Westmoreland category, Page 272
Ballot mailings to Westmoreland voters await court action
Nearly 22,000 mail-in ballots are scheduled to be sent out to Westmoreland County voters this week, but a dispute over the candidacy of two Republican candidates for commissioner might put that delivery on hold. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court is considering whether to hear an appeal filed Monday by the county’s...
Murrysville musician will perform with Westminster College OrchestraVideo
It’s one thing to sit down and practice Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 at home. It’s quite another to sit down and play it with an orchestra backing you. Westminster College alum and Murrysville resident Amy Simpson will have the chance Friday, as a featured performer at the music department’s...
Westmoreland Symphony’s season finale combines sacred and secular
The Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra’s season-ending concert will juxtapose the sacred with the secular. It also might take a bit of divine intervention to pull off, said Artist Director Daniel Meyer, who will conduct the program beginning at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at The Palace Theatre in Greensburg. The program opens with...
Washington Township man secures patent for device to help propel wheelchairs
When John Britz played with Lego sets as a child, he rarely built what was pictured on the box. “I was always making other things,” said Britz, 76, of Washington Township, who spent a career in manufacturing with the Elliott Group in Jeannette. Britz’s creativity — which also includes having...
Delmont man pleads guilty to assault, witness intimidation
A Delmont man was sentenced Tuesday to serve up to 10 years in prison for assault of woman who made similar allegations against him years earlier. Harold Michael Franks, 40, pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated assault and firearms offenses in connection with allegations from last August when police said...
Time, ticket price set for Westmoreland Night of the Stars musical revue
The showtime and ticket price have been finalized for Westmoreland Night of the Stars, after the annual showcase of area high school musicals was in peril of being discontinued earlier this year. The show will go on at 6:30 p.m. May 3 at The Palace Theatre in Greensburg. Tickets will...
East Huntingdon caretaker accused of bilking $600+ from 81-year-old Hempfield woman
An East Huntingdon woman was charged Monday after state police said she misused the debit card of an 81-year-old Hempfield woman for whom she was providing care, according to court papers. Samantha Jo Teets, 37, is accused of financial exploitation of an older adult, a misdemeanor. Police said the woman...
White Oak man jailed on drug charges refuses DNA sample, faces obstruction charge
A White Oak man arrested on drug and weapons violations last month was charged with obstruction Monday after state police said he refused to provide a DNA sample. Troopers said they got a search warrant for a DNA sample from Justin D. Grandison, 32, to compare to evidence on a...
Audit of Jeannette finances reveals failure to pay Medicare taxes
Jeannette will pay about $100,000 to the Internal Revenue Service after an audit determined the city and its police officers had not been paying Medicare taxes. Chief fiscal officer Ethan Keedy said the funds will come out of the capital reserve account, which was created with money from the 2015...
Franklin Regional grad dials in the sounds for Slippery Rock production of ‘Seussical’
During his time working on stage productions at Franklin Regional Senior High School, Tyler Parsonage learned how to work under pressure and think quickly. “In high school, I had limited knowledge, and our equipment wasn’t necessarily top-tier,” said Parsonage, 22, of Murrysville. “I had to work with what we had,...
Former Bella Luna space to reopen as The Coxcomb
As he stood behind what will soon be a finished bar top, Will Patterson of Monroeville heard someone driving past the open door of the former Bella Luna restaurant at the Murrysville/Monroeville border. “Are you open?” the woman asked through her passenger side window. “Early June, hopefully!” Patterson shouted before...
Former Seward police chief pleads guilty to sex extortion plot
Former Seward police Chief Robert I. Baldwin Jr. pleaded guilty Monday to charges he offered two women leniency in exchange for sex. Westmoreland County prosecutors claimed Baldwin used his position as head of the police department in the small borough that sits along the Conemaugh River to have a sexual...
North Huntingdon seeks opioid settlement funds for drug prevention program
The North Huntingdon Police Department hopes to provide an educational program in Norwin’s elementary, middle and high schools beginning this fall. The effort — funded by money from Westmoreland County’s opioid settlement — would be aimed at preventing substance abuse by students. Chief Robert Rizzo proposed to the North Huntingdon...
