Obituary Stories category, Page 28
Clayton Falkner, ‘Mr. Birdville,’ championed efforts to restore Harrison war memorial
Clayton Falkner championed the effort to restore Harrison’s crumbling World War II Honor Roll memorial but didn’t get the chance to see it finished. Mr. Falkner, 84, died Tuesday, June 9, 2020, at the house in the township’s Birdville section where he lived his entire life. Mr. Falkner began lobbying...
Larry Kramer, playwright and AIDS activist, dies at 84
NEW YORK — Larry Kramer, the playwright whose angry voice and pen raised theatergoers’ consciousness about AIDS and roused thousands to militant protests in the early years of the epidemic, has died at 84. Bill Goldstein, a writer who was working on a biography of Kramer, confirmed the news to...
Retired Jeannette police captain was devoted to community
Paul Hartung wore a Jeannette Jayhawks watch that he never took off. “I think he loved serving his community, he had such pride in Jeannette,” said his daughter, Paula Jesiolkiewic. In the 1950s, Mr. Hartung applied for a job with the city fire department. He instead was offered a job...
Ken Osmond, Eddie Haskell on ‘Leave It to Beaver,’ dies
LOS ANGELES — Ken Osmond, who played the two-faced teenage scoundrel Eddie Haskell on TV’s “Leave It to Beaver,” died Monday, his family said. Osmond died in Los Angeles at age 76. No indication of the cause was given. “He was an incredibly kind and wonderful father,” son Eric Osmond...
McKeesport woman remembered as extraordinary teacher, friend of community
No one was surprised when Jamie Brewster Filotei came back to McKeesport after college, first earning a bachelor’s degree and then a master’s. Friends say the woman who attended Mansfield University of Pennsylvania on a basketball scholarship could have gone anywhere, but her roots were in McKeesport. And the city...
Humphreys woman loved working with 4-H
Sandy L. Lucas Ruggiero became involved in 4-H many years ago when her daughter wanted to raise rabbits. Although she grew up in Pittsburgh, not out in the country, Mrs. Ruggiero took to helping Jamie raise rabbits and served as a 4-H leader for many years, said her daughter, Jamie...
Former corrections officer from Greensburg loved family, games
Under normal circumstances, it might be concerning for a former county jail inmate to come walking up and say hello to a longtime corrections officer. But for Jacqueline Learn of Greensburg it was just another part of her day. “Even the prisoners called her ‘Miss Jackie,’” said Ms. Learn’s brother,...
North Huntingdon businessman believed in family, community
C. Gary Dinsel believed in setting goals and sticking to them. He set four big goals over the course of his life: finishing high school, finishing college, raising a family and making a difference in the world as a businessman. He accomplished all four, according to his wife, Barbara Dinsel....
Carmelite nun was handy with a set of carpenter’s tools
When the sisters of Carmel of the Assumption first moved into the Lawson Heights home known as the “Murphy mansion,” they had some difficulty with the particulars of the older building. “The floors in the chapel were crooked and we all got bad knees from kneeling,” said Sister Marie Elizabeth....
Golf pro loved the game, befriended by Deacon and Arnold Palmer
The game of golf gave Martin R. Statler entree to a world far different from the Latrobe in which he grew up during World War II. Mr. Statler was tutored in golf by Latrobe Country Club pro Jerome “Deacon” Palmer and golfed with his son, Arnold Palmer, as well as...
Former Westmoreland congressman, state Auditor General Donald Bailey’s life was driven by competition
Whether it was on a wrestling mat, football field, battlefield or in politics, friends of former Westmoreland County Congressman and Pennsylvania Auditor General Donald A. Bailey say he relished competition. “Don was one of the most competitive people I’ve ever met, and he was certainly driven in everything he did....
Air Force veteran loved outdoors, spending time with family
Don Hyatt was married to his wife, Eleanor, for 60 years before they realized they were baptized on the same day at Grace Fellowship Church in Everson. The couple formally met years later while at a Scottdale restaurant. “He was wonderful,” Eleanor Hyatt said. “I was married to him for...
