Valley News Dispatch category, Page 265
Young entrepreneurs featured at Plum’s Monday Market
Talk about a gift that keeps on giving, and teaches a life lesson, to boot. “I wanted a bike last year, and instead, my dad bought me a log splitter,” 11-year-old Wyatt Sheaffer said. “And to buy my bike, I just split a lot of wood and make some money.”...
New Kensington-Arnold teacher advances to principal of H.D. Berkey Elementary
A New Kensington-Arnold elementary teacher has been advanced to principal. Brian Heidenreich is the new principal of H.D. Berkey Elementary, the district’s first and second grade school in Arnold. He replaces Nicole Roberts, who retired. Heidenreich was hired at a prorated salary of $84,356. He was chosen from six candidates,...
Free backpack giveaway Thursday welcomes all Kiski Area students
Nothing screams back-to-school like a new backpack. Kiski Area School District faculty, staff and volunteers are making sure any students enrolled in the district have access to a new backpack this year with a free giveaway event Thursday at Kiski Area High School. The Back to School Backpack Bash, in...
Churches unite to host back-to-school block party for students in Leechburg
A new scholastic-themed street party is coming to Leechburg. The inaugural Back 2 School Block Party will welcome students from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday along Main Street, between First and Second streets, for free food, refreshments, games and more. Music will be provided by DJ Jonathan. The event...
The Stroller, Aug. 9, 2023: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Volunteers needed at Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley Animal Protectors of...
Highlands High School band holds annual Pie Night
The Highlands High School Varsity Marching Band held its annual Pie Night Tuesday at Golden Rams Stadium, Harrison. The $5 donation included a slice of pie, drink and a performance by the marching band....
Lower Burrell man denies sex assault, gun charges
A Lower Burrell man denied to a Westmoreland County jury on Wednesday that he had sexual contact with a preteen girl who claimed she was molested. “I did nothing close to anything like that,” Edgar Lee Williams testified during the second day of his trial in which a now teen-age...
Boat dock leases terminated in Tarentum
Boaters demanded answers from Tarentum Council on Tuesday night regarding future leases at the riverfront, but most people didn’t like what they heard. Council voted to terminate dock leases on Oct. 31 due to aged utilities, safety issues and legal concerns. The move infuriated longtime boaters who said they’ve poured...
Breakfast program impacts student health, participation in school, leaders say
Gov. Josh Shapiro spent his lunch hour Tuesday at Penn Hills Elementary School talking about breakfast. The recently approved state budget includes a $46.5 million increase for the Universal Free Breakfast Program, resulting in morning meals for the state’s 1.7 million public school students. Funding will level the playing field...
Lower Burrell man on trial for sex assault charges against child
A mother’s questioning of her 10-year-old daughter over suspicions of stolen rent money led to allegations of sexual improprieties against a neighbor, a Westmoreland County prosecutor said Tuesday. Assistant District Attorney Judi Petrush told jurors that instead of admitting to theft of the cash the child unexpectedly disclosed reports of...
Bell Township real estate agent, client to be featured on HGTV’s ‘House Hunters’
In nearly 10 years of selling real estate, Lori Weig-Tamasy received a request she had never heard before from a client. “She told me she applied to be on HGTV’s ‘House Hunters’ and that she thinks she got accepted,” said Weig-Tamasy of Bell Township, a real estate agent for Century...
Police: Barrel of loaded pistol spotted in SUV during traffic stop in New Kensington
New Kensington police say a man they pulled over for allegedly running a stop sign had a loaded pistol stuffed between the seat and center console of his vehicle. Police said Laquinta Dewayne Shuford, 31, did not have a license to carry the gun. Shuford of the 1700 block of...
Paving to impact parking at several Highlands buildings
Parking at several Highlands school buildings will be impacted this week and next as crews pave the lots in preparation for the start of classes Aug. 31. Work is part of $25 million in construction upgrades that will include new sidewalks and paved lots at the high school, elementary and...
Father of starved Oakmont girl sentenced to 33 to 66 years in prison
An Oakmont man who was convicted in May of starving his 3-year-old daughter to death has been sentenced to 33 to 66 years in prison. Jose Salazar-Ortiz, 32, was sentenced Tuesday after being found guilty of third-degree murder in the 2020 starvation death of his daughter, Bella Seachrist. He also...
Kids games to return at St. Margaret Mary Parish’s annual festival
An annual Lower Burrell festival will be returning to St. Margaret Mary Parish church grounds later this week. The St. Margaret Mary Parish Festival of Friendship will take place from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the church at 3055 Leechburg Road. “Our main thing is that we...
Woods Family Band to rock Natrona with free concert
Blues musician Tim Woods will light up Natrona Community Park on Thursday with soulful sounds from his newest album, “For You,” currently charting in the Top 10 on the National Blues Rock radio list. The Greensburg resident will belt out classics with his five-piece Woods Family Band, which includes his...
New Kensington woman accused of stealing ex-boyfriend’s identity to get credit card while he was in prison
A New Kensington woman is accused of stealing her former boyfriend’s identity to get a credit card in his name, charging more than $3,500 on it after they broke up while he was in state prison. Melissa A. McGreal, 41, of the 600 block of Campbell Avenue was charged July...
The Stroller, Aug. 8, 2023: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Bicycle safety program planned in Leechburg Leechburg Police Department and Leechburg...
Shoring work nearly complete on Route 28 bridge in Harmar
Additional work to fix a railroad bridge where rocks fell onto the Route 28 expressway last week is underway. Crews are adding shielding under the railroad structure, this time southbound, between Exit 11 (Harmar) and Exit 12 (Cheswick) with single-lane restrictions for travelers. Northbound Route 28 was closed early Friday...
‘True to the spirit of the times’: Plum native set to release 3rd historical novel
If it ever comes up during Trivia Night, the 58th doge of Venice died on July 18, 1365. OK. So, what’s a doge? And who cares? The first answer is the ceremonial leader of the canal-laden city-state in what now is Italy. The second is Kevin Butler. For his soon-to-be-published...
New Kensington police charge woman with indecent exposure, drug counts
New Kensington police charged a woman with indecent exposure after, they say, she urinated in a parking lot after being pulled over and accused of driving too slowly. In addition to indecent exposure, police charged Joanne Lynn Stone, 56, of Moon Township on Friday with driving under the influence, drug...
Elderly man rescued from hillside fall in Harrison Hills Park
An elderly man suffered minor injuries after falling over a hillside Saturday in Harrison Hills Park, according to emergency crews. “He must’ve tripped and fell because when we got to him he was laying on the hill with his arms stuck under some branches,” Citizens Hose EMS Chief Jim Erb...
Just how many loose alligators are there around here anyway?Video
How many loose alligators do we have around here anyway? Alle-Kiski Valley residents with frontage along the Kiski River can breathe a little easier this week, after news that the alligator seen several times over the past week was caught by kayakers Sunday and turned over to humane officers. But...
The Stroller, Aug. 7, 2023: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Help available to replace unreadable license plates The office of state...
Wayward Kiski River alligator headed to new home after capture
Apollo-area officials and volunteers are celebrating the successful and safe capture Sunday of an alligator living in the Kiski River. The gator, nicknamed “Chomper” by the search team and rescued by two adult male kayakers Sunday evening, had been the subject of an intense search over the past week. “They...
