Valley News Dispatch category, Page 351

Dignitaries gathered on Fifth Avenue in New Kensington on Wednesday to celebrate the opening of a facility officials hope will serve as a regional hub for innovation, creative thinking, problem-solving, learning and collaboration. With its energetic orange color and a sawtooth roof evoking the city’s industrial heritage, the key thing...

“Be who you are” – that’s the message of the second annual FC Pride in the Park, a family-friendly event scheduled to fill the grounds at Allegheny RiverTrail Park in Aspinwall. An inclusive festival featuring crafts, carnival games, button making, canvas painting and food will be 5 to 8 p.m....

Nearly 50 health, wellness and employment experts will fill Riverview Memorial Park in Tarentum on Saturday during a community fair. Hosted by state Rep. Carrie DelRosso, the event will be from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the park along First Avenue. Among the offerings will be: • Health screenings;...

William “Billy” Peoples is being remembered by family and friends around Oakmont as a tirelessly dedicated public servant. Peoples served with the Oakmont Volunteer Fire Department for 54 years, 12 of those as chief. “I always remembered him being a firefighter. He didn’t want to miss a call,” said great-niece...

Publicize your 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 15068. Please include a daytime telephone number. American Pie concert rescheduled The concert featuring oldies band American Pie was...

Freeport Run Road will remain closed between the Hulton Bridge and Guys Run Road through the rest of the week or possibly longer, officials said. Allegheny Valley Regional Emergency Management Agency coordinator Bruno Moretti said the tank cars have been offloaded and emptied. The focus is on cleaning up and...

A barn in Armstrong County caught fire late Monday, according to Tribune-Review news partner WPXI-TV. The fire occurred along North Cherry Street in West Franklin Township. No injuries were reported, and there were no animals in the barn, 911 dispatchers said. A woman who lives in the area told WPXI-TV...

Members of the Layton family of North Apollo continue to pour their energy into two businesses celebrating suds, food and socializing. Conny Creek Brewing Company, with locations in Allegheny Township and Saxonburg, is a family-friendly brewpub serving craft beers brewed in-house by brewmaster Lee Layton. Layton is a co-owner with...

Publicize your 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 15068. Please include a daytime telephone number. Armstrong Museum to feature antique engine demonstrations Armstrong County Historical Museum and...

The Freeport-based internet company, Salsgiver Inc., is giving community service a new meaning with its decision to rehab the former Freeport Foods at 309 Fifth St. to establish a brewery and restaurant. Salsgiver recently opened Essential Fermentation Restaurant and Brewery, serving up special craft beer and traditional and non-traditional entrees...

Outgoing Tarentum Borough Manager Michael Nestico is eager to rebuild ties with Westmoreland County when he assumes the position of top administrator in Murrysville next month. A resident of Jeannette, Nestico worked as an attorney and municipal manager there before taking the reins in Tarentum five years ago. “I’m looking...

When Donna Hyatt buried her grandson, a victim of gun violence, in January, expenses weren’t something she really had to worry about. She and other family members realized that not all families are as fortunate in that regard. So they decided to do something to help. The family of Jorden...

Jim Varhola spent a lot of his youth in playgrounds around his home in Springdale. “That’s what we did — we played soccer, softball, football. I don’t know what I would have done without the parks we had,” said Varhola, of Upper Burrell. “It’s important to have those things available...

A new coffee-themed social is brewing in the Kiski Area School District. Kiski Area Superintendent Misty Slavic will host her inaugural “Coffee Chat With the Superintendent” on Friday, June 10. The free gathering kicks off at 9 a.m. All residents of the district are invited to attend. Participants should register...

Vandergrift officials are continuing efforts to fight blight in the borough, but the walls aren’t tumbling down quickly enough for some residents. This year, Vandergrift Council identified five abandoned and/or unsafe properties on Longfellow Street and Washington and Franklin avenues. The borough recently completed the demolition of an abandoned former...

Publicize your 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 15068. Please include a daytime telephone number. Memorial Day. A time of remembrance. A time of prayer. Take a...

Memorial Day is always special. But that was truly the case May 30, 1946. It was the first Memorial Day following the end of World War II, and Alle-Kiski Valley towns rolled out the red carpet for troops returning home. Like now, that Memorial Day was a Monday, but the...

You won’t need a primer on poetic pentameter to find enjoyment and meaning in Adam Matcho’s latest collection. Some might call it poetry for working stiffs. The 90 poems the Washington Township writer included in “Ask Your Undertaker” are simple, deftly crafted vignettes that immediately feel familiar. Big-box retail stores,...

Upper Burrell is getting closer to fixing two of the seven landslides affecting Lower Drennen Road. The township was approved for a federal grant of more than $180,000 through U.S. Sen. Bob Casey’s office. But the award doesn’t mean work will start right away. The township, according to supervisors Chairman...

The largest fundraiser benefitting the Kiski Area School District is back. The 14th annual Jeff McAfoose Golf Classic returns July 30 after a two-year absence because of the pandemic. The event kicks off at noon with a lunch at Willowbrook Country Club in Allegheny Township. Tickets are $125 per golfer,...

The last of the Norfolk Southern tanker cars that toppled into Guys Run Creek during a derailment last week in Harmar have been removed, officials said Sunday. “The last tank car containing petroleum distillate was removed from the creek this morning, and all rail cars have now been removed from...

Pittsburgh Police are looking for a McKeesport man charged with a fatal shooting March 19 in Pittsburgh’s South Side Flats neighborhood. Police issued an arrest warrant for Zahvair Palmer, 22, on charges of criminal homicide, robbery and weapons violations. Palmer is accused of fatally shooting Adam Cloud, 29, of New...

An Acmetonia Elementary student is a finalist in a video game design challenge for a game he coded to raise awareness about accessibility in gaming. Video games were never a big part of Owen Gamble’s life until the pandemic happened. The 12-year-old would hop on his computer for a gaming...