Norwin Star category, Page 82
Norwin area happenings, May 20, 2021, and beyond
Memorial Day parade returns A year after the annual Memorial Day parade in Irwin was canceled because of covid-related restrictions, the promenade in downtown Irwin and to Irwin Union Cemetery will resume this year. The parade is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. at Immaculate Conception Church on Second Street,...
Norwin allows more people at graduation ceremonies
Norwin School District’s 425 seniors who will graduate on May 28 got some good news this week when the district announced they will be able to have six guests at the commencement ceremonies at Knights Stadium, two more than the initial allotment. The increase of admission tickets for each student...
8 of 9 Norwin board candidates win nominations
Norwin School District voters will get to choose among eight candidates — incumbents and challengers — in the November election because of eight of the nine candidates won either the Republican or Democratic nomination for four seats, according to unofficial results. The vote count represents only those from the Westmoreland...
North Huntingdon ex-commissioner wins GOP nomination in 4th Ward
Voters in North Huntingdon’s Fourth Ward opted to give the Republican nomination to a former commissioner over the incumbent, a reversal of the 2017 race between the same two candidates, according to unofficial results from the May 18 primary. Former commissioner Richard Gray, 63, is leading incumbent Brian Blasko, 35,...
Irwin mayoral race results, pending write-in vote count
Write-in votes likely will determine whether Irwin will have two candidates for mayor on the ballot in November. Republican Jeff Clem, a retired prison guard, did not face any opposition in Tuesday’s primary, collecting 268 votes against 69 write-in votes in the unofficial results. Council member Gail Macioce, also a...
Norwin school board candidates emphasize mental health, budget, transparency
Keeping students safe, physically and mentally, during the pandemic and the budget are among issues raised by the nine candidates seeking nominations for four seats on the Norwin School Board in the May 18 primary. The race features two incumbents, two separate teams of candidates and two candidates running independently...
Westmoreland WPIAL softball playoff capsules for May 19, 2021
Wednesday’s games Class 6A Quarterfinals 3-Hempfield (12-5) vs. 6-Canon-McMillan (7-9) 4 p.m. at West Mifflin Coaches: Bob Kalp, Hempfield; Michele Moeller, Canon-McMillan Winner plays: Winner of 2-Norwin (13-2) vs. 7-North Allegheny (9-9) next Wednesday (time, site TBD) in semifinals Players to watch: Emma Hoffner, Sr. C, Hempfield; Olivia Ulam, Sr.,...
North Huntingdon man charged with double homicide in Penn Township killingsVideo
A North Huntingdon man is accused of killing a Penn Township man at his home as well as his girlfriend as she tried to escape early Monday, fulfilling what police say was “a grudge reconciliation weekend.” Before District Judge Helen Kistler on Tuesday night, Victor Steban, 53, of North Thompson...
Weekly spread of covid in Norwin area less than 1% again, as of May 18, 2021
For the second consecutive week, there was a less than 1% increase in the weekly rate of transmission of coronavirus for residents in the North Huntingdon-North Irwin-Irwin area, the smallest percentage increase since October, according to the state Department of Health. There were 24 additional confirmed cases of covid from...
$3 million in stimulus money two months away, North Hutingdon officials told
North Huntingdon will get about $3 million from the federal American Rescue Plan for a variety of public projects, but township officials were told not to expect the check right away. It could be another 60 days before North Huntingdon gets the money under the stimulus relief package that Congress...
Feds assisting North Huntingdon police investigating car explosion
Authorities are investigating a car explosion in North Huntingdon on Saturday night. The vehicle exploded on Clay Pike shortly before midnight, a Westmoreland County 911 dispatcher said. There were no injuries or damage to other property reported. The cause of the explosion is under investigation, according to the 911 dispatcher....
Norwin grad Christiana Skrabak making impact in final season with Seton Hill softball
Seton Hill softball player Christiana Skrabak was as impactful in a 16-0 runaway victory against Mercyhurst in the deciding game of a best-of-three Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference quarterfinal series as she has been all season. Skrabak is a grad student from Norwin who is making sure her finale ends with...
