Valley News Dispatch category, Page 433
Highlands votes to keep mask policy in place
Highlands students will continue to wear masks through at least mid-January, regardless of an impending state Supreme Court ruling that could scrap the state mandate by Gov. Tom Wolf. The school board on Monday voted to keep masking policies in place for students, teachers and visitors on all district campuses...
Highlands to offer covid-19 vaccine clinic; reviewing survey results on mask policy
Highlands School District will host a covid-19 vaccine clinic Dec. 14. The event is a partnership with UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. All three vaccines — Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson — will be offered. “We are providing increased access to the vaccines that will enable our students to...
New Kensington-Arnold seats new school board members, fills vacant seat
The New Kensington-Arnold School Board seated four new members Monday night. Nicholas DiCarolis, Jane Graham and Sarah Yurga, all elected in November, were sworn into office by Westmoreland County Judge Anthony Marsili as part of the school board’s reorganization meeting. A former board member also was sworn in to fill...
Vandergrift Council appoints new member to fill vacancy
Vandergrift Council on Monday appointed Daisha Clayton to the seat left vacant by the resignation of Karen McClarnon last month. Clayton said she wanted to join council because she has a vested interest in the borough. “I reside here. I work here. My children go to school here. I love...
The Stroller, Dec. 7, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your holiday 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. Christmas concert fundraiser planned in Freeport A Christmas concert to benefit Fostering Music will be at 7 p.m. Dec. 11 at...
Building the Valley: Bargain-priced clothes, housewares help people at Agape Thrift Store in Harrison
Since at least the mid-1980s, the Agape Thrift Store in Harrison has been helping people boost their wardrobes and their self-esteem. The secondhand store nestled in the basement of the Grace United Methodist Church, at 1333 Freeport Road, opens its doors from 1 to 4 p.m. on Wednesdays. In just three...
Women’s Board of Pittsburgh benefits children across Alle-Kiski Valley with annual fundraiser
What began 30 years ago with a few friends hoping to improve the lives of local children has blossomed into an annual fundraiser that pulls in sometimes more than $100,000 to make tangible change. The Women’s Board of Pittsburgh now comprises 70 members who work year-round to help children from...
Tarentum saves $30,000 by rebuilding street light fixtures
A project to replace Tarentum’s street lights will save taxpayers more than $30,000, officials said. The savings won’t come through lower energy consumption, Manager Michael Nestico said, rather the lower cost of the light mechanism. “The street lights were already LED,” Nestico said. Borough leaders chose to rebuild the fittings...
Monday night’s Freeport council meeting canceled due to lack of quorum
A Freeport council meeting scheduled for Monday night was canceled due to lack of a quorum, with at least one member on vacation, another at work, another in quarantine due to covid and a recently elected member resigning. The meeting was scheduled for 7 p.m. Items on the agenda included...
East Deer man admits to killing father in Harmar, gets 10 to 20 years in prison
An East Deer man will serve at least 10 years in state prison after pleading guilty Monday to killing his father last year. Shane Howard, 25, pleaded guilty to one count of voluntary manslaughter in the Feb. 26, 2020, shooting of David Howard, 47, of Harmar. A criminal complaint filed...
No injuries in Fox Chapel fire
There were no injuries when fire tore through a Fox Chapel home Monday afternoon. Fox Chapel police Chief Michael Stevens confirmed everyone escaped the home safely. Fire crews from several surrounding communities responded to the fire shortly after 1 p.m. along Hunt Road, with more than a dozen emergency vehicles...
Allegheny Health Network opens new outpatient center in New Kensington
Residents in New Kensington and surrounding communities will once again be able to get laboratory, X-ray and cardiology services without having to travel to a hospital. Allegheny Health Network officials on Monday cut the ribbon on a new outpatient center located at 1B Kensington Square on Eighth Street, across from...
