Westmoreland category, Page 238
Gatling gun fires off interest at Historic Hanna’s Town Civil War event
As a young boy, Keith Takacs knew he wanted a Gatling gun. The rapid-fire weapon, a precursor to modern machine guns patented in 1862, looked cool in old cowboy movies. Fast-forward a few decades, and Takacs dropped about $12,000 on one in 2019. “Saw it, wanted it, made it a...
Person freed from ticket booth at Idlewild amusement park after vehicle crash
Firefighters freed a person from a ticket booth Sunday afternoon at Idlewild & SoakZone amusement park after a vehicle crashed into it. A Westmoreland 911 dispatch supervisor said a person in the vehicle had a medical emergency around 2 p.m. at the park in Ligonier Township off Route 30. The...
Millennial monks taste success with Saint Vincent Gristmill bake sales
Wiping flour from his brow, Brother Angelo Lichtenstein, 33, prays as he kneads fresh dough in preparation for an upcoming bake sale at the Saint Vincent Gristmill. The Benedictine monk prays over everything he bakes, from bagels to brioche. “Baking is one way that we can participate in God’s role...
Greensburg eyes elimination of off-street parking requirement to spur downtown development
Greensburg officials are considering eliminating off-street parking requirements for downtown businesses to spur development. City Solicitor Zachary Kansler is drafting a proposal to change parking guidelines because the requirements are “one of the biggest impediments to development,” he said. The planning commission will review the proposed changes Aug. 23. Authors...
Massive mural completed at Greensburg Shop ‘n Save
If any regular customers of the Greensburg Shop ’n Save on East Pittsburgh Street haven’t stopped by this past week, their next visit is likely to be a whole lot more colorful. About 4,600 square feet more colorful, to be exact. “I’ve been wanting to do it for about a...
Summer cadet camp: graduates learn police work, discipline, perseverance
Jordan Litz plans to follow in her father’s footsteps into law enforcement one day after finishing her education at her preferred college, Michigan State University. “I would like to be a (state police) trooper when I graduate and also a criminal investigator,” 13-year-old Litz said at the Westmoreland County Camp...
Out & About: Pittsburgh bands rock out at Twin Lakes concert series
Two sets of Pittsburgh rockers played the July 22 date of the Westmoreland Parks and Recreation summer concert series, to the delight of the crowd on the hillside above the Brian T. Rusnock Amphitheater. The amphitheater, at the Twin Lakes Peach Plaza Expansion Area in Hempfield, is in an acoustical...
Out & About: Westmoreland Walks event gives cancer the boot
What do you wear to Give Breast Cancer the Boot? Boots, obviously — and cowboy boots, specifically. Westmoreland Walks hosted its annual country-and-western-themed event on July 21 at Yinzer Valley Farms in East Huntingdon, and attendees took the dress code seriously. There were boots, hats, neckerchiefs, jeans, prairie dresses and...
Murrysville ministry volunteers plan to paint mural in Jeannette
Cornerstone Ministries is finalizing plans for a mural on the side of a building in Jeannette, said Pastor Brandon Vieth. Once leaders at the Murrysville church complete that process, young adult volunteers are going to get to work with paint brushes, hopefully next month. It’s a way to help the...
Out & About: Summer in Ligonier Block Party hosts fun for all ages
A summer Saturday is always a good time for a trip to Ligonier to do a little shopping, have a meal and see the sights. There was added incentive for visitors on July 22, as the Ligonier Valley Chamber of Commerce hosted a Summer in Ligonier Block Party. A block...
Unity company holds First Responders Appreciation Day to benefit local volunteers
The blue skies arrived just in time for Saturday’s annual First Responders Appreciation Day. The event outside Nickos Chimney Co. on Route 30 in Unity was started four years ago by employee Lisa Tatsch. It’s a way for workers and volunteers to give back to local first responders. All proceeds...
Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County looks to continue expansion efforts
Sewers are the new growth industry for the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County. The agency last week completed the purchase of a municipal sewer system that services Scottdale, Everson, Upper Tyrone and part of East Huntingdon, and officials said the utility, whose primary business during its first 60 years has...
