Jeff Himler stories, Page 71
Laughlintown’s Compass Inn Museum marks 50th anniversary
Laughlintown’s 18th century inn originally provided respite and accommodations for travelers and drovers over a span of 63 years. In its current incarnation, as a restored museum, it has welcomed tourists for 50 years. The Ligonier Valley Historical Society, which operates the museum, celebrated the modern milestone at its recent...
Greensburg Salem looks to trim business teaching staff
Greensburg Salem School District plans to eliminate one of three business teaching positions through attrition as it prepares to pass a 2022-23 budget with no tax increase. Superintendent Ken Bissell said the district can avoid replacing a retiring business instructor because it is dropping a digital literacy component of its...
Cost estimated at up to $3M for locker room redo at Greensburg Salem High School
Greensburg Salem officials are considering options for an overdue update of the district’s high school locker rooms while dealing with sticker shock at a projected cost of up to $3 million. Meanwhile, Superintendent Ken Bissell last week suggested hitting pause on a plan for providing heat relief in areas of...
Greensburg’s Pennsylvania Avenue, McLaughlin Drive included in summer paving plans
Greensburg officials plan to mill and resurface portions of eight streets this summer, including Pennsylvania Avenue. The work on seven of the streets is to be completed in two phases at a combined cost of $371,406. City council this week approved contracts for both phases with Derry Construction, which submitted...
CSX rail work will result in detours for South Huntingdon motorists
CSX crews are scheduled to perform maintenance on two railroad crossings in South Huntingdon, causing a pair of consecutive road closures. PennDOT said Jacobs Creek Road will be closed near Post Office Road from 7 a.m. Tuesday until 7 p.m. on June 25. The second closure is scheduled on Second...
Westmoreland Land Trust nature backpacks are ready to check out at county libraries
Some outdoor lovers like to watch birds, some go wild for flowers and others may enjoy exploring woods and waterways. Resources for any of the above interests now can be checked out, along with books and other media, at Westmoreland County’s public libraries. Westmoreland Nature Backpacks are available for library...
Honor roll includes 3 Westmoreland men whose cancer deaths followed service in Vietnam
James Sumner of Greensburg lost a battle with cancer just more than a year ago, at 76. New Kensington’s Donald Penzera, formerly of Greensburg, lost his in 2006, when he was 56. Floyd Serbanjak of Herminie was 23 when he succumbed to the disease in 1974. The three Westmoreland County...
Westmoreland County Transit Authority to buy 20 new paratransit vehicles
Westmoreland County Transit Authority is updating its fleet of paratransit vehicles as it reports seeing ridership numbers for the door-to-door, shared-ride service recover after slumping during the covid-19 pandemic. The authority on Thursday approved buying 20 new paratransit mini-buses to replace similar vehicles. Executive Director Alan Blahovec said the authority...
Readers share photos of Thursday’s eye-catching clouds
People watching the skies above Allegheny County and surrounding areas Thursday evening for signs of potential thunderstorms instead were treated to vistas of clouds resembling fluffy cotton balls. Known as mammatus clouds, they are a rare example of clouds that form in sinking air instead of rising air, according to...
Westmoreland group plans Juneteenth programs in 3 communities
Greensburg’s Unity in the Community group has added Jeannette as a third Westmoreland County venue for its second annual weekend of programs celebrating the Juneteenth holiday. The Celebrating Freedom events begin Friday in Greensburg, with speakers and activities scheduled from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Westmoreland County YWCA headquarters,...
Greensburg Craft Beer Week shifts to summer, debuts 1-day festival
Organizers of the annual Greensburg Craft Beer Week are shaking things up this year, moving the event forward from fall to early summer and adding a one-day festival in St. Clair Park. The nine-day schedule offers more than 30 opportunities to sample area specialty brews, edibles and entertainment. During Friday’s...
Navy veterans reconnect across a continent, 4 decades to begin married life in Irwin
Romantic flames that were first sparked more than four decades ago and half a world away recently rekindled between an Irwin woman and a fellow Navy veteran. Picking up where they left off, Beverly Detofsky and Doug Reichman aren’t wasting any more time. They’re scheduled to exchange wedding vows Monday...
