News briefs: Valentine's fundraiser, blood drive, food collection and more

Lauri Ann West Community Center is hosting “Love the Center,” a fundraiser that teams residents with local small businesses for a Valentine’s Day celebration to enjoy at home.

Participants can choose to make purchases from couples or family dinner options from Aspinwall Everyday Gourmet, cocktails from 4Four6 Distillery and flowers from Fox and the Fleur. Everything will be offered for curbside pickup at the center on Feb. 13. For an additional donation, orders can be delivered.

Support will benefit programs and services at the center, 1220 Powers Run Road, O’Hara.

The center serves residents in the Fox Chapel Area School District.

Order at lauriannwestcc.org or by calling 412-828-8566.

Touchless food drive scheduled

O’Hara is hosting a touchless food drive from noon to 3 p.m. on Feb. 6.

Nonperishable food items and paper products will be collected at the municipal building, 325 Fox Chapel Road.

Participants are asked to wear masks while dropping off items.

Donations will be distributed to the local food pantries.

La Roche expands health program options

La Roche University announced the addition of two fully online certificate programs – health leadership and global health care.

“Considering the current atmosphere due to the pandemic, a health certificate is very practical in a demanding and essential field,” said Lauren Lanzino, DC, chair of the Health Science Department at La Roche.

The health leadership certificate will begin this spring, and the global health care certificate will launch this summer. Each can be used domestically or internationally in any health care setting.

Each certificate is 12 credits and open to all majors at La Roche, except for the health leadership certificate, which is not available to medical imaging students. Anyone can apply for these certificates without completing a major at La Roche.

Blood drive slated

Fox Chapel Area High School is holding a community blood drive during February at the Vitalant Harmar/Fox Chapel donor center.

People 16 and older are encouraged to donate.

Vitalant is offering several scholarships to area high school students. They will be awarded for the highest percent participation and largest number of registered donations for the year. Anyone who donates blood at a local donor center can also ask for the donation to count toward the district’s total by mentioning code HS010025.

Vitalant is also testing blood donations for covid-19. Results can be viewed online in the donor’s account two weeks after donating.

The donor center is at 2585 Freeport Road, Suite 207, Harmar.

Nature reserve offers Wednesday walks

Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve in Fox Chapel has free, naturalist-led walks each week.

“Birds and More” begins at 9 a.m. each Wednesday at the site along Dorseyville Road.

For more information, visit aswp.org.

Great Backyard Bird count on tap

Join the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania for its annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) walk at Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve in Fox Chapel.

The free event is from 10 a.m. to noon Feb. 13. Masks are required.

Learn more at birdcount.org.

FCAAE classes available

Registration is open for Fox Chapel Area Adult Education (FCAAE) classes for the winter 2021 semester.

More than 30 classes are being offered online, including art, foreign languages, social media and yoga.

Zoom classes offer students the chance to learn a skill and ask questions from local experts.

FCAAE, founded in 1963, is an outreach program of the Fox Chapel Area School District dedicated to providing enrichment classes to adults at a low tuition.

One-night and multiweek classes are offered. Step-by-step registration is available at fcaae.org.

Fox Chapel area pre-K continues

The Fox Chapel Area School District is continuing its pre-kindergarten program for the 2021-2022 school year. This will be the third year for the program, which is housed at Kerr Elementary, and is open to students who turn 4 on or before Sept. 1.

Sessions run from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays and will have 20 students in a class.

Transportation is not provided.

Families must meet certain eligibility requirements, which are available at fcasd.edu.

Improve your Microsoft skills

Residents interested in learning more about Microsoft apps and skills for Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Windows 10 can visit mikeswindowstraining.com for a list of free classes offered by retiree Mike Smialek.

Classes will be from 9:30 a.m. to noon Thursdays.

Using WebEx as the online sharing platform, students need access to the internet, Windows 10, the Microsoft Office 365 software or similar and a desktop or laptop computer.

Each class comes with a step-by-step handout and the files needed to complete the online exercises together. The class schedule includes:

• Excel Macros on Feb. 4, Word Basics on Feb. 11, Word Intermediate on Feb. 18 and Word Advanced on Feb. 25.

• PowerPoint Basics on March 11, PowerPoint Intermediate on March 18 and Windows 10 on March 25.

Women’s Business Network to meet

The Women’s Business Network, which supports the success and growth of women in business, meets on the first and third Tuesdays of the month at 8 a.m. All meetings are being held online. To RSVP or for more information, contact Susan Kinger at 412-782-4848 or skinger607@dollarbank.com.

The All Virtual Chapter of Women’s Business Network invites you to attend one of their upcoming meetings, the first and third Wednesdays of each month at 7:30 p.m., via Zoom. For more information, contact Jennifer Pasquale at 412-908-1663.