Valley News Dispatch category, Page 349
Texas woman comes to New Kensington to take home dog she rescued, gave up
A Texas woman came to New Kensington on Friday to take home a stray dog that gave birth to 11 puppies two weeks after she took it into her home in June. While Sandy Hightower was OK with giving up the puppies, she realized she made a terrible mistake in...
Brackenridge mayor joins 4 Western Pa. officials in pledge to save butterflies, pollinators
Brackenridge Mayor Lindsay Fraser is one of four public officials in Western Pennsylvania to sign the Mayors’ Monarch Pledge to work to save butterflies and other pollinators. Offered through the National Wildlife Federation, the program enlists municipal leaders to steward monarch butterflies, whose populations have declined by 90% in recent...
The Stroller, Oct. 29, 2022: 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 a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Entries sought for bake-off fundraiser in Leechburg The third annual spaghetti...
Students learn of manufacturing opportunities at New Kensington’s Digital Foundry
Alexis Beard has an interest in engineering. A senior at Franklin Regional High School, she wants to create and design something that helps people. “My passion is bridges,” she said. Noah Kleckner, a senior at Burrell High School, wants to pursue mechanical engineering, unless someone can change his mind. “I...
Leechburg’s Pink Day festival sets attendance and fundraising record
Attendance at the 2022 Pink Day fundraiser for breast cancer research in Leechburg reached an all-time high. And so did the monetary donations. The annual daylong celebration and festival, held Sept. 17 on Market Street in downtown Leechburg, welcomed more than 10,000 attendees and raised more than $41,000, according to...
Woman accuses West Deer man of sexually assaulting her while sleeping at friend’s house after party
West Deer police charged a man with sexually assaulting a woman after a party at her friend’s house, where he was living as a roommate. Dominic J. Richards, 27, of the 1200 block of Logan Road in West Deer was charged with four misdemeanor counts of indecent assault, according to...
Harrison tree planting boosts experience for ballpark spectators
Anyone who has ever watched a game at the Natrona Heights Baseball Softball Association complex will likely enjoy the experience even more next year. Volunteers from the youth league in Harrison joined the township tree committee and the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy to plant more than a dozen Zelkova trees on...
Vandergrift police shock man who bit officer, fought with others arresting him for warrants
Vandergrift police say a man wanted on multiple warrants had to be repeatedly shocked with a stun gun after he ran from officers and then bit one of them in the arm while being taken into custody. Antjuan Dewayne Smith, 39, of the 2600 block of Brown Avenue in Hempfield...
Lower Burrell police say man repeatedly fought officers during arrest — even in jail cell
A man wanted on an arrest warrant was charged with felonies by Lower Burrell police after they accused him of kneeing an officer who tried to take him into custody and spitting blood at officers while he was in a holding cell. Christopher A. Love, 38, of the 700 block...
Student-run cafe reopens, expands at Leechburg Area School District
A new mobile food and beverage program is on a roll in the Leechburg Area School District. Students enrolled in the district’s learning support program introduced the Creation Cafe Coffee Cart in August, selling hot and cold beverages and snacks to teachers in the elementary school. The mobile cart is...
The Stroller, Oct. 28, 2022: 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 a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Allegheny Valley Association of Churches to host Festival of Faith The...
Former basketball star, now an instructor, charged with sexual assault of student athlete
Police in Armstrong County charged a former standout high school and college basketball player with sexually assaulting a student at a skills school he operates. South Buffalo Township police charged Mark Anthony Shehady, 24, of the 500 block of Dorseyville Road in O’Hara with nine felonies: three counts each of...
Allegheny Valley Hospital hosts Howl-O-Ween pet parade featuring therapy dog team
Staff and patients at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison got a chance to forget about their daily stresses and concerns for a short time while a team of therapy dogs donned their favorite costumes for a Howl-O-Ween parade. “Nothing brings a smile to the face of a patient or employee...
Butler-Freeport’s ‘little trail that could’ celebrates 30th anniversary
In October 1992, Franco Harris, WPXI news anchor Della Crews and Belgian horses were on hand for the grand opening of the Butler-Freeport Community Trail. Then some unhappy landowners filed lawsuits, which took about a decade to settle. “Among other managers, our trail is known as the ‘little trail that...
Arnold grants variance for walk-in cooler at service station
Arnold businessman Mike Thakkar received an OK from the city’s zoning hearing board Tuesday on a variance request for his 1610 Freeport Road service station/convenience store. Thakkar, representing Yashvi Oil LLC, requested permission to build a walk-in cooler that would extend outside the rear of the building toward an adjoining...
Crash rips wheel from Audi parked on Fifth Avenue in Arnold
An Arnold resident is shopping for a new car at probably the worst possible time given the market after his Audi A7 was destroyed in a bizarre crash. Edward Jarnagin said he bought the large luxury car new in 2016. It was almost paid off, but now it is headed...
New Kensington family gets porch rebuilt through Habitat’s ‘Brush With Kindness’ campaign
Through Allegheny Valley Habitat for Humanity and with the help of volunteers from Lowe’s Home Improvement, a New Kensington family has a new porch on their home. The project to rebuild the front porch of Devon Schulz’s home started Friday and was expected to wrap up Wednesday, said John Tamiggi,...
The Stroller, Oct. 27, 2022: 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 a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Salvation Army seeks Red Kettle volunteers The Salvation Army New Kensington...
Josh Shapiro rallies in Cheswick, says 33rd House District critically important
A visit to Cheswick by Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro on Wednesday highlighted the significance of the 33rd District to flipping the state House, many audience members said. “Having the potential governor spend time and resources in our area shows how important our voices are,” Brackenridge Councilman Dino Lopreiato said....
Allegheny Township woman dies in wreck on Garvers Ferry Road
A 45-year-old Allegheny Township woman is dead after she crashed her car into a tree Wednesday afternoon, police said. Westmoreland County Coroner’s Office identified the driver as Sarah Bowser of Gene Drive. She died at the scene as the result of blunt force trauma. Her death was ruled accidental. Township...
Father ordered to stand trial on charges of strangling, murdering son in New Kensington
A man accused of killing his 9-year-old son earlier this year in New Kensington will stand trial. During a preliminary hearing Wednesday, District Judge Frank J. Pallone Jr. held Jean J. Charles, 40, of Brackenridge for trial on criminal homicide, first-degree murder, unlawful restraint, strangulation, concealing the death of a...
Kiski Township police arrest warrant suspect who they say tried to flee traffic stop by running into river
Kiski Township police say they arrested a man wanted on multiple warrants after he fled from a traffic stop and then tried to avoid being captured by swimming across a river. David Wayne Siford, 41, of the 100 block of Washington Avenue in Vandergrift, was charged with two felony counts...
Murrysville man accused of breaking into Washington Township woman’s home same day as release on bond
A man who was out of jail on bond after being accused of strangling his former girlfriend was arrested by Washington Township police after she told them he threatened to kill her and broke into her house the same day he was released. Colby Matthew Bowling, 28, of the 300...
Harmar officials to seek DEP’s help in finding buried manhole
The Harmar supervisors are calling on the state Department of Environmental Protection to help them uncover a buried manhole. The manhole in question is near the Allegheny Valley Joint Sewage Authority treatment plant. It’s on a narrow but long stretch of land between the railroad tracks and Freeport Road, according...
Remember When: Johnetta was once a thriving town in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Western Pennsylvania has a number of ghost towns that thrived during the Industrial Age. In some cases, not a trace of the towns exist. One example in the Alle-Kiski Valley is Johnetta, a town once located along the Allegheny River north of Gilpin Township’s Schenley section. Johnetta got its start...
