Editor's Picks category, Page 369
Bethlehem Project sees increased need for housing support
Not surprisingly, requests for assistance from the Bethlehem Project are up substantially this year. A partnership between Blessed Sacrament Cathedral and Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Greensburg, the Bethlehem Project provides funds for emergency shelter or rental support, along with assistance to residents of three Westmoreland County shelters as...
5 years and counting: Ex-treasure hunter still stuck in jail over missing gold
A former deep-sea treasure hunter is about to mark his fifth year in jail for refusing to disclose the whereabouts of 500 missing coins made from gold found in an historic shipwreck. Research scientist Tommy Thompson isn’t incarcerated for breaking the law. Instead, he’s being held in contempt of court...
TV Talk: Time to catch up on the best TV of 2020
It’s inaccurate to consider this a literal “best of” list for that implies a TV critic can watch every TV series released this year. It’s nearly impossible for any one person to make such a claim in the current 500-series-relased-annually era, so instead consider this my list of favorites from...
Rally set for North Allegheny over district’s extended remote learning plan
Some parents upset with North Allegheny’s new remote learning plan are expected to rally at the intermediate school at 9 a.m. Monday, according to Tribune-Review news partner WPXI. The group, North Allegheny Parents for In-Person Education, disagrees with the district’s plan to keep students learning from home through Jan. 18....
Latrobe woman wins Judges’ Choice award in state parks photo contest
A misty morning on the Youghiogheny River has earned a Latrobe woman an award in the Pennsylvania Parks and Forest Foundation’s “Through the Seasons” photo contest. Clare Kaczmarek, 68, won the Judges’ Choice award in the contest’s “Motion” category for her photo of the river running through a bed of...
‘Monticello Lights’ display backs up traffic in Delmont, second night set for SundayVideo
When residents of Monticello Drive in Delmont replaced their annual holiday party with a neighborhood drive-thru Christmas-light competition, they were hoping for an enjoyable weekend and a chance to raise a little money for charity. What they didn’t expect was a four-and-a-half-hour parade of cars that backed up traffic along...
Western Pa. nursing homes scramble for staff to care for covid patients
Kaitlin Smith was getting increasingly worried about covid-19 outbreaks at Quality Life Services, a nursing home chain where she works as a clinical reimbursement specialist. For weeks, she had been on daily calls with all of the facility administrators, hearing about rising infections and staffing struggles. Then one Friday last...
Western Pa. hair salons make the cut on latest covid restrictionsVideo
Becky Goodwin was on “pins and needles all week.” The owner of Tula Organic Salon & Spa in Squirrel Hill was worried about Gov. Tom Wolf ordering another shutdown. Goodwin’s business, along with other salons and barber shops in the state, was ordered closed for three months between March and...
Sunday’s Geminid meteor shower likely to be most impressive in years but obscured by clouds
Sunday night is the best chance all year to see shooting stars — or it would be, if the weather behaved. “I don’t see any hope,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Michael Brown. “I just think we’re going to have very high clouds.” The Geminid meteor shower is an annual...
Port Authority driver who died of covid remembered as ‘a ray of sunshine’Video
The father of a Port Authority driver who died of covid-19 wants his son to be remembered as more than another statistic. Patrick Hazlett, 34, of Plum died Monday after a 10-day battle with the illness. Hazlett, who worked at the Port Authority for eight years, is one of two...
Downtown Pittsburgh ice rink still open with capacity changes
The Rink at PPG Place in Downtown Pittsburgh plans to stay open, but with capacity changes, in light of Gov. Tom Wolf’s new pandemic restrictions. Outdoor gatherings are limited to 50 people. “The ice rink will be open and abiding by the state requirements,” said Byron Sharp, president of Magic...
TV Talk: IUP grad explores toxic masculinity in ‘Nate’ on NetflixVideo
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. No one who watches the recently-released Netflix comedy special “Nate: A One Man Show” will confuse it with any other comedy special. The avant-garde, one-hour special is rated TV-MA for good reason and stars Natalie...
Deadline nearly up for winners in Beaver, Washington counties to claim $1 million lotto prizes
The deadline is almost two big lotto winners in Washington and Beaver counties to claim their $1 million prizes, according to the Pennsylvania Lottery. A winning Cash 5 ticket was sold at the Rite Aid on Merchant Street in Ambridge Jan. 12. If not claimed within a year, the state...
