Jeff Himler stories, Page 38
Norwin grad’s memoir shares struggles, hope after rare cancer diagnosis, remission
LeeAnn Tripp is a rare survivor of a normally fatal form of cancer. It was a rare occurrence when the North Huntingdon native was diagnosed as an adult with a deadly brain cancer normally found in no more than 300 U.S. children each year. She has beaten the odds again...
Greensburg police investigate weekend car theft, break-ins
Greensburg police are investigating the theft of a car and several other vehicle break-ins overnight on Saturday or Sunday. Police are working to determine whether there is a link between incidents reported at the Hawksworth apartment complex along North Main Street and another reported along Culbertson Avenue. A vehicle stolen...
Westmoreland County awards more than $600K in annual tourism grants
A museum dedicated to firefighting and an enterprise that promotes business-boosting events in Greensburg are among more than 50 groups that will get a share of more than $600,000 in Westmoreland County tourism funding next year. The county commissioners this week approved 58 tourism grants for 2024, drawing upon money...
Lighted trees featured in annual holiday display, gala at Ligonier Town Hall
The twinkling array of this year’s Ligonier Valley Historical Society Festival of Lights display is bound to include a few cherry-colored snouts. “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and his Friends” is the theme for the 40th edition of the event, set for 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday through Dec. 5...
Gala dinner to serve as finale for Westmoreland 250 celebration
Organizers of this year’s observance of Westmoreland County’s 250th anniversary are inviting the public to reflect on the year-long celebration at an event on Dec. 6. The Golden Gala Dinner is set for 5-8 p.m. at the Antiochian Village Conference Center, 140 Church Camp Trail, off Route 711 in Fairfield....
Western Pa.’s small merchants navigate pricing, staffing challenges as holiday rush arrives
When Marion McFeely makes a batch of caramel pecan turtles at her shop in Greensburg, she’s aware of the pain in her pocketbook as well as the sweet delight her customers will experience. Like many small retailers heading into the critical holiday shopping season, she’s feeling the pinch of inflation...
Greensburg Y stresses wellness with new yoga, sound therapy, gym sessions
The Greensburg YMCA is offering residents a chance to counteract the stresses of the holiday season with a series of new yoga and sound therapy sessions. “Peace on Earth Sound and Yin Yoga” will be available in four, hourlong weekly sessions beginning at 7 p.m. Monday Sound therapy is effective...
Hunt for ideal Christmas tree is on at area farms
Fleming’s Christmas Tree Farm in Derry Township opened for the holiday season Friday. In addition to cut-your-own trees, the farm offers hayrides along with fresh-made wreaths and a gift shop. The sale of hot chocolate and snacks benefits local volunteer firefighters. The Fraser fir is the most popular variety among...
Greensburg merchants offer parking, bingo prize incentives for Small Business Saturday
Visitors who shop in downtown Greensburg this Saturday, which is Small Business Saturday, will be invited to try a chance for a bingo prize as they search for holiday gifts. If they make a purchase at one of nearly 50 participating businesses, they’ll also get a break on parking. The...
Greensburg cafe marks decade of serving coffee, pastry, building community
Co-owner Tommy Medley bonded with customers of the White Rabbit Cafe and Patisserie when it opened in 2013, and that hasn’t changed as the Greensburg eatery marks its 10th anniversary today. Medley estimates as many as 30% of his customers are regulars who have been coming throughout the past decade...
Plans for new hazardous waste landfill near Yukon suspended after EPA report
MAX Environmental Technologies has halted its plan to reapply for a permit to add a new hazardous waste landfill at its site near Yukon. The Upper St. Clair-based company is instead focusing on compliance issues federal regulatory officials identified following an inspection of the facility in March. A report issued...
Election loss ends 40-year run as Fayette County coroner for Dr. Phillip Reilly
Sudden, unexpected deaths and grieving families have been the concern of Dr. Phillip E. Reilly for four decades. Next month, the 89-year-old Democrat will end his 40-year tenure as Fayette County’s elected coroner, having lost to a Republican challenger in the Nov. 7 election. “You put a priority on the...
