Editor's Picks category, Page 367
First day of winter camp held at Graystone Equestrian Center in Salem Township
The first day of Graystone Equestrian Center’s three-day Winter Camp was held Monday at the Salem Township facility. Ten campers spent the day grooming horses, receiving instruction from barn owner Cindy Valenta and participating in games and arts and crafts. The program is open to ages 5 and up....
TV Talk: PBS revisits ‘Little House’ author Laura Ingalls Wilder
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. To mark the 85th anniversary of the publication of “Little House on the Prairie,” PBS’s “American Masters” does a deep dive into the life and literary work of the book’s author in “Laura Ingalls Wilder:...
Stories of the Year: From detection to vaccine, coronavirus dominated 2020
Seldom is a subject such an obvious choice for story of the year. But unlike 2001’s 9/11 or 2016’s election, the coronavirus story kept happening — day after day after day. Like the virus itself, the story just wouldn’t stop. It appears it will consume 2021 as well. From reports...
Sharing lessons learned in a tough 2020, looking ahead to a better 2021Video
Was most of what we learned in 2020 stuff we didn’t want to know? Like what really happens during a global pandemic or an ultra-polarized presidential election? From wildfires and earthquakes to hurricanes and floods, it hasn’t been pretty. In fact, a lot of it has been frightening and heartbreaking....
Watch those birdfeeders for rare northern finches visiting Western Pa.Video
Linda Croskey guessed it’s been about 30 years since she has seen the rare winter migrant, the evening grosbeak, show up at her birdfeeder at her West Deer home. Then, after last week’s snowstorm, Croskey was elated to see at her feeder the rare visitor. It looks like an overgrown...
Girl Scouts accuse Boy Scouts of poaching their membership in latest filing of 2-year legal battle
Boys will be boys. And, according to court documents, girls should be Girl Scouts. The Girl Scouts of the United States of America, in a pointed Manhattan Federal Court filing, accused the Boy Scouts of America of wrongfully crossing the gender line by poaching potential female members from their organization...
Scottdale man on covid battle: ‘I did not think I was going to make it’
Wayne Grabiak had encouragement coming from all angles. There were the FaceTime calls with his wife and text messages from family, friends and his cardiologist. Plus, the staff at AHN Jefferson Hospital loudly repeating a mantra through a glass window separating his room from the rest of the intensive care...
After 2 generations, new owner set to take over The Hoagie Shop in North ApolloVideo
The second-generation family owners of The Hoagie Shop in North Apollo might be retiring, but not their famous cold, 12-inch Italian hoagie that still sells for under $5. It’s been a 60-year run for two generations of the Toland family, which has been serving up its signature hoagies with fresh...
Dog training, day care continue after Bruce Ringer, ‘dog whisperer of Tarentum,’ dies
Bruce D. Ringer’s love of dogs and his wife were manifest, and not surprisingly intertwined. The longtime, legendary dog trainer, Ringer, 63, of Tarentum, died of colon cancer on Dec. 20. He was a dog trainer for more than 35 years and opened the first doggie day care in Allegheny...
Chacko’s in Wilkes-Barre selected by Barstool Sports to get covid aid throughout pandemicVideo
The holidays got a little brighter Thursday for Chacko’s Family Bowling Center. The Wilkes-Barre bowling alley and restaurant got word on Christmas Eve that they were chosen for The Barstool Fund, a covid relief effort started by Dave Portnoy and Barstool Sports. The next business we're helping is Chacko's Family...
Wagging tails join ringing bells for Salvation Army kettle drive in HempfieldVideo
Area owners let the dogs out Wednesday to help attract attention to the Greensburg Salvation Army’s annual red kettle donation drive. Members of the Youngwood Dog Club, accompanied by their public-friendly therapy dogs, volunteered to augment the efforts of kettle bell-ringers at several Hempfield retail locations including Walmart and Macy’s...
Federal covid relief bill includes ‘Save Our Stages’ funding for independent music venues, promotersVideo
Independent music venue owners across the U.S. got their first good news in quite some time on Monday with the announcement the $900 billion federal covid-19 relief bill will include $15 billion as part of the Save Our Stages Act. If it is signed by President Trump — a move...