Fauci, Kamala among famous names on mispronounced words list
Fauci, Kamala….da Vinci? America’s preeminent infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci, and its incoming vice president, Kamala Harris, join the Renaissance master himself, Leonardo da Vinci, atop this year’s list of most mispronounced words, as compiled by the U.S. Captioning Company, which captions and subtitles real-time events on TV and in...
Pennsylvania among the booziest states during holidays, surveys sayVideo
Pennsylvanians and booze at the holidays go together like Santa Claus and his red suit, according to a couple of recent surveys. The Keystone State is one of the drunkest places in the U.S. during the holiday season, with the average Pennsylvanian quaffing four alcoholic beverages a day, according to...
Pittsburgh playwright August Wilson to be honored with Forever Stamp
Stamp collectors soon can grab a piece of Pittsburgh history with a new Forever Stamp honoring legendary playwright August Wilson. The U.S. Postal Service will dedicate the stamp Jan. 28, the first day of its release, with a virtual ceremony on its Twitter and Facebook pages. The stamp will be...
AP-NORC poll: Only half in U.S. want shots as vaccine nearsVideo
WASHINGTON — As states frantically prepare to begin months of vaccinations that could end the pandemic, a new poll finds only about half of Americans are ready to roll up their sleeves when their turn comes. The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows about a...
Teen’s wine cork Christmas ornaments benefit West Deer Food Bank
A West Deer teen is taking a family hobby and turning it into a business. Noah Long and his mom, Wendy, are selling Christmas ornaments they’ve made out of wine corks and are donating a portion of the proceeds to the West Deer Food Bank. They call the business Cork...
Get a pair of rare, collectible sneakers in newly opened Neecs Sneaks in GreensburgVideo
Silver and gold, stocks and bonds, are all tried-and-true investments. But Nico Giannilli of Unity is betting his financial success on another hot commodity — sneakers. Not the worn-down, smelly footwear you schlep around in, but the pricey, celebrity-endorsed kicks that go for big bucks. Giannilli, 24, has been amassing...
Seven Springs Mountain Resort opening Saturday
Area skiers can rejoice. Seven Springs Mountain Resort in Somerset County will open for skiing and snowboarding this weekend. “Recent snowmaking success has made it possible for Seven Springs Mountain Resort to open for skiing and snowboarding this Saturday and Sunday,” resort marketing director Alex Moser said. Since Dec. 1,...
Rare Babe Ruth card found by Altoona-area woman sells for $342,000
A collection of very old baseball cards turned out to be a treasure trove for an Altoona-area woman who works on the front lines of the pandemic. The woman, who did not want to be identified, was going through her late grandfather’s belongings when she found a rare 1916 Babe...
Some Pittsburgh-area restaurant owners have outdoor dining covered amid pandemic
With the colder weather here to stay, many Downtown Pittsburgh restaurants have decided to cover outdoor spaces for continued dining to help accommodate state-mandated capacity requirements. Some outdoor dining structures resemble mini-greenhouses. Others look like plastic domes. Bakersfield Pittsburgh has tents, heaters and picnic-bench seating on Penn Avenue. At Bourbon...
Holiday tours of Pitt Nationality Rooms going virtual this year
For many people, a visit to the University of Pittsburgh’s Nationality Rooms Holiday Open House is as much a part of the season as seeing the trains at the Carnegie Science Center or taking the kids to visit Santa. Typically, it’s been a one-day event for the past 30 years....
Pittsburgh doctor: ‘Covid vaccines are lights at the end of the tunnel, but we’re still in the tunnel’Video
Coronavirus vaccines produced by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna are likely to be released later this month. The announcements bring excitement for what could be the beginning of the end of the pandemic. But some people have concerns about the safety of the vaccines. Just how safe are vaccines? How do they...
Stay in the car to see Santa during holiday happenings
Pandemic precautions mean kids may not get to sit on Santa’s lap this year. But there are several area options for families to have a drive-thru encounter with the jolly old elf, in a socially distanced take on the holiday tradition. Unity Instead of its usual Deck the Tree holiday...
