of West Leechburg has a jam-packed academic schedule as a college student. Home this week on spring break, she found time to observe Ash Wednesday in front of CoCo Coffeehouse in Leechburg, receiving “Ashes to Go.” “It’s very convenient to do this while I’m here studying at the...

Face masks are now optional in the New Kensington-Arnold School District. At a school board meeting Tuesday night, Superintendent Chris Sefcheck said the change was effective immediately. The school board did not have to vote on the change, as it was already outlined in the district’s health and safety plan....

State police from the Kittanning station charged a man with felony gun possession after he got into a crash along Route 28. Naszer Simmons-Christopher, 20, of Duquesne, was charged with carrying a firearm without a license along with carrying a loaded weapon, driving under the influence and traffic violations, according...

After delivering care packages he had assembled for homeless veterans, Nick Graham had an opportunity to speak with a veteran who had walked in to the offices of the nonprofit Veterans Leadership Program in Pittsburgh’s Strip District. “Seeing how someone who fought for our freedom and fought for our country...

Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. ‘Hello, Dolly’ to be performed at Apollo-Ridge HS Apollo-Ridge High School Drama Club will present the musical, “Hello, Dolly!” at 7 p.m....

Diane Raible’s newest foster is an 8-month-old pit bull mix who was shot through his thigh at close range. “His name is Axel, and he’s such a good boy,” said Raible, co-vice president of the Tarentum-based Paws Across Pittsburgh. Axel underwent three blood transfusions and an amputation, but is expected...

First grade teacher Mick Dombroski feels like he’s living in the movie “Groundhog Day.” Over and over again, he said, the New Kensington-Arnold School District can’t approve a new contract with its teachers union until after the previous deal has expired. Most districts settle on new contracts before that happens,...

In a case of art imitating life or life imitating art, Freeport Area High School will present Disney’s “High School Musical,” running Thursday through Sunday at the district’s middle school. The story centers on two East High students, Troy and Gabriella, and their audition for a school musical in which...

A Leechburg Area High School honors student with Ukrainian heritage has created a website to showcase charities benefiting Ukrainians and encourage people to contribute. Jasa Oliver, a junior from Gilpin, grew up hearing stories about her great-grandfather Dimetro Buriak’s journey from Ukraine to America. When the invasion by Russian forces...