Tawnya Panizzi stories, Page 71
Highlands superintendent makes staff health, wellness a priority
Highlands teachers will be pampered Friday with yoga sessions, gourmet coffee and some love from four-legged friends. A Health and Wellness program spearheaded by Superintendent Monique Mawhinney is meant to uplift spirits and refresh well-being. The program is built into a professional development day. There are no classes for students...
Failing storm line near Highlands High School expected to be replaced
The Highlands School Board is expected to move forward with a project to replace a dilapidated stormwater line behind the high school. The board will vote to advertise for contract bids at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 22 in the high school library. The meeting also is available on Zoom. Highlands...
Peoples Natural Gas donates money, time for upkeep of Prospect Cemetery
A partnership with Peoples Natural Gas has landed Prospect Cemetery with money to help buy a new mowing tractor to maintain the 13-acre site. “This was a great help to us,” said Cindy Homburg, president of the historic Brackenridge cemetery. “We work very hard to keep Prospect looking good and...
Pittsburgh area grads contribute to THON success, help fight pediatric cancer
Local high school alumni will be getting their groove on for a good cause later this week. Erik Frantz, Olivia Ahr and Jennifer Gustafson, each from the Highlands School District Class of 2018, along with 2020 Norwin grad Abby Bartos, are some of the local alumni who will participate in...
Free EMT training offered by Citizens EMS, AK Health Foundation
Two Harrison groups are taking aim at the depleted ranks of local EMTs by providing $20,000 in free training. The Alle-Kiski Health Foundation and Citizen’s Hose EMS will host a 16-week course open to everyone, even those with no experience. “You can come in on day one, know nothing, and,...
Brackenridge officials eyeing new public works building
A long sought-after upgrade to the Brackenridge public works facilities could become reality within the next year or so, as the borough looks to build a new maintenance building. Council is expected to apply for a $400,000 state grant made available through gambling revenues. A new building is expected to...
Brackenridge seeks state money for sewer woes
Brackenridge officials hope ongoing storm sewer overflows along Roup Avenue can be addressed if the borough receives a state grant. Council is seeking up to $300,000 through the state’s Local Share Account. The $120 million fund was created with gambling revenues across the state. Borough engineer Gordon Taylor said heavy...
Tarentum leaders to residents: Clean up or pay up
Tarentum leaders want residents to clean up. Council is scheduled in March to vote on a Quality of Life ordinance that would outline health and safety requirements that include cutting high grass, removing junk vehicles and keeping homes in proper condition. “Over the last few years, there has been a...
Late Fox Chapel Area teacher’s love of travel lives on in student scholarships
Late Fox Chapel Area English teacher Conroy Guyer traveled so frequently after retirement that he earned enough airline miles to fly on the supersonic Concorde from Paris to New York for free. Guyer, who passed away in 2021, wanted to ensure that his passion for exploring lived on. He bequeathed...
Brackenridge hopes to partner with Highlands, Allegheny County to fight blight
A plan to fight blight in Brackenridge is underway. Council Vice President John Stanzione Jr. said borough officials are considering a program that would award tax breaks to developers seeking to revitalize abandoned or tax-delinquent properties. The program would be conducted in collaboration with the Highlands School District and Allegheny...
State grant expected to bring Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre outdoor shows to Aspinwall, Sharpsburg
In just a few months from now, people might be able to prop a lawn chair along the shores of the Allegheny River and watch ballet dancers glide across an outdoor stage. A mobile performance area is expected to facilitate riverfront shows on a strip of property between Aspinwall and...
Tarentum pastor Rev. Robert Walker remembered for good nature, friend to all
When the Rev. Robert Walker needed to clear his mind and prepare for a Sunday sermon, he hit the trails at Harrison Hills. “He loved to walk and everyone knew him for that,” said his son, Jason. “He would also walk around the neighborhood and he talked to everyone.” Rev....
Allegheny County prioritizes repairs for short bridge in poor condition on Old Freeport Road in O’Hara
A short bridge near the Fox Chapel Plaza will be prioritized for repairs by Allegheny County after receiving a poor rating, officials said. Squaw Run Bridge No. 1, which is part of Old Freeport Road in O’Hara, will be targeted for repair work intended to prevent further decay, county Public...