Happy Festivus, the 1st without its ‘creator’
Happy Festivus. With the year the world has had — and the loss of Festivus’ creator — it might be a somber one. Or maybe a reason to celebrate more. The fictional (but very real to some) holiday entered the universe on the Dec. 18, 1997, episode of the iconic...
Dad creates adventures in a box without leaving Beaver County home
Elliott Cramer was helping move a neighbor’s water heater when he had a revelation. Some might say it was out of the box — or, rather, inside a large cardboard box. “I thought, the cardboard box would make for a perfect rocket ship,” said Cramer, who was assisting a neighbor...
TV Q&A: When will ‘When Calls the Heart’ be back?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: When will Hallmark Channel’s “When Calls the Heart” return with new episodes? — Nina via voicemail Rob: “When Calls the Heart” wrapped production on its...
Letter to the editor: UPMC staffers overwhelmed
To UPMC Senior Vice President Leslie Davis and other UPMC executives: As a UPMC nurse, I am angry, disappointed, betrayed — yet not entirely surprised. UPMC leadership has been less visible this year and less in touch than ever with what occurs at the bedside. “Davis said the system has...
Jewish Federation says if you can’t go out for Chinese on Christmas, donate the cash
It’s perhaps the most unofficial Christmas tradition there is. On Christmas Day, many members of the Jewish community go out to eat at Chinese restaurants because they are usually the only ones open. This is often followed by a trip to the nearest bowling alley. It’s a ritual that goes...
Christmas in the ICU: Decorations, lights and many tears
OPELIKA, Ala. — A Christmas tree stands outside the intensive care room where a man stricken by covid-19 lies unconscious, a machine breathing for him. A few feet away, a plastic snowman adorns the door of another patient whose face is barely visible behind ventilator tubes. The decorations are “a...
Point State Park gets to keep its Christmas tree
Looks like the Tree of Lights will be in Pittsburgh next year after all. The state decided to continue the Pittsburgh tradition by permitting the picturesque tree to be erected at Point State Park next year. In a reversal of a decision announced last month, the state Department of Conservation...
Allegheny Valley toy distribution takes on different look this year, but still makes kids smileVideo
An annual Shop with a Cop toy distribution event in the Alle-Kiski Valley took on a different look this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, but still sent children home with a smile. In past years, officers from the Harmar, Springdale Borough and Allegheny Valley police departments would take children...
Westmoreland food bank benefits from annual United Way fundraiserVideo
Rather than mapping out the most efficient route through the East Pittsburgh Street Shop ’n Save in Greensburg on Monday evening, Renee Sasanko spent her time deciding on a nonprofit organization that would benefit from a $750 donation. The United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s annual fundraiser, which normally sends one...
Man dressed as Santa rescued from power lines in California
RIO LINDA, Calif. — Santa found himself a little more tied up than usual this time of year. A Northern California man impersonating Santa Claus and flying on a powered parachute was rescued Sunday after he became entangled in power lines, authorities said. The incident happened shortly after the man...
From Irving Berlin’s ‘White Christmas’ to James Brown’s ‘Santa’s Got a Brand New Bag’: Why Christmas classics never get old
Why do we love Christmas music? We know all the obvious reasons: It conjures treasured memories of holidays past; it allows us to revel in the season’s spirit simply by listening; it gives us a sense of peace through familiarity — we’ve heard these songs a thousand times before. But...
Delmont police, Sheetz collect about 10 tons of food for families, health care workers
’Tis the season for giving, and that sentiment isn’t lost on the organizations who interact with the public every day and have a ground-level view of the difficulty faced by not just families but also front-line health care workers. That’s why the Delmont Police Department decided to hold its first-ever...
After 5-month search, Shady Side Academy has new nickname
Shady Side Academy officially has a new mascot and nickname — the Bulldogs. The SSA Board of Trustees began a five-month search process in July after they decided to discontinue the use of the Indian as the school’s mascot and team name. During their search for a new mascot, a...
