Valley News Dispatch category, Page 424
Washington Township man jailed after standoff with police
A 45-year-old Washington Township man accused of assaulting a teenage girl and threatening her with a rifle surrendered to police after a four-hour standoff early Wednesday, according to court documents. Township police arrested Calvin C. Creighton Jr. at his home on the 100 block of Turack Road just after 4...
The Stroller, Dec. 30, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Leechburg Elks to host annual hoop shoot event The annual Leechburg Elks Hoop Shoot free throw competition will be at noon Jan....
Yak Diner’s move to briefly close River Road in North Apollo on Monday
River Road closure for moving the Yak Diner delayed Closure of a section of River Road in North Apollo that was set of happen Monday will be delayed for at least a day. Arlene “Dolly” McCoy said Saturday that moving the diner must be delayed until PennDOT releases a permit....
Dollar General along Route 780 opens in Upper Burrell
Upper Burrell residents anticipating the opening of the Dollar General along Route 780 no longer have to wait. The store, located on 4500 Seventh Street Road, opened its doors on Christmas Eve. The store is expected to gain some traction from its placement near a residential area. “We look forward...
Harrison water authority customers to see 5% rate hike in 2022
Customers of the Harrison Township Water Authority will see a 5% increase in their rates beginning Jan. 1, the authority announced. The authority said in a recent press release that it is increasing the cost of water because of inflation; increased costs for chemicals, health care, fuel and employee pay;...
Police drop rape charges against North Apollo man after accuser recants
Kiski Township police dropped rape charges against Jordan Michael Coleman of North Apollo after the alleged victim confessed she made up the allegations. Coleman was arrested and jailed after accusations that he choked, assaulted and raped an estranged girlfriend on Oct. 28 in North Apollo during an argument that started...
Vandergrift women accused of cruelty to animals, abandoning cats at shelter
A Vandergrift woman and her daughter each face 33 animal cruelty and neglect charges after a state humane officer accused them of improperly caring for 11 cats and then abandoning them at a shelter. Callie Jo McCluskey, 51, and Katherine McCluskey, 18, of 37th Street, each were charged with 11...
Police charge New Kensington man with assaulting woman during argument
New Kensington police charged a Victoria Avenue man with felony aggravated assault after his girlfriend accused him of breaking her wrist during an argument. Ernest Darnell Prince, 30, also faces a misdemeanor charge of unlawful restraint in connection with the Dec. 5 incident. He faces a preliminary hearing on the...
The Stroller, Dec. 29, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. HOPE Center shares wish list The Alle-Kiski Area HOPE Center, Tarentum, needs items for its clients who are fleeing domestic violence. Items...
Revitalization tops municipal leaders’ 2022 wish lists
Wish lists abound this time of year, but not all gifts come in neatly wrapped packages. Local community leaders know what they’d most like to see under their municipal trees — if cost and tax dollars were no object. From trails to safe sidewalks to green space, officials appear to...
Community Closet at Leechburg church marks 10 years of dressing people in need
Pastor James Arter of First Evangelical Lutheran Church in Leechburg has seen the impact the church’s Community Closet has on families and individuals. Years ago, a young girl came with her father to buy clothes. She was so taken with the project’s mission that she later returned with clothes of...
Tarentum names top decorators in borough contest
Tom Tyborowski begins decorating his Tarentum house for Christmas at the same time the Halloween pumpkins go out — but the lights, reindeer and nutcrackers remain at least until February. “We enjoy it and sometimes after the rush of the holidays, when everything seems blah, we enjoy the lights just...
Commissioners award demolition contracts for abandoned structures in Harrison
Harrison will keep a township contractor busy not only with demolishing structures but doing some building work, as well. Township commissioners awarded two contracts to Ron Gillette Inc. and expanded another. The commissioners approved a contract for Gillette to tear down a number of abandoned, blighted structures in the Natrona...
Tarentum woman charged with lying on application to buy gun
A Tarentum woman was charged with a felony after police say she intentionally provided false information about her past when filling out an application to buy a gun at a sporting goods store. Robin A. Ratz, 66, of Heuser Way was charged by Harrison Township police with a felony count...
Westmoreland economic development marketing director retires after one last deal
Joe Sisley’s fingerprints are all over economic development in Westmoreland County. “Joe has sold or leased every property in Westmoreland County’s industrial park system,” said Jason Rigone, executive director of the county’s Industrial Development Corp. There are more than 170 companies occupying 1,200 acres of land and — until the...
East Vandergrift man accused of stealing $42K from nursing home patient
An East Vandergrift man is accused of stealing nearly $43,000 from a man who gave him access to his bank and credit card accounts when he went into a nursing home. John William Ebner, 33, of McKinley Avenue, was charged by Vandergrift police with theft, receiving stolen property, access device...
Shed gifted to Tarentum community garden found destroyed
A much-appreciated storage shed given to Tarentum’s community garden was found Thursday to have been destroyed, said the Rev. Phil Beck, an organizer of the group that oversees the garden. Beck of First United Presbyterian Church in Tarentum said he believes the shed at the Greg Blythe Friendship Garden on...
The Stroller, Dec. 28, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Knead Community Café welcomes donations Knead Community Café, New Kensington, is accepting donations to help the daily operation of the café, 1011...
New coffee shop in Freeport creates cozy gathering place for cup of joe
Virginia Lindsay didn’t set out to open a coffee and tea shop in Freeport when she and business partner Karen Heilman started looking for a new venture in which to get involved. But they knew they wanted to put their creativity and energy into something that was in the heart...
Gilpin decides on projects for $80,000 of federal covid relief funds
The Gilpin supervisors intend to allocate $80,000 of the township’s federal covid relief money. The money is part of $125,400 received from the federal fund designed to help communities come back from a broad range of issues they faced in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. Township supervisors Chairman Charles...
Building the Valley: Cameroonian immigrant lays roots for business in New Kensington
Odilon Wafo came to the United States from the African country of Cameroon in 2010 looking for better opportunities for himself and his children. He would find himself owning a business in New Kensington, a city that itself was striving for better. “When I got here, I saw the city...
Concerns about possible covid exposure draw people to mobile testing site in Tarentum
Scores of people lined up in the rain outside a church in Tarentum on Monday for free tests to determine if they have been infected by the coronavirus. A number of the people who went for tests at First United Presbyterian Church on Lock Street said they did so because...
Pittsburgh-based nonprofit Semper Gratus. honored as 1 of 50 Disney’s Magic Makers
When Ian Coyle, founder and president of Semper Gratus., found out he was selected as one of Disney’s Magic Makers, he wanted to pay it forward by giving someone else his free trip to Walt Disney World. The act is just one of the qualities the Leechburg native and Shaler...
Coroner: 2 Pittsburgh residents killed in Route 28 crash
The Armstrong County Coroner’s Office has identified two people killed in a multi-vehicle crash that shut down both lanes of northbound Route 28 for a time on Monday morning. The road was shut down shortly after 9 a.m. between Exit 18 PA 128 — Slate Lick/Northpointe and Exit 19 US...
The Stroller, Dec. 27, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your events, club meetings and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. New award to honor Concordia employees Concordia Lutheran Ministries has announced a new honor, The Stephen W. Johnson Mission Award that will...