Norwin notebook: Kessler’s home run trot a familiar sight for Knights
Sophomore Madie Kessler wasn’t aiming for Route 30, but those who witnessed her towering home run against North Allegheny believe the ball might have landed on the highway below Norwin High School. An umpire was even impressed, saying he hadn’t seen a ball hit that far. Kessler’s tape-measure blast to...
Norwin turnout strong for covid vaccineVideo
After having lived in a dormitory at Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a roommate who contracted covid this past school year, Norwin graduate Jade Taylor did not hesitate to get a covid vaccine Friday afternoon at Norwin High School. “I have a lot of family members who are younger and...
Norwin soccer coach Lauren Karcher resigns after 7 successful seasons
Pregnant with her second child who is due to arrive in mid-September, Lauren Karcher knows she won’t be able to dedicate all of her attention to the girls soccer program at Norwin. She had the same issue in 2019 when she gave birth to her daughter, Harper, and she turned...
Norwin, Penn-Trafford girls medal at national hockey tournament
Girls from Norwin and Penn-Trafford were part of the Pittsburgh amateur hockey teams that won medals in the recent USA Tier-II Hockey National Championships in Denver. Megan Swick, a Norwin senior, and Robyn Caswell, a Penn-Trafford senior, both of whom play forward, won bronze medals as members of the Steel...
Latrobe in lofty spot as Westmoreland County softball squads earn top WPIAL seeds
Even though it seemed like it at first glance, there was no clerical error or mix-up on the right side of the WPIAL Class 5A softball playoff bracket when it met public eyes Thursday. Latrobe, the No. 2 seed? It even surprised Latrobe’s coach. Bob Kovalcin was slightly taken aback...
Norwin area charges filed as of May 13, 2021
Charges filed with North Huntingdon District Judge Wayne Gongaware. All individuals have the right to a preliminary hearing and are innocent unless proven guilty before a judge in Westmoreland County Court. • Jason A. Lewis, 58, of Boston, Pa., by North Huntingdon police with possession of a controlled substance and...
Norwin area happenings, May 20, 2021, and beyond
Norwin Rotary donates to Meals on Wheels The Norwin Rotary Club has donated $5,000 to the Norwin Area Meals on Wheels program for the purchase of a cooler/refrigeration unit at the New Hope Presbyterian Church in North Huntingdon, where the group prepares the food it delivers to homebound recipients in...
Irwin fire chief calls firefighter’s arrest on arson charges ‘beyond disheartening’
Irwin fire Chief Justin Mochar said he told North Huntingdon police about firefighter Shawn Mann’s possible involvement in a suspicious April 27 blaze. Mann, 25, of North Huntingdon was arraigned on charges of arson, criminal mischief and reckless endangerment filed by township police in connection with the 11:16 p.m. fire...
Man charged after North Huntingdon police said they spotted him using drugs while driving on Route 30
An Allegheny County man accused in a drug overdose death was arrested Wednesday in connection with an incident last month during which North Huntingdon police reported seeing him using drugs while driving on Route 30. Cases against Jason Alan Lewis, 45, of Boston, Pa., have been racking up in the...
Norwin students test Tinkers Run; water quality good
The water quality in North Huntingdon’s Tinkers Run is pretty good, based on the results of tests Norwin High School’s environmental science students recently conducted. The water in the stream flows into Brush Creek and averaged 84.82 on the water quality index, “which puts the water quality in the good...
Irwin chief emphasizing community policing; add part-time officer
Irwin police have been taking steps to get out of their patrol cars and mingle with residents and will continue to emphasize community policing, the chief said Wednesday. “The community is noticing” those efforts, Chief Dan Wensel told Mayor William Hawley and borough council. When Wensel was promoted to chief...
Butler boys, girls dominate at WPIAL Class AAA team finals
As Butler runner C.J. Singleton neared the finish line, the junior wondered how close his nearest 800-meter challenger was, so he took a quick glance behind him. “You’re usually not supposed to look back,” he admitted afterward. But it’s understandable. Butler’s top runners rarely had anyone out in front of...
North Huntingdon man accused of smuggling 18 heroin stamp bags in his buttocks
A 41-year-old North Huntingdon man was charged by detectives Wednesday after they claim he attempted to smuggle heroin into the county prison by hiding 18 stamp bags in his buttocks. Jeremiah B. Reynolds of Larimer was charged by county Detective James Williams this week with illegal possession of a controlled...
