Westmoreland category, Page 323
W.Pa. LGBTQ community, allies share hope, reservations on Respect for Marriage Act
Steve Clark and Scott Smith of Scottdale traveled to Massachusetts in 2008 to be married. Hempfield spouses Patricia and Kimberly Elliott-Rentler tied the knot in 2016, after same-sex marriages were permitted in Pennsylvania. They and others in the area’s LGBTQ community see the expected passage of the federal Respect for...
Westmoreland recount complete; officials say no evidence of widespread errors found
A court-ordered recount of four Westmoreland County precincts completed Monday revealed a three-vote change from unofficial results released last month. Westmoreland County Election Bureau Director Greg McCloskey said the review of more than 4,200 ballots cast in person on Election Day and ballots mailed in by voters from precincts in...
Plane makes landing with collapsed gear at Rostraver Airport; pilot not injured
No one was hurt when a small plane landed with its nose gear collapsed Monday afternoon at Rostraver Airport, an airport official said. The nose of the plane remained upright as the plane went down the runway, then hit the runway at the plane lost speed, said Gabe Monzo, executive...
Westmoreland broadband survey identifies service gaps
Westmoreland County officials said an appeal will be filed early next year challenging data published by the Federal Communications Commission that claims most local homes and businesses have adequate high-speed internet service. That appeal will be based on preliminary results from a local study conducted this summer and fall that...
After fire damages 200-year-old Stahlstown church, congregation perseveres
A 200-year-old church in Stahlstown will need extensive repairs after it was damaged in a fire late Sunday. No one was injured in the blaze. “For me, that was the most important,” said Trinity United Methodist Church Pastor Christine Doren. “We can rebuild, but we can’t always rebuild a life...
Latrobe man among 2 people killed in Somerset County crash on Pa. Turnpike
Two people died from injuries in a Somerset County crash late Friday involving two vehicles on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, investigators said. State police were investigating the crash, which was reported shortly after 9 p.m. in Jefferson Township near the Somerset-Westmoreland border. Somerset County Chief Deputy Coroner Lexi Lichty said a...
North Huntingdon care home, nursing agency sued by staffer following sexual assault claim
A former nursing aide is suing a North Huntingdon nursing home and a Murrysville-based nursing agency claiming both firms failed to conduct an adequate criminal background check, which led to her being sexually assaulted last year by a coworker. According to a three-count lawsuit filed last week in Westmoreland County,...
Blessed Sacrament in Greensburg readies ‘Home for the Holidays’ fundraiser
From golf to gift certificates to spa days and symphony concerts, Blessed Sacrament Cathedral Parish in Greensburg will have something for everyone in its “Home for the Holidays,” a fundraiser for the church’s Bethlehem Project housing ministry. This year’s theme is “The 12 Baskets of Christmas.” “We’ve expanded the number...
Latrobe photographer Clare Kaczmarek earns 3-peat in regional photo contest
For the third consecutive year, Latrobe resident Clare Kaczmarek captured first place in the Places category of the 2022 Go Laurel Highlands Photo Contest, with a sunrise photo taken in May at Baughman Rock Overlook, above the Youghiogheny River Gorge south of Ohiopyle. Kaczmarek said she had to get up...
Habitat for Humanity wants to partner with Jeannette on blighted properties’ future
A Jeannette property with a dilapidated home is set to be donated to the city, pending council’s acceptance next week. The property, 522 Scott Ave., was deemed a public nuisance and slated for demolition during a September public hearing. The house has been abandoned for about five years and has...
Clairview student creates Braille greeting cards
Aly Yuschak hopes to bring a touch of the holiday spirit to people who are blind and visually impaired by creating Braille greeting cards. The 10th-grade Clairview School student said she thinks it would be awesome to receive a greeting card in the mail that she could read with her...
Behind the Art: ‘Dark Planet’ graces SAMA-Ligonier Valley sculpture garden
Soon after the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Ligonier Valley launched its sculpture garden, a local philanthropist offered to add to the collection. “Donald Green, a gentleman who was very philanthropic to the Ligonier Valley, reached out to SAMA to see if we would be interested in having another...