Franklin Regional swimmers make All-American list, including first mother-son duo
Four Franklin Regional swimmers have been named to the 2022-23 National Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association’s high-school All-American list, placing them among the top 100 in the nation in four categories. “We had a very good season,” said FR swim coach Vic Santoro. “Our medley relay were state champions, and our...
Murrysville Golf Club tees up for court battle
The operator of a Murrysville golf course claims the landlord wants to take over what has become a successful business. J.K. Golf Inc., the operator of the Murrysville Golf Club, filed a lawsuit this week seeking an arbitration panel be convened to determine the future of the 18-hole course on...
Youngstown Whitney Volunteer Fire Department celebrates 100 years
Youngstown Whitney Volunteer Fire Department is celebrating its 100th anniversary. The department has about 30 active firefighters. Among activities on Friday was a Battle of the Barrel competition. On Saturday, starting at noon, the station will hold a parade and festival. The department was created through the merger of Youngstown,...
Hanna’s Town kicks off Civil War reenactment with children’s program
Of all the portrayals and demonstrations Friday at Historic Hanna’s Town, Waylon Bizup was most excited about the weaponry. “I liked the cannon,” 10-year-old Waylon said. “I liked the Gatling gun over there. We got to fire it, like two rounds. It was really cool, and we got to be...
Frog Week created to bring attention to often overlooked species
Frogs are finally getting their due — and their own week of celebration — thanks to the efforts of an Indiana University of Pennsylvania graduate student. “Most tend to fear frogs and other creatures around them; frog week helps break this and bring attention to what is in our backyard,”...
Westmoreland courthouse to host veteran benefits clinic
Westmoreland County’s Department of Veterans Affairs will host an open house at the courthouse on Thursday to assist with applications for special benefits authorized by the federal government last year. The clinic will operate from noon to 3 p.m. to provide assistance for veterans and their families to apply for...
Paying it forward: ‘The Give Back Kid’ spreads positivity
Jamal Woodson recalled a time he had $2 for the week for food. “I bought a $1 loaf of bread and a $1 bottle of hot sauce and made sandwiches for the week,” the Murrysville resident said. “I added water and toasted the bread. It was a feeling I don’t...
Delmont boy’s fatal injuries were ‘diagnostic of torture,’ doctors say
A 5-year-old Delmont boy who liked to sing country music and play with monster trucks died a torturous death at the hands of his adoptive parents, authorities said Friday. Lauren E. Maloberti, 34, and Jacob N. Maloberti, 33, of Delmont are being held without bail on homicide charges in the...
Car wash planned at old Teddy’s restaurant location in North Huntingdon
The site of the former Teddy’s restaurant along Route 30 in North Huntingdon is to be razed for an automated car wash, making it the fourth place to clean a vehicle in a two-mile stretch of the highway east and west of Irwin. Express Wash Concepts of Etna, Ohio, plans...
High school history retold through Hempfield Project archive
A Spartan pennant from the 1960s, rescued from between the pages of a yearbook. A school handbook from 1962. A seat cushion from the 1970s. A mug from the Cotton Bowl, where the district’s band performed in 1971, and a football program from the 1980s. Hempfield Area teacher and English...
Derry mother on arrest in daughter’s 2007 death: ‘I didn’t think I would see this’
Carol Polo waited years to hear the news she received this week. “I didn’t think I would see this,” Polo said Thursday at a news conference held the day after police arrested and charged a Derry Township man in the 2007 murder of her 22-year-old daughter. Police said Samantha Lang...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County this weekend: July 28-30
On stage Stage Right of Greensburg will present two summer camp musicals this weekend at The Lamp Theatre, 222 Main St., Irwin: • Chicago: Teen Edition, presented by the teen group at 2 and 8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. • We Will Rock You, with the music of Queen, presented...
Steelers fans trek to Saint Vincent College for opening day of training camp
Mike Franciscus grew up in Penn Hills but he had to travel all the way from Arizona to attend his first Pittsburgh Steelers training camp. “I have family here, plus it’s kind of a bucket list thing for me,” said Franciscus, who arrived with Belinda Rhodes, a friend from Sacramento,...