Greensburg man a veteran of 18 naval battles during World War II
During one of the 18 naval battles Michael E. Pahnos fought aboard the USS Canberra during World War II, the young cannon operator was knocked unconscious. When he awoke, he was panicked to discover that he was in the ship’s morgue, under several dead shipmates. “He hardly ever talked about...
Jeannette man remembered for time in service
When Linda Reddy was growing up with her brother, Louis Chishko Jr., she would spend hours with him while he worked on cars. “When I was little and he would be working on a vehicle or something in the years before he went to the Navy, I was always right...
Greensburg native had ‘the best’ life
If everything in Bill Heubel’s world was “the best,” as he liked to say, then his life would fit that description too. “He was quite a man,” said his niece, Bernadette Scully. Mr. Heubel was a veteran, a retired lawyer, a world traveler, an avid golfer, a musician, a composer,...
Obituary: William L. ‘Bill’ Smith of Upper St. Clair worked 42 years at U.S. Steel
Martin J. Smith once reached into the pocket of a tuxedo jacket his father William L. “Bill” Smith had given him and pulled out a special pin. The Civitan International pin had been passed down from Martin Smith’s grandfather. To the Smith family, it represented a life well lived. Smith...
Trafford man loved family, woodworking
Dwight Witman Jr. had just turned 4 when he spent time with his future wife, Naomi, for one of the first times. The duo, who lived a block from each other in Trafford, remembered kneeling next to the bathtub playing with sailboats during Witman’s birthday party. Naomi Witman was the...
Southwest Greensburg woman had heart of gold, killer card-playing instincts
If David and Patrick Leonard got into trouble, they could expect to revisit it later in the week. “My father was a long-distance truck driver,” said David Leonard of Greensburg. “One thing I always remember is, if we got into trouble, my mother took care of it, but you got...
Clive Cussler, million-selling adventure writer, dies at 88
NEW YORK — Clive Cussler, the million-selling adventure writer and real-life thrill-seeker who wove personal details and spectacular fantasies into his page-turning novels about underwater explorer Dirk Pitt, has died, his publisher said Wednesday. Cussler died Monday at his home in Scottsdale, Arizona, said Alexis Welby, spokeswoman for publisher Penguin...
Scottdale area mail carrier was always on the go
For eight years, Harry Leighliter lived by the U.S. Postal Service creed, “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.’’ Mr. Leighliter worked as a rural carrier in the Scottdale area, delivering mail to homes and businesses...
Unity woman was caring person who loved children, loved pets
Rachael Johnston of Unity had a loving heart, taking care of children in her work and babysitting relatives and loving pets — both cats and dogs. “I knew her as a very gentle, loving person. She got along very well with kids and pets,” said her uncle, Herman Lagally of...
Murrysville resident Lucille Byrne made impact on students as teacher, food service director
Lucy Byrne touched the lives of thousands of students during her career as a teacher and a school food service director. “She loved working with children and with people of all ages,” said her daughter Christina Heil. “She met many people who became lifelong friends – kitchen workers, students, teachers,...
Winemaker Dennis Narcisi remembered as ‘passionate man with a soft heart’
It seemed that Dennis Narcisi never met a grape or person he didn’t like. He was not a big man physically, just five-and-a-half-feet tall weighing only 140 pounds. But his son, Randy, remembered him as a huge person. “He was just a quiet, little guy who didn’t have a mean...
Connellsville man a ‘staunch volunteer’ who loved local history
If it was about Connellsville, Tom Rusnack was interested. Mr. Rusnack was a life member of the Connellsville VFW and AMVETS, a regular member of the American Legion and the Knights of Columbus, part of the Fayette County Cultural Trust and a board member at the Wesley Health Center. “He...
‘Ricky the Oil Man’ of Yukon had lifelong fascination with the petroleum business
Richard Catone was well known as “Ricky the Oil Man.” His reputation even extended to when his daughter Cynthia Sherwin moved into his former childhood home in Yukon. “People used to call all the time trying to pay their bills or with a question for my dad,” she said. The...