South Union chiropractor poised to assume coroner’s office in Fayette County
When chiropractor Bob Baker was asked to run as a Republican candidate for Fayette County coroner, he said, “I felt like it was my Christian duty to give back to the community. I decided this is something I could do.” According to the unofficial tally, Baker is slated to carry...
Greensburg seeks grant for solar roof at fire hall, plans to hold line on taxes in 2024
Greensburg Council has approved a tentative 2024 budget that will keep property taxes at 27.05 mills next year. But city spending on several potential capital projects won’t be determined until spring, including a proposed new fire hall roof that could tap the sun’s energy. Council is considering a balanced budget...
Excela pays $10M to settle suits by 2 cardiologists, doctors’ attorney says
Excela Health is paying $10 million to settle civil suits brought by two cardiologists who formerly held staff privileges at the health system’s Westmoreland Hospital in Greensburg, according to an attorney representing the doctors. In the suits that were dropped Tuesday in Allegheny County Court, Drs. George Bou Samra and...
Greensburg holiday parade to kick off with later start time
Greensburg’s annual holiday parade is set for Saturday, with a later start time than usual. City council member Sheila Brumley said the parade will begin at 4:30 p.m., to encourage participants to include holiday lights in their entries. She advised those who are arriving by vehicle to see the parade...
Postal Service reducing number of Greensburg collection boxes, cites limited use
Two of four blue outdoor mail collection boxes likely will be removed as early as this week along Greensburg’s South Pennsylvania Avenue, across the street from the post office. Some residents have expressed concern about the removal of the boxes, which was indicated with 30-day notices posted on the boxes...
Outgoing Greensburg planning director worked to make office more ‘approachable and welcoming’
Greensburg is looking to beef up its planning and development office next year by adding a code enforcement supervisor. It also will be searching for a new planning director, as Jeff Raykes resigned from that role effective Friday. Raykes, who joined the city staff in 2019, is leaving to focus...
Award-winning Hunker artist explores ‘Woman and Variations’ in WCCC exhibit
The creative works of Hunker artist Stephanie Oplinger are featured in the exhibit “Woman and Variations,” running through Dec. 1 in the Science & Innovation Center Gallery on the main campus of Westmoreland County Community College near Youngwood. In her LinkedIn profile, Oplinger notes she works in a surrealistic style,...
Donated funds, labor set Revolutionary War soldiers’ service in stone in Derry Township
The identities of Revolutionary War soldiers buried near Old Salem Community Church in Derry Township have been fading into history as time and weather ravage their headstones. A campaign led by the Derry Area Historical Society, to rescue those veterans from obscurity, saw progress Saturday. Volunteers organized by society member...
Crafton police seek missing teen
Crafton Borough police are looking for a 16-year-old boy who has been missing since Thursday. Mikah Morrison, who is considered endangered, did not return after leaving a note for his parents saying he was going out at about 8 p.m. Thursday, police said in a Facebook post. The teen, who...
Fire in Greensburg townhouse sends man to hospital
A Greensburg resident was hospitalized for smoke inhalation after a fire broke out Saturday at his home on Odinwood Court, according to Greensburg fire Chief Tom Bell. Firefighters found the soot-covered man outside the townhouse when they responded to the call at about 9:30 a.m., Bell said. The man had...
Eagle Scout adds Little Free Library to Hempfield demonstration garden, 2 other sites
Visitors to Hempfield’s Donohoe Center now can dip into a free book while birds and bees dip into nectar and pollen at the adjacent demonstration gardens. The Penn State Extension Master Gardeners, in partnership with Ligonier Eagle Scout Jesse Glenn, recently unveiled a Little Free Library display next to the...
Groundbreaking geneticist, Hempfield grad to kick off annual Greensburg Turkey Trot
A longtime runner and Hempfield Area graduate whose work on a rare genetic disorder has helped a young girl begin to walk will be returning home on Thanksgiving Day to officially start the Greensburg Turkey Trot race co-founded by his father. Dr. Caleb Bupp, 41, a medical geneticist living in...
Greensburg Salem promotes athletic director to assistant high school principal
Frank Sundry will return to the role of an assistant principal Monday, after being promoted to that job at Greensburg Salem from his current post as the district’s athletic director. The school board this week approved Sundry as assistant high school principal, at a prorated salary of $85,571. The assistant...
