Valley News Dispatch category, Page 63
Communities mark Memorial Day with parades, salutes to honor those who died in fight for freedom
As a cacophony of marching bands Monday helped power Memorial Day parades that snaked through small-town streets — marchers and onlookers alike draped in red, white and blue — it was the small details that resonated loudest for one Alle-Kiski Valley veteran. Don Donahue, a Veterans of Foreign Wars commander...
Neighbor pulls man off property after blaze guts his Springdale Township home
Editor’s note: This story was updated to show the location of the fire is in Springdale Township. Della Mayfield didn’t think much Monday morning when she saw smoke starting to billow from her elderly neighbor’s Springdale Township home. She just looked out her window, then ran. “There was so much...
East Deer lays out steps for delinquent service payments
Employees and customers of East Deer’s water department are getting firm regulations to follow when it comes to delinquent payments. Commissioners approved a formal policy regarding such payments, not only for water bills but also for refuse collection and sewer maintenance payments. “It’s just a policy that (township Manager) Chrystal...
Leechburg Area students worked the polls thanks to innovative program
Leechburg Area students Rocco Vigna, 17, and Nevin Steele, 17, spent election day serving their community. The two juniors from West Leechburg were the first students to participate in a program that allows students living in Westmoreland County to work at polling places. The boys spent half a day at...
The Stroller, May 26, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. This Memorial Day, we...
Arnold woman opens The Battle Life, a transitional living home for women in the fights of their lives
An Arnold woman is remembering a friend who lost her battle as she prepares to help other women who are still fighting their own. Amanda Wheeler on Sunday celebrated the soft opening of The Battle Life, her transitional living home, which she is dedicating to her friend, Jon’Trae “JT” Mathis....
Allegheny Township OKs stormwater fee to meet MS4 compliance
Allegheny Township approved a stormwater fee Tuesday as the deadline looms to meet state and federal mandates on runoff management. The ordinance saddles homeowners with an $8.50 monthly payment to help fund about $1.6 million in improvements needed to make good on the township’s MS4 plan, short for Municipal Separate...
The Stroller, May 25, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Food distribution set Tuesday...
Future of PSNK property uncertain after college closes in 2027
Area leaders hope the future of the soon-to-be-shuttered Penn State New Kensington campus in Upper Burrell is one that will benefit the community’s long-term needs. “I think it’s important that we continue to engage the community that lives there, and how and what they’d like to see,” said state Rep....
Experts say Penn State’s campus closures the harsh reality
Decades ago, the good times rolled at Penn State. In the 1990s, the state’s flagship was one of the most popular institutions nationwide, claiming to receive more SAT scores from high-school seniors than any other college, according to reports at the time. Pennsylvania was expecting its college-going population to swell,...
Fox Chapel Garden Club’s Gardenfest blooms at O’Hara park
The Fox Chapel Garden Club’s Gardenfest brings people with green thumbs and others just touching the topsoil together for a common goal. “We all love to garden,” event chair Ronna Riffle said. “We encourage native plantings. We encourage good environmental stewardship.” The annual agriculture extravaganza took place at the O’Hara...
Brackenridge mayor, an independent, seeking re-election; may be challenged by write-in
Brackenridge was without a mayoral candidate on the primary ballot, but that doesn’t mean the current mayor wouldn’t like to keep her job. Incumbent Lindsay Fraser announced on primary election day that she is running for a second, four-year term. A registered independent, Fraser was not able to be on...
The Stroller, May 24, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Leechburg celebration to include...
Allegheny County launches 1st-of-a-kind free audio tours at Hartwood Acres sculpture garden
Visitors to Hartwood Acres can pop in their headphones to hear highlights of Pittsburgh’s industrial legacy while taking in the park’s impressive sculpture garden. It’s part of a mission to provide more people access to world-class art. Allegheny County on Thursday launched a new initiative to offer free, self-guided audio...
Judge rejects defense call to dismiss death penalty case in New Kensington son’s slaying
A Westmoreland County judge on Friday rejected claims from a Brackenridge father facing a potential death penalty that prosecutors are biased and have insufficient evidence to prove he killed his 9-year-old son three years ago in New Kensington. Common Pleas Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio in a 19-page ruling found there was...
Buffalo Township mother isn’t sure whose pet’s ashes were added to her daughter’s
Kadyn Jack and her dog Blue were inseparable. Where the girl went, like a furry shadow the mini Australian shepherd followed. Her mother, Kristi Jack, 52, said Kadyn would find any way to include Blue — named by 10-year-old Kadyn after her favorite color — in her day. Sometimes she’d...
Penn State closing vote draws harsh reactions
Over the past two years, Darcy Holtzman worked with her fellow teachers at Burrell High School to provide more hands-on, real-world career experience for her students. Part of that included visits to the Penn State New Kensington campus in Upper Burrell. “Penn State New Kensington has been a huge help...
Pension payments top $100K for ex-Greensburg police officer awaiting sentencing in drug case
A retired Greensburg police officer who has collected more than $100,000 in pension payments is set to learn her sentence Tuesday in a federal drug conspiracy case involving the city’s former police chief. Attorney Lee Demosky, solicitor for Greensburg’s police pension committee, said he plans to attend the sentencing hearing...
The Battle Life Center aims to change women’s lives
Amanda Wheeler hopes Sunday will be the start of a new chapter not just for her but also for other young women. The Arnold resident is holding a soft opening for The Battle Life Transitional Living Center in Arnold. The center, aimed at women 24 and older, is meant to...
Geo-Solutions plans to move to Plum by end of year
By December, New Kensington-based construction services company Geo-Solutions will conduct its business in Plum, according to marketing and sales specialist Reed Rayburg. The company plans to move into a multistory office building behind Plum School District’s bus garage while it develops a storage and maintenance facility on adjacent land at...
Faces of the Valley: The Rev. Angelique Edmonds a ‘gifted and spirit-filled’ pastor
From prayer hikes to women’s brunches to painting with parables, the Rev. Angelique Edmonds has used her gifts to help strengthen convictions at Faith United Methodist Church in Fox Chapel and its outreach ministry, Roots of Faith in Sharpsburg. Appointed associate pastor in 2021, the Beltzhoover native feels as though...
Barbara Leonard has lots of love for her hometown of Aspinwall
Aspinwall native Barbara Leonard has a lot of love for her hometown. The retired echocardiologist can often be seen cleaning up Fireman’s Memorial Park on Ninth Street or sharing stories with fellow social members of American Legion Post 77. “It’s where I grew up, where I feel comfortable,” Leonard said,...
A-K Valley High school class reunions, May 23, 2025
Publicize your high school’s class reunion for free for free in The Stroller. Send information as soon as possible vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum, PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. • Ken Hi Class of 1959 will have...
The Stroller, May 23, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Golf outing planned by...
Summer gas prices drop, but economic uncertainty remains as travel season begins
After paying nearly $40 to fill his tank at a Springdale gas station, Davon Magwood will cancel his East Coast trip this summer if he has to. He doesn’t want to, but if gas prices aren’t in his budget, he’ll have to cut back on travel. Prices for regular unleaded...
