Westmoreland category, Page 468
North Huntingdon OKs permit for alcohol in parks
Alcohol will be permitted in North Huntingdon’s parks, with a township permit. Commissioners voted 5-2 on Wednesday to approve an ordinance creating a $100 permit for those who want to drink beer or wine. Applications for alcohol usage must be approved by Township Manager Jeff Silka. Jason Atwood and Eric...
Greater Latrobe increases pay to compete for substitute teachers
Greater Latrobe School Board this week approved a list of 76 substitute teachers and also increased their pay rate to stay competitive with neighboring districts. The board bumped daily pay for day-to-day substitutes from $90 to $110. Greater Latrobe business administrator Dan Watson said many other area districts already have...
Unity’s Victory Brinker cruises to ‘America’s Got Talent’ semifinalsVideo
After Victory Brinker brought judges and audience to their feet with her Tuesday performance, she seemed a lock to make the “America’s Got Talent” semifinals. And so she was. On Wednesday’s results show, she was named one of seven quarterfinalists who would be moving on. Contestants were called to the...
Community Church of Harrison City will hold belated open house for renovations, additionsVideo
In the coming weeks, Pastor Seth McPherson will baptize the youngest child of a local family at Community Church of Harrison City in the same font where the family’s eldest child was baptized a few short years ago. But what a difference a little time can make. “Here’s where that...
Norvelt VFD hosts 2nd annual Parking Lot Bash and Car Cruise
Pinched for fundraising ideas in 2020 because of social distancing requirements during the coronavirus pandemic, Norvelt Volunteer Fire Department opted to go outdoors, holding a Parking Lot Bash and Car Cruise last September. Fire Chief Matthew Zelenak said the daylong event outside the fire station, founded in 1934, turned out...
Westmoreland County in dire need of foster parents
Westmoreland County child welfare officials on Tuesday put out a call for foster parents saying there was a dire need to find homes for older teens. Children’s Bureau Director Shara Saveikis said they county needs dozens of homes to transition teens ages 14 through 17 from group homes into family...
Norwin band to perform show preview at festival next week
The Norwin High School marching band will give its fans a preview of the show it will perform this fall during the Norwin Band Preview Show and Food Truck Festival from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Aug. 26 at the Knights Stadium on the high school campus in North Huntingdon....
Westmoreland Fair returns this weekend with more to see
There will be plenty of potential pandemic hobbies on display starting Friday as the Westmoreland Fair returns. Entry office secretary Leanna Landy said entries for inside exhibits — such as handmade goods and food items — have increased this year after the 2020 fair was canceled because of the coronavirus...
Jigger’s Pub owners plan new restaurant across the street in Export
Jigger’s Pub owners Tony and Brenda DeCesare are planning to open a new restaurant directly across the street from their business, and took a big step in that direction Tuesday with the approval of a liquor license transfer. Export council members unanimously approved the transfer of the license by a...
Westmoreland news: peach festival, wine tasting and YWCA classes
Classes • The YMCA Westmoreland County Technology Center, 424 N. Main St., Greensburg, will offer the following classes in September and October: • Yoga with Nancy Micheals – 10 to 11:30 a.m., Thursdays Sept. 16 and 30, Oct. 7 to 28 • Fabulously Fit After 50 – 9:30 to 10:30...
Historic Bell’s Mills Bridge set for closure for drainage work
Drains on both ends of the historic Bell’s Mills Bridge are set to be replaced next week. County engineer Vaughn Neill said the covered wooden span will be closed for about four days while crews work there. The drainage infrastructure that allows water to flow off the road and bridge...
Seton Hill program to help teachers handle topic of genocide
Teachers tackling the tough topic of genocide in high school classrooms will be able to take advantage of a two-week institute at Seton Hill University next summer. University officials said the school recently was awarded a $174,426 competitive grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to underwrite the summer...
Trauger Fire Department adds interest to loan from relief association; audit catches shortage
Trauger Volunteer Fire Department didn’t pay enough interest on two loans from its affiliated relief association, and other procedural requirements for borrowing about $9,700 were missed, according to a state audit. Once alerted to the problems with the loans, the department corrected them, according to state Auditor General Timothy DeFoor....