Harrison lands state grant for blight remediation
Several long-abandoned and tax-delinquent properties in Harrison will be demolished sooner thanks to help from the state. Township representatives learned in late January that the municipality will get $100,000 from the Gaming Economic Development Tourism Fund (GEDTF) in its latest round of grants. Money will be used for a recovery...
Blawnox café to raffle 3 months of free meals
Believe it or not, a Blawnox café owner is giddy at the idea of giving away three months of meals. That feeling, Clean Eatz owner Darryl Duncan said, is surpassed only by the possibility of also doling out $25,000. Duncan will launch the “We Change Livez Challenge” in March through...
Riverview Senior Living, a rehabbed Highlands elementary school, expected to open in spring
The conversion of a former Highlands elementary school into affordable housing for senior citizens is scheduled to be completed by spring. Riverview Senior Living — a nod to the district’s Riverview Elementary, which operated through most of the 1900s — will provide 31 one- and two-bedroom apartments for people 62...
Valley grad with desire to help others readies for global adventure
A vacation to Kathmandu, Nepal, planted the seed of adventure in Valley High School graduate Skylar Houck. “I went there to study Buddhism, but I developed this itch to travel,” said Houck, 23. “I really enjoyed the culture shock and experiencing things that are completely different from what I’m used...
Organizers of Tarentum garden eye prosperous growing season
Organizers of a community garden in Tarentum are working hard to see the site prosper in 2022, despite being targeted late last year by vandalism. “While the snow is on the ground, the leadership of the garden is already marking plans,” said the Rev. Phil Beck, pastor of First United...
Converted Tarentum church now a bustling community spot as The Clement
Once a gathering place for prayer and worship, The Clement in Tarentum is a community hot spot where the multitudes come together. “Every single room was destroyed when I bought it,” said Phillip Rhodes, 54, a Highland Park software engineer. “Now, every room is filled.” From guitar lessons and yoga...
Sharpsburg councilwoman spearheading off-leash dog park
A newly elected Sharpsburg councilwoman is hitting the ground running with an idea that she said will benefit residents and their four-legged friends. Carrie Tongarm is working to bring an off-leash dog park to the borough. It’s a project that’s been gathering steam since 2018 when she first moved to...
Highlands Musical Cabaret promises to have audience dancing in their seats
It’s been 32 years since Highlands High School alum Michelle Peters sprayed her hair into a black beehive and strutted across stage as the misunderstood bad-girl Rizzo in the high school production of “Grease.” She’ll be back in the same auditorium on Saturday, belting out a ballad from the show...
Squaw Run in Fox Chapel deemed off limits for elevated pathogens
Portions of Squaw Run in Fox Chapel are off limits for recreation after the Department of Environmental Protection found the water quality to be impaired, according to a new report released by the agency. At least one of the stream’s unnamed tributaries also was identified in the report. “Squaw Run...
Clothing Closet in Tarentum sells wardrobe staples, lifts spirits
Ruth Conklin spends her Saturday mornings straightening shirts and jackets hung from racks in the basement of Central Presbyterian Church in Tarentum. A volunteer for five years, Conklin said the Clothing Closet is a hidden gem. “You can find brand-new winter coats, with tags, and a lot of very nice...
Etna rallies against swastika flag with messages of love
Legal but not acceptable — that’s how many Etna residents are describing a swastika flag hanging from a porch along Greeley Avenue. “We have been working to positively respond with love and inclusion,” said Robert Tunon, chairman of the Etna Community Organization (ECO). It was late 2021 when neighbors first...
West Deer’s Annie Rieg twirls her way to the topVideo
Ask 18-year-old Annie Rieg what she does for fun and she’ll answer with a coy smile. “I dance around under flying metal,” said Rieg, a Deer Lakes graduate and resident of West Deer. In her freshman year at the University of Pittsburgh, Rieg is a member of the school’s Golden...
