Westmoreland category, Page 531

Retiring in the midst of a pandemic requires a different kind of farewell ceremony, which is what will happen Saturday for the minister at the Westminster Presbyterian Church of Greensburg. A socially-distant farewell is planned for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday for the Rev. Donna Havrisko, who is retiring...

After a two-month hiatus caused by the winter surge of new coronavirus cases, jury trials in Westmoreland County will resume in February. President Judge Rita Hathaway said, with new cases of the virus on the decline, it appears safe to reconvene trials, which were suspended in December and January. “When...

Franklin Regional administrators on Monday will present the results of a high school student survey aimed at addressing educational concerns that have arisen during the covid-19 pandemic. Superintendent Gennaro Piraino said some students want more in-person instruction — the school’s current hybrid model has two groups attending in-person class two...

Westmoreland County on Friday reported 120 new cases of coronavirus, above the seven-day average of 108 cases. The number of total cases reported in the county is now 24,576, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Of the newly reported cases, 69 were confirmed from PCR tests and 51 are...

A Jeannette man recently paroled after serving time for assaulting his former girlfriend now is charged with making nearly 400 harassing phone calls to the woman, Greensburg police said. Kevin M. Reese, 30, was charged with harassment and harassment by communication. The calls began Monday and ended early Wednesday after...

Derry Township’s longtime district judge will not seek reelection, marking the end of his three decades on the bench, according to an announcement. Mark J. Bilik, 65, of New Alexandria plans to retire in August, said Chris Haidze, magisterial district court administrator. He was appointed to the post in August...

Westmoreland County Assistant District Attorney Rebecca Calisti Tyburski announced she plans to run for the soon-to-be vacated district justice seat in Penn Township. Tyburski, 44, lives in the township and has served as a county prosecutor since 2002, specializing in sexual and child abuse cases. “I want to continue with...

Murrysville’s new code enforcement officer is taking the lead in helping the municipality upgrade the system it uses to track information about properties. Code enforcement officer Josh Steele said the system, bought in the 1990s, has reached the end of its usefulness. “It works really well for what it does,...

Southmoreland School District officials confirmed Thursday they are investigating a racist Facebook message purportedly made through a middle school teacher’s account. Superintendent Vincent Mascia confirmed that the district and its solicitor, David Petonic, are investigating the post allegedly made Wednesday by teacher Richard Love. The message appeared as a comment...

About 40 members of the Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Office and a dozen Park Police officers received their first covid-19 vaccine doses Thursday at the courthouse. “We looked and looked and looked for doses, and finally we heard about this pharmacy in Washington County that had some,” Sheriff James Albert said....

Westmoreland County on Thursday added 88 additional covid cases and 7 deaths, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported. The newly-reported deaths now bring the county’s death toll to 586. Of the 88 new cases reported, 58 are confirmed and 30 are probable. The total number of cases in Westmoreland County...

Greensburg Civic Theatre’s Greasepaint Players are working on a production of “Beauty and the Beast Jr.” to play for both livestream and in-person audiences. About having a live audience, director Becky Ziegler Koch said, “People might say, ‘Why are you doing this now?’ But we thought it was important to...

The Derry Township Municipal Authority has inked easement and lease agreements and is seeking a second round of bids for a project to update sewage facilities serving Keystone State Park and install a recreational trail. The trail would follow the path of a sewer line connecting the park to the...

It’s time for Unity officials to update the township’s comprehensive plan and supervisors say they want to look at ways to support business development and encourage modern signage along Route 30 while improving infrastructure and access to recreational facilities. This will be the third review of the plan, which assesses...

Hospitalizations of covid patients at Excela Health facilities are decreasing and Westmoreland County appears to have missed any potential surge in coronavirus cases from the holiday season. But now the system’s chief medical officer has something else to worry about — more infectious variants of the virus that are making...

A Derry Township man was taken to a Pittsburgh hospital for treatment of burns after escaping a house fire early Thursday, according to Bradenville Fire Chief Mark Piantine. Firefighters were called to the home near the intersection of Pizza Barn Road and Toms Lane at 2:40 a.m, according to Westmoreland...

The Murrysville Recreation Department is seeking ways to keep the public engaged during the winter, through exercise promotional programs and other activities. It also is making sure those efforts are inclusive, working with its nonprofit foundation on a fundraiser to create a sensory pathway along one of its park trails....

Ligonier Valley police officer Shawn Knepper is seeking the Republican nomination to fill Pennsylvania’s 59th District House seat, which was left vacant by the unexpected death of Mike Reese. A special election is set for May 18 to select a successor to Reese, 42, a Republican from Mt. Pleasant. Reese...

A constitutional amendment designed to limit the governor’s powers to extend emergency disaster declarations could make its way to a voter referendum as early as this spring. State Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward, a Hempfield Republican and one of Gov. Tom Wolf’s harshest critics, sponsored the proposed amendment that would...

A Pittsburgh man was sentenced Wednesday to serve a year on probation after he pleaded guilty to charges of escape and that he vandalized a holding cell following his arrest last summer in New Kensington. Daevar Lamont Stevens, 21, will remain behind bars, though, to answer a new set of...

A 29-year-old Pleasant Unity man accused of threatening Gov. Tom Wolf over business closures because of the coronavirus pandemic pleaded guilty to a reduced summary charge of harassment in York County, according to court officials. Rocco Anthony Naples was facing a third-degree felony charge of threats and other improper influence...

Eight local school districts are among those awarded more than $875,000 in grant money to help upgrade food service equipment in their cafeterias. In all, 59 elementary, middle and high schools will benefit from the funds, awarded to schools participating in the National School Lunch Program, a federally assisted meal...

Almost a week after Penn-Trafford closed its stadium to the public, the facility has reopened. According to a release from the district, Warrior Stadium reopened Wednesday after being shuttered due to recent incidents in which visitors took snow shovels to the field, which can potentially damage the turf by ripping...