Crime spree nets Ligonier man prison term
A Ligonier man will serve up to 12 years in prison for a string of thefts and burglaries from a Donegal Township banquet facility where he worked and surrounding properties. Donald Bailey, 62, pleaded guilty Monday to charges in nine separate cases where police said he stole items from Stonehenge...
Fifth graders help YWCA Westmoreland rock a message of inclusion
Aquinas Academy fifth graders rocked a message of love and acceptance during the kickoff of the 2023 YWCA Stand Against Racism Challenge at the YWCA Westmoreland County in Greensburg. The students were invited to paint inspirational messages on rocks to be placed on the Y grounds as reminders of the...
Water break closes Greensburg Salem Middle School; classes to resume online Tuesday
Classes will be held online Tuesday for students at Greensburg Salem Middle School as the Greensburg school recovers from a water break that closed the building Monday and canceled classes. All other district schools were operating normally. The water break involved a problem with a water fountain on the school’s...
4 injured in motorcycle crash after Blessing of the Bikes
Three motorcyclists were taken to hospitals Sunday after departing the Blessing of the Bikes event at Murrysville Alliance Church, according to Murrysville Medic One administrative director Darrick Gerano. A fourth person was treated by paramedics, he said. One person was transported by ambulance and two others were taken by medical...
East End native to move machining business from Pittsburgh to Westmoreland County
John Conturo has been in Pittsburgh’s East End his entire life, growing up in Highland Park and starting his machine shop, Conturo Prototyping, at a rented facility in Point Breeze. And while he was hoping to stay in the area, the near future will see a move farther east, both...
‘Don’t be afraid to go for it’: More women are owning businesses, but challenges remain
Angela Merendino was a graphic designer for Kennametal in Unity, operated a freelance business on the side and was an adjunct professor at Seton Hill University in Greensburg. She wanted something different. “I just wanted to create a business that was steeped in health,” Merendino said. That desire was spurred...
Murrysville, conservation district to host ‘healthy stream walk’
Pennsylvania’s extensive mining history — and the resulting acid mine drainage — means that there aren’t many high-quality streams in the region. Murrysville residents, however, have one right in the center of town. Haymaker Run, along Sardis Road, is designated as a high-quality stream, and part of the municipality’s state-mandated...
Murrysville church’s 26th Blessing of the Bikes draws hundreds of riders
Driving through Murrysville on Route 22 was a bit louder than usual Sunday morning. The normal sounds of traffic were accompanied by the roar of hundreds of motorcycles headed for the 26th annual Blessing of the Bikes at Murrysville Alliance Church. Smiling as they passed cars, the bikers’ excitement for...
Dinner to benefit 2nd phase of Hannastown playground improvements
Organizers are planning an April 29 dinner to raise funds for a second phase of improvements at a community playground in the Hempfield village of Hannastown. The inaugural fundraising dinner will feature an Italian menu including salad, bread and dessert. It will be served from 1 to 5 p.m. at...
Westmoreland County on pace to pay more than $5 million in overtime this year
Ryan Perry and his co-workers know there is no other choice but to take on extra shifts to ensure the Westmoreland County Prison has enough guards on duty each day. Along with that mandatory overtime comes a financial windfall — but also a struggle to maintain a work-life balance. “It’s...
25 artifacts in new Westmoreland exhibit illuminate county’s diverse 250-year history
A key to a landmark Greensburg mansion and an 800-pound tower bell are among items that will help unlock Westmoreland County’s past for those who view a new county historical society exhibit. “Westmoreland 250! Celebrating our Story with 25 Objects” had its official debut Saturday at the society’s Westmoreland Education...
Behind the Art: Color wheel honors longtime Greensburg Art Center member
Visitors to the Greensburg Art Center will encounter a large sculpture depicting a color wheel to the right of the street-side door. The metal-and-mosaic piece is a memorial to the late Cathy Rosensteel, a longtime member artist and popular teacher who died of covid-related complications on Nov. 1, 2020. “Everyone...