Unity’s Victory Brinker earns lone standing ovation on ‘America’s Got Talent’
Several things portend well for Victory Brinker’s chances to win Season 16 of NBC’s “America’s Got Talent.” The 9-year-old opera singer from Unity was the final competitor in Tuesday’s live quarterfinal round, perhaps illustrating the “save the best for last” principle. There was plenty of build-up to her appearance, too....
Doctors petition Greater Latrobe to reconsider mask-optional plan for schools
About a dozen local physicians have asked the Greater Latrobe School Board to switch to a mask requirement for the coming fall semester. Parents remain divided over the district’s existing policy to make their use optional. Dr. Elizabeth Cutrell, a pediatrician with a practice in Unity who is the mother...
Hempfield Area suspends pay-to-play fees for 2nd year
For the second consecutive year, Hempfield Area School Board members voted to suspend pay-to-play fees for athletes and band members because of the covid-19 pandemic. During Monday’s meeting, board members unanimously voted to suspend the fees for the upcoming school year, which cost $100 per participant for the first sport...
Masks optional at Norwin; mask/maskless classes may be created in elementary grades
Norwin students will have the option of wearing masks in class under a health and safety plan that was the focus of an hour-long debate this week over whether the district should require students to wear masks. The near-unanimous approval of the state-required health and safety plan by the school...
Greater Latrobe School District, former wrestling coaches sued in federal court over hazing allegations
A student and his parents sued the Greater Latrobe School District, two former wrestling coaches and two students, alleging that the boy was assaulted during practice. It is, at least, the second lawsuit filed stemming from allegations of hazing by members of the wrestling team that came to light in...
After fire in her cell, police add arson charges to Greensburg DUI suspect
A Greensburg woman charged with DUI early Tuesday now is charged with arson and risking a catastrophe after city police allege she set fire to toilet paper in a cell block. Elisha M. Darnell, 42, was ordered held in the county jail on $10,000 bond following her arraignment on charges...
Hempfield Area to complete air quality, asbestos tests at district buildings
Hempfield Area School Board members are moving forward with an indoor air quality survey in the district’s nine buildings. During Monday’s school board meeting, members agreed to hire Dauphin County-based Skelly and Loy, Inc. to complete the survey at a cost of $9,475. School board member Sonya Brajdic was absent...
Greensburg’s singing florist Gary Pratt wins music industry award
Sometimes it takes a while to become an overnight success. Sounds like the opening line of a great country song — or the story behind one. Country singer/songwriter Gary Pratt of South Greensburg has been in the music business for decades, but, recently, he’s been gaining recognition far beyond Western...
Former Westmoreland man accused of taking $24K for Derry Township home remodel he didn’t finish
A former Westmoreland County man was arrested Monday on charges of taking $24,000 from a Derry Township couple and failing to remodel their home, leaving it exposed to the elements for months, according to court papers. Roy E. Povlik, 39, of Follansbee, W.Va., is charged with receiving an advance payment...
Community day planned for South Pennsylvania Avenue parklet in GreensburgVideo
Following a cleanup day that took place in June, a Greensburg-based development group is hosting a community day this weekend at the parklet on South Pennsylvania Avenue. Scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, the event hosted by City Cribs will feature food from McFeeley’s Ice Cream Truck, Baldy’s...
Route 22 in Murrysville reopens after 2-vehicle crash
A section of Route 22 westbound reopened Tuesday morning after a two-vehicle crash, according to Murrysville police. Traffic was diverted onto Old William Penn Highway in the area of Cline Hollow Road after the collision between a tractor-trailer and passenger vehicle, according to police and a Westmoreland 911 dispatcher. The...
Greensburg outreach event brings community agencies together
An outreach event Friday will bring dozens of resource agencies around Westmoreland County and the region — along with free coronavirus vaccines — together in one spot. The Community Agencies Resource Exchange event in Greensburg will host more than 60 organizations that provide services to families and people in need....