Pipe replacement will trigger Route 982 detour in Unity
A pipe replacement is set to detour traffic around a section of Route 982 in Unity. The project will close a stretch of the road between Route 130 and Kecksburg Road, beginning on Monday and continuing through mid-July, according to PennDOT officials. Crews will replace a large cross-pipe, with the...
Paving to disrupt traffic on Routes 819, 981 in Mt. Pleasant area
Motorists driving in the Mt. Pleasant area should be prepared for lane restrictions next week as PennDOT resurfaces routes 819 and 981 in the community. According to PennDOT project manager Rick Cutia, contractor Tresco Paving is expected to work on sections of Route 819 beginning Tuesday, with repairs to the...
Blight woes, park upgrades focus of Greensburg plan update
Blight mitigation and enhancement of parks and recreation are two areas that have generated public interest as Greensburg updates the city’s comprehensive plan. A series of three public workshops generated more than 500 written comments. “People have expressed a desire for more public green space and improvements to park and...
Prospective school bus drivers get trial run as DMJ looks to boost staff by 30 peopleVideo
Tiffany Miller wants to supplement her family’s income while being able to spend time at home with her young daughters. John Malik, who suffers from knee pain, is looking for a job that won’t require him to stand for an extended time. Both think the right place for them is...
Lower fees cited in recommended switch of Greensburg city worker savings plan
Greensburg could see lower costs if the city switches to a new provider for its employee retirement savings plan. Financial adviser Ed Gaskey this week recommended city council change the company offering the voluntary 457 tax-deferred employee savings plan from Nationwide to OneAmerica, based on proposals from four companies. Mayor...
Humanitarian award bestowed by Greensburg Fire Department
A longtime member of the Greensburg Volunteer Fire Department who died April 14 is being remembered for the legacy of service he left behind. Dennis A. Johnson, 75, of Greensburg, was posthumously recognized with the “Commemorative Axe” Humanitarian of the Year Award during the fire department’s recent 65th annual banquet....
West Overton Museums presents exhibit on Industrial RevolutionVideo
John Lloyd Shallenberger was one of the lucky ones among the 19th-century laborers at West Overton. In about 1860, when the founding Overholt family purchased a Buckeye Mower and Reaper machine, workers such as Shallenberger no longer were needed to harvest grain crops with hand tools for the family’s mill...
New library box near Ligonier will honor late social worker, conservationist
People searching for a good summer read and tips on outdoor activities soon will find a new resource just outside Ligonier. Derry resident Kristy Mathews, with help from family and friends, plans on Sunday to install a Little Free Library on the grounds of the Loyalhanna Watershed Farm, 6 Old...
Bridge replacement to affect I-70 traffic overnight in Speers, North Belle Vernon
A section of Interstate 70 in Washington County will be closed overnight Monday in both directions, and eastbound traffic will be reduced to a single lane nearby, in North Belle Vernon. Those traffic pattern changes, each related to a bridge replacement project, will be in place between 8 p.m. Monday...
Homer City man charged with raping child in Indiana County
A Homer City man is charged with rape of a child and more than a dozen related offenses in Indiana County. David Gene Crawford, Jr., 46, was arraigned Friday on 10 felony counts and four misdemeanor counts after he was taken into custody by state police. The charges in the...
Latrobe-area leaders upbeat about proposed merger of Excela, Butler health systems
Leaders in the Latrobe area expressed optimism about the future of health care in their community after an announcement that the local system of medical providers, Excela Health, is planning to merge with a similar organization in Butler and Clarion counties. Officials with Westmoreland County-based Excela have said the move...
Photo challenge focuses on busy bees and other Pennsylvania pollinators
Like bees to blossoms, photographers who like to focus on details of the natural world were drawn in large numbers to last year’s inaugural Pollinator Photo Challenge. Presented by Laughlintown’s Penguin Court nature preserve and the Westmoreland Pollinator Partners, the photo contest that is centered on images of bees, butterflies...
Trafford resident takes on local West Nile virus monitoring
Mosquito season has arrived in Westmoreland County and, just in time, so has a new staffer to oversee monitoring of those insects for the West Nile virus they can spread. Christina Edwards-McCune of Trafford came on board May 9 as the new West Nile virus program technician for the Hempfield-based...
