Valley News Dispatch category, Page 572
Fox Chapel Area students in all grades can decide between hybrid model or online learning
Fox Chapel Area students at all grade levels will have the option of returning to class two days a week or learning entirely online. The school board on Monday night approved the district’s return-to-school plan with a vote of 6-3. Board members Amy Cooper, Edie Cook and Dharmesh Vyas opposed,...
Letter to the editor: More voices needed to be heard in O’Hara Township park renaming issue
For a variety of reasons, I was not in favor of changing the name of Squaw Valley Park. Not the least of which was that more O’Hara Township residents were not given the time or opportunity to express their opinion, pro or con. It may very well be that the...
The Stroller, Aug. 11, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your non-profit organization going to have a fundraiser? Send information to The Stroller at least a week in advance to vndnews@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on Twitter @VNDStroller for a daily link...
Some Plum residents push for borough to form a diversity committeeVideo
Members of a social justice social media group want Plum officials to form a diversity and equity committee in response to community concerns and comments from elected leaders. Resident Amy Badali, founder of the Facebook page Black Lives Matter In Plum Boro, brought up the idea at Monday night’s council...
Oakmont Carnegie Library in-person visits now available by appointment
People can patronize the Oakmont Carnegie Library in person by appointment during the covid-19 pandemic. Library Director Beth Mellor said they started letting people in by appointment last week after enough plexiglass shields were in place. Appointments can be made either through the library’s website or by calling 412-828-9532. Up...
Highlands considering 1-day delay to start of school year, loaner laptop rules spelled out
Highlands School District is considering a one-day delay to the start of the school year, resulting in all students beginning remotely. The school board is expected to vote on a revised 2020-21 school calendar at its meeting on Monday, Aug. 17. During a board meeting Monday, Superintendent Monique Mawhinney said...
Police: Butler County man charged with child porn took photos of girls in bathroom
State police say a Jefferson Township man admitted taking photos of two underage girls while they were in a bathroom and had dozens of images of child pornography on his cellphone. Joshua Michael Pethtel, 33, allegedly told troopers he would take photos of the girls from an outside window, knowing...
DNA evidence helps Leechburg police bring charges in 4-year-old burglary
DNA evidence helped police identify a man who they said burglarized a Leechburg home nearly four years ago, according to a criminal complaint filed last week. Derek Justin Hare, 32, of Vandergrift is accused of breaking into his former employer’s Spring Street home and taking $100 on Sept. 2, 2016....
Food distribution scheduled at Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer
A drive-up food distribution will be held Tuesday at the Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer. The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank is holding the event in partnership with the Allegheny Valley Association of Churches from 5 to 7 p.m. Almost 500 households received food at the first distribution in July,...
Armstrong County man accused in hit-and-run crash with bicyclist
A 20-year-old bicyclist suffered multiple facial fractures, a broken jaw and a broken arm Friday night after he was struck by a hit-and-run driver Friday in Bell Township, state police said. The incident occurred around 9:20 p.m. in front of the Dollar General on Route 981, according to court documents....
Foxwall EMS Chief Josh Worth leaves to take job in West Virginia
From a new bike crew to increased assistance for opioid users, Foxwall’s Josh Worth worked to build stronger relationships with Lower Valley residents during his three years as chief. Worth announced last week that he was leaving the Fox Chapel-based group for an out-of-state job. His last day was Aug....
Tarentum considering memorials in Riverview Memorial Park as band shell renovation begins
Renovation work on the band shell in Tarentum’s Riverview Memorial Park was scheduled to start Saturday, borough manager Michael Nestico said. Council is waiting for that work to be finished before considering a request for a memorial to a local musician there or an idea for another memorial to many...
Man wanted in fatal double shooting in Virginia arrested in New Kensington
A 31-year-old Virginia man wanted in a fatal summer shooting there is in the Westmoreland County Prison after being tracked to a home in New Kensington where he was arrested by federal authorities. Christopher Buckner of Manassas Park was arrested last week by the U.S. Marshal’s fugitive task force after...
Vandergrift woman planning massive Christmas festival
The goal, Denise Lewandowski-George says, is to turn all of Vandergrift into a Christmas town like those seen in Hallmark movies. She pitched the idea to Vandergrift Council during last Monday’s virtual meeting. With the support of the Vandergrift Improvement Program (VIP) and several local businesses, Lewandowski-George has decided to...
The Stroller, Aug. 10, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your non-profit organization going to have a fundraiser? Send information to The Stroller at least a week in advance to vndnews@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on Twitter @VNDStroller for a daily link...
Former Apollo nuclear site up for sale, againVideo
Apollo Borough is seeking, again, to sell its largest commercial site along Warren Avenue, 22 acres that includes about 4.5 acres off-limits for development where a former nuclear fuels plant once stood. The parcels include land owned by Metals Services and cleaned up by Armstrong County Department of Economic Development,...
The Stroller, Aug. 9, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your non-profit organization going to have a fundraiser? Send information to The Stroller at least a week in advance to vndnews@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on Twitter @VNDStroller for a daily link...
Allegheny Valley School Board approves all virtual first month of school
After Allegheny Valley School District parents and school board members questioned a proposal for a phased reopening last week, the board approved a revised plan Thursday night for an all-virtual first month of school. Allegheny Valley School District students are scheduled to start Aug. 24 via virtual learning for a...
The Stroller, Aug. 8, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your non-profit organization going to have a fundraiser? Send information to The Stroller at least a week in advance to vndnews@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on Twitter @VNDStroller for a daily link...
Shaw memorial motorcycle run rides again; scholarship awarded to Lower Burrell man
The coronavirus pandemic hasn’t hampered interest in a fundraiser that preserves the legacy of a New Kensington police officer who was killed in the line of duty. The third Officer Brian Shaw Memorial Scholarship Ride and Event, set for Aug. 16, is sold out, with ride slots still open for...
Pandemic won’t stop West Leechburg boy from raising money for Alzheimer’s research
When life hands you a pandemic, you still make lemonade — to find a cure. “Even though there is a virus, Alzheimer’s is still out there and I want to make my ‘Joe Joe’ happy and not make anyone else suffer from this,” said Brody Toy, 8, of West Leechburg....
Frank Morea, pillar of Kiski Area football program, dies at age 90
Richard “Dick” Dilts and Frank Morea were opponents on the football field in high school in the mid 1940s. Dilts played at Butler, and Morea represented Vandergrift. “We had a little verbal confrontation on the field one time, and later in college (at Slippery Rock), I heard his voice,” said...
Deer Lakes modifies back to school plan before next week’s vote
Deer Lakes School District released additional details regarding its modified reopening plan, which the school board is expected to vote on next week. A key modification to the plan applies to the district’s in-person learning option, which was made based on community feedback, district officials said. Should the district not...
Upper Burrell drops proposal to allow ATVs on township roads
Upper Burrell Supervisors are no longer considering allowing all-terrain vehicles on township roads. Supervisors floated the idea recently after seeing the interest in Gilpin Township, which recently opened some township roads to ATVs. Both Gilpin and Upper Burrell are rural municipalities where many residents own ATVs. Westmoreland County as a...
No browsing but pair of community libraries to open for computer, printer use
You can’t browse the shelves yet but Cooper-Siegel Community Library and its affiliated Sharpsburg Community Library will open Monday for patrons to use computers, fax services and printers. Use is by appointment only. Jill McConnell, executive director of the libraries, said she is thrilled to be able to offer the...
