Westmoreland category, Page 389
North Huntingdon votes to table decision on housing project road
The Westmoreland County Housing Authority’s plan to build a 50-unit senior citizen apartment building in Irwin hit a snag this week when the North Huntingdon commissioners tabled a vote on approving the project’s 1,300 foot road intended to connect the site to a township street. The commissioners voted 4-3 to...
Irwin police warning residents of telephone scam seeking money for department
Irwin police said they have received word that scammers are calling area residents claiming to be collecting money for the borough police department, Chief Dan Wensel said. “That’s absolutely not true. We are not soliciting donations for anything,” Wensel said. He also noted that police officers do not take any...
Greater Latrobe gains $2K in tax settlement, considers bond refinancing
The Greater Latrobe School District will see a slight increase in revenue as a result of settling a property tax appeal. Officials hope to know by May whether refinancing some bonds could produce a substantially larger financial benefit for the district. The school board this week approved a tax appeal...
Hempfield’s Harrold Zion church prepares to celebrate 250 years
John Millward knows firsthand the impact a local church can have on its community. Millward, 67, grew up attending Harrold Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hempfield, where parishioners are eagerly preparing to celebrate the church’s 250th anniversary. “The church to me is very important,” Millward said. “God is incredibly important,...
Friends remember Mt. Pleasant area nun, Verna Montessori School teacher
This weekend, friends will gather to celebrate the life of Sister Lucy Paladini, a beloved nun who taught at Verna Montessori School near Mt. Pleasant for more than 25 years. Sister Lucy died in January after moving back to her native Italy in 2014. Saint Pius X in Mt. Pleasant...
Greensburg Salem dedicates track complex to late inspirational coach Steve Snider
Coaches Nathan and Matthew Snider were on opposing sides Wednesday, April 20 as their respective teams — the Greensburg Salem Golden Lions and the visiting Hempfield Area Spartans — faced off in a varsity track meet. But before the running and jumping began, the two brothers shared a sense of...
Trial for Vandergrift woman accused in killing of Greensburg cousin to begin Thursday
Testimony in the murder trial of a Vandergrift woman accused in the 2018 shooting death of her cousin is expected to begin Thursday morning. A jury was seated Wednesday in Westmoreland County to hear evidence in the case against Ashley Croft. Prosecutors claim Croft, 38, shot and killed her 31-year-old...
Greensburg woman testifies former boyfriend recorded video of sex acts with young child
A Greensburg woman testified Wednesday both she and her former boyfriend had sexual relations with a 5-year-old boy and recorded a video of at least one of the sessions. That testimony came during the first day in the rape trial of Charles Jason Hunter, who police claim participated in sexual...
Troopers say Donegal Township man sexually assaulted mentally challenged person
An 80-year-old Donegal Township man was arrested Tuesday by state police after he was accused of sexually assaulted a mentally challenged person on Sunday. Ronald W. Kern was ordered held in the county jail without bail after being arraigned on charges of aggravated indecent assault, aggravated indecent assault of a...
News of Steelers’ return to Saint Vincent given immaculate reception
Briana Tomack’s phone was ringing nonstop Wednesday during her workday as president of the Greater Latrobe-Laurel Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce. Many fellow Steelers fans were calling her to celebrate the good news that the NFL team will be back in town this summer. The Steelers announced they will be...
Arona man accused by troopers of DUI in fatal 2021 crash in Hempfield
State police on Wednesday arrested a 54-year-old man on charges of drunken driving and homicide by vehicle for allegedly causing a 2021 crash along Route 136 in Hempfield that killed a woman. A forensic test on Ronald A. Jaffre of Arona indicated he had a blood-alcohol level of 0.14% at...
Westmoreland Museum invites young artists back to on-site summer camps
In-person children’s art camps are returning this summer to the Westmoreland Museum of American Art after a pandemic hiatus, with new offerings including one that can be enjoyed on the spur of the moment. New this year, the Greensburg facility will host Drop-In Day Camps from Aug. 10-12 for children...