Civic Empathy exhibits reveal Westmoreland history of slavery, racial justice
Pennsylvania was a haven in the decades preceding the Civil War for people seeking to escape enslavement in the South. But that wasn’t the case in Pennsylvania’s earlier years, when enslaved people and those who claimed ownership of them were part of the local population, including in Westmoreland County. The...
New Hempfield manager excited to continue township’s ‘upward trajectory’
Aaron Siko has followed in Jason Winters’ footsteps within Hempfield government. In 2018, Siko took over as director of Parks and Recreation when Winters was promoted to township manager. Now, as Winters left the managerial role Friday, Siko will fill Winters’ shoes once again. Township supervisors unanimously appointed him as...
Despite U.S. loss, World Cup draws Western Pa. interest
Bars and casinos don’t typically draw big crowds during breakfast time on the weekends, but the World Cup provided an exception to the rule Saturday morning. Thousands of Western Pennsylvania soccer fans flocked to nearby hangouts to watch the U.S. team ultimately fall to the Netherlands, 3-1. “(Soccer fans) like...
Westmoreland happenings: craft show, wreath and live greens sale, breakfast with Santa
Art • The Greensburg Art Center will sponsor a bus trip Dec. 14 to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Special exhibits will include Sargent and Spain, Vermeer’s Secrets of Venice and Capaccio’s Italian Art. The bus will leave at 5:30 a.m. from the art center, arrive at...
Penn Township man sentenced to probation for neglect of cows
A Penn Township man was ordered to serve two years on probation and repay humane agents more than $21,000 in connection with about a dozen malnourished cows that were confiscated from his property in March. David Parsons, 60, was charged with aggravated cruelty to animals and 18 other related offenses...
Yukon residents urge state to deny permit for new hazardous waste dump
State environmental regulators repeatedly heard the same message from about 20 Yukon area residents and environmentalists regarding a landfill operator’s plans to build a 1 million ton hazardous waste dump site: Deny the permit on grounds of potential dangers to the community’s health and safety. “You see the dust fly...
Earthmoving begins for 1-million-square-foot warehouse in New Stanton
The future occupant of a massive warehouse proposed in New Stanton remains a mystery. But extensive earthmoving in underway at the site of what’s expected to be a more than 1 million-square-foot warehouse that a North Carolina developer estimates will cost $120 million and create about 600 jobs. SunCap Property...
RSV, flu, covid put pressure on pediatric providers
Every day about 3 p.m., nurses, doctors and staff in the emergency room at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh brace for impact. That hour marks the beginning of an eight-hour stretch that in recent months has been the busiest time of day for the department, which has seen a spike...
Westmoreland deputy sheriff sentenced for drunk driving
A Westmoreland County deputy sheriff charged with drunk driving in May was ordered to serve one year on probation. Eugene T. Cavaliere, 59, of Youngwood appeared in court Wednesday to enter the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program for first-time nonviolent offenders. The diversionary program does not require those charged with crimes...
Court hearing held for all 7 suspects in July shooting in New Kensington
A Westmoreland County judge said he will consider early next year requests to transfer to juvenile court four criminal homicide prosecutions in connection with the July fatal shooting of a man in New Kensington. All seven suspects accused in last summer’s alleged murder of 39-year-old Jason Raiford appeared in court...
Visit with Santa, goats on Pleasant Unity farm to raise money for groups benefiting kids
Santa Claus will be greeting two types of kids this weekend at a holiday charity event in Pleasant Unity — the kind with shoes and the kind with hooves. Lou and Emily Surace are inviting local families and children to their farm to meet the couple’s baby goats and to...
Counterfeit $20 bills passed at Live! Casino Pittsburgh
Seven counterfeit $20 bills were passed at Live! Casino Pittsburgh in Hempfield and the U.S. Secret Service is investigating, according to state police. The fake money was spotted by a bank and returned to the casino Tuesday, police said in a news release. Troopers turned it over to the Secret...
Texas truck driver accused of running over man at Hempfield auto parts store
A Texas commercial truck driver is accused by state police of hitting and running over a man Wednesday at a Hempfield auto parts store, leaving him seriously injured, according to court papers. The incident was reported at ABC Auto Parts on Mt. Thor Road around 5 p.m. A witness told...