Vandergrift Council passes 2022 budget with no property tax increase
Vandergrift residents will not see a property tax increase next year. Council passed a final $2.4 million budget Monday. The real estate tax rate will remain at 28 mills. The borough’s budget projects revenue of about $2.2 million and expenses totaling $2.4 million. The difference will be made up from...
Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company members renew Christmas craft and vendor show
A Christmas Craft Show is returning to Leechburg after more than a decade of hibernation. It has been about 15 years since local artisans, craftsmen and other small businesses showcased their wares at the Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company’s social hall shortly before Christmas. Company President Brian Scott said volunteers who...
The Stroller, Dec. 6, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your club meetings, community events 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. Donations needed to replace Casino Theater fire escape Vandergrift Public Library and the Casino Theater are raising funds to replace a...
Lower Burrell Volunteer Fire Co. to drive Santa Claus through the city
When Santa Claus visits Lower Burrell, you won’t see him in a sleigh. Lit by a constellation of holiday lights, Santa will ride through more than 40 city streets pulled by the Lower Burrell Volunteer Fire Company No. 3 on Dec. 7 and 8. Dubbed as “Santa Claus Comes to...
‘New Kensington is part of my life,’ says 60-year hair salon owner
Long before people could ask their smartphones for directions, Patty Reimer sought guidance from a higher source — God. Reimer was renting space for her hair salon, Cleopatra’s, in New Kensington. She was on her way to buy a building for it in Lower Burrell in October 1984 when she...
St. Vladimir priest taps faith as way to get through loss of fire-damaged church
The sounds of “Rejoice, rejoice Emanuel” floated from the social hall Sunday in Arnold, where congregants of St. Vladimir Ukrainian Catholic Church gathered for a Divine Liturgy despite having, at least for now, lost their house of worship. Next door to the social hall, which once was a school, sat...
Vandergrift wraps up holiday festival with vendors and bands
Vandergrift wrapped up its three-day holiday festival Sunday, capping off a weekend that organizers said saw thousands of people pour into the small town. “This has been a great community event, it’s great just getting the community together,” said Lisa Schrader, a member of the Vandergrift Back When committee. The...
New Ken-Arnold bringing back community holiday dinner, canned food drive
Families in the New Kensington-Arnold School District are being invited to gather to share a holiday meal, while helping those in need. After not being held last year because of the covid pandemic, the district’s free community holiday dinner will be held Wednesday, Dec. 15, in the cafeteria at Valley...
Buffalo Township officials to raise real estate taxes 9% for next year’s budget, purchase new police car and seal more roads
Buffalo Township officials plan to raise taxes by about 9% to help keep up with rising expenses. Supervisors have proposed hiking the tax rate from 5.5 mills to 6 mills to balance their 2022 budget. The 0.5-mill increase is projected to generate $30,000 for the township and cost the average...
The Stroller, Dec. 5, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your club meetings, community events 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. Winter clothing collection ongoing at Knead Community Cafe Knead Community Café, 1011 Barnes St., New Kensington, is collecting new winter hats,...
Veterans recall Pearl Harbor through video memoirs at Alle-Kiski Valley Heritage Museum
When the late Mike Sopko enlisted in the Navy in 1943, he forged his dad’s signature. The 17-year-old’s draft letter arrived in the mail at his Arnold home and his parents made him a deal — get your diploma and you can enlist. “I (got early release) and left school...
Former supervisors ask Upper Burrell to add 2 more seats; ties to Marcellus shale raised
Two former supervisors asked Upper Burrell supervisors to consider a resolution for a referendum to add two more members to the current three-member board. Former supervisors Dan Myers and Allen Uhler approached the board Wednesday asking for the council to vote on a resolution to put the question on the...
Tabernacle among cherished artifacts rescued from burning St. Vladimir in ArnoldVideo
Even as fire tore through an Arnold church Saturday evening, sending flames through the roof and into the sky, dozens of cherished artifacts made it out safely. The fire at Saint Vladimir Ukrainian Catholic Church on Kenneth Avenue was reported around 7:30 p.m., authorities said. Dozens of trucks from Arnold...