Steelers announce return to Saint Vincent College for training camp after 2-year absence
Shoulder pads will be popping, footballs will be flinging and fans will be packing the hillside at Saint Vincent College again this summer. After a two-year absence because of the pandemic, the Pittsburgh Steelers will return to the Unity campus to conduct training camp this year, the team announced Wednesday....
Hempfield Clean-Up Day set for April 23
Hempfield residents wanting to dispose of tires, household trash and scrap metal soon will have the chance to do so during a cleanup day this month. Scheduled from 8 a.m. to noon April 23, Hempfield Clean-Up Day will provide two locations across the township — the municipal building, 1132 Woodward...
Jeannette man surrenders after 11-hour standoff with police
A Jeannette man surrendered Wednesday morning after an 11-hour standoff that police said began when Westmoreland County sheriff’s deputies attempted to serve him with a protection-from-abuse order. Sheriff James Albert said the order directed deputies to evict Jesse McCurdy, 49, from his home on Good Street. They were also authorized...
Hempfield recycler salvages old electronics; firm donates laptops to shelter
In a 44,000-square-foot warehouse behind a small Hempfield office are several large rooms filled with boxes and boxes containing thousands of pieces of used electronics — once the lifeblood of the modern computerized office. CyberCrunch LLC has literally tons of old laptops, desktop computers, keyboards, mice, televisions, hard drives, desk...
St. Vincent policy reins in speakers, approval process needed
Responding to the controversy over a conservative speaker’s comments about race and privilege, Saint Vincent College has unveiled a new policy requiring all speakers sponsored by its academic centers to be approved by the college president and top leadership. “The hurtful, divisive statements were a stark contrast to our mission,”...
Torrance patient pleads guilty to aggravated indecent assault, gets prison time
A longtime resident at Torrance State Hospital told police he raped a fellow patient last year as a means to leave the Derry Township facility, where he has lived since 2010. His plan succeeded, in part, this week after a Westmoreland County judge ordered Keith L. Saltonstall to serve up...
Plant sales at Penguin Court, Compass Inn feature pollinator-friendly native species
Native plants added to area gardens and flower beds tend to require minimal maintenance, and they help support pollinators such as birds, bees and butterflies. A number of varieties of these plants indigenous to Pennsylvania and surrounding states are grown each year at Laughlintown’s Penguin Court preserve and will be...
Seton Hill theater production explores ancestry and the African diaspora
Seton Hill University Theatre will present the Pittsburgh-area premiere of “Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea,” a 2014 play by Nathan Alan Davis that explores what ancestry means to people of color, specifically those whose African ancestors were taken into slavery. Curtain times will be 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and...
Murrysville squirt gun ‘assassin’ game results in multiple police responses
A teen squirt gun game has resulted in several calls to Murrysville police in the past week. The “FR Assassins” game, which has its own Twitter feed, involves teens “eliminating” one another by ambushing a randomly chosen participant with a squirt gun. A video on the group’s Twitter page shows...
Tip to Westmoreland prison staff results in drug smuggling charge for inmate
County detectives arrested Westmoreland County Prison inmate suspected of smuggling Suboxone into the Hempfield lockup after someone dropped an anonymous tip in a suggestion box. Jamie Rayques Espy, 33, is charged with three felony counts of manufacturing, delivery and possession of a controlled substance, conspiracy to smuggle a controlled substance...
Westmoreland happenings: Church services, meetings, more
Art • The Greensburg Art Center will host the free exhibit “Art Neighbors,” featuring the works of members of the Latrobe and Greensburg art centers, Saturday to June 11 at the center, 230 Todd School Road, Hempfield. A free opening reception will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday. Gallery...
Hempfield Night Out community event to honor police, first responders this summer
Officials across Hempfield are gearing up to take part in a national campaign aimed at honoring law enforcement officers and first responders. Hempfield Night Out — a community event modeled after National Night Out, which works to enhance the relationship between neighbors and law enforcement — is scheduled for August....
Environmental group to hold meeting on proposed expansion of Yukon waste facility
An industrial waste treatment and storage company’s plans to add a million tons of capacity at its Yukon landfill will be explored during a public meeting Thursday in the South Huntingdon community. The Mountain Watershed Association wants to inform residents about Max Environmental Technologies Inc.’s plans for a new storage...
