Obituary Stories category, Page 36
Rillton woman turned passion for cooking, baking into profession
Alice Ogg loved to cook, bake and make candy — so much so she turned her passion into a profession. She operated her candy and catering business, Alice’s Candy, from her Rillton home in the 1970s and 80s. “She made the candy during the holidays — Christmas and Easter. She...
Longtime Mt. Pleasant teacher had ‘soothing Italian way’
As a young woman, Clarina DiPietro had two goals in life – to attend Seton Hill University and to work for the CIA. Although she accomplished both, she spent most of her career as a social studies teacher at Mt. Pleasant Area Senior High School. “She was always teaching her...
Latrobe businessman remembered for generosity, love of family
James Barchesky, also known as Big Jim, was very proud of the corner lot where his dealership, Superior Motors of Latrobe, sits. And he made it known, taking rides by it on Sunday drives so he knew what was going on. “That was his corner,” said grandson Tomas Barchesky, who...
Hempfield woman never forgot birthdays, anniversaries
Mary Alice Weir never forgot a birthday or anniversary of her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. “She always sent out cards. She even had the cards in her drawer at Westmoreland Manor, and she got them out in the mail,” said her daughter-in-law, Michelle Weir of Hempfield. She remembered so many...
Derry man remembered for love of family, time in service
On the night James Hook and his soon-to-be wife, Sarah, started dating, they didn’t know it would lead to 80 years of him walking her home. “He asked if he could walk her home, and he asked if he could take her hand, and he’s been walking her home ever...
Level Green dietitian shared Italian culinary traditions
Food was a passion and a profession for Lisa Ginsburg. A registered dietitian, she made sure those she cared for — including family members — were well fed and hydrated. “When I was in college, I played baseball for Clarion University, and she helped me with my nutrition,” her younger...
Greensburg man saw life despite blindness
John Dallo was blind from childhood, but he didn’t let that handicap bring him down. “He was an inspiration to everybody who saw him,” said his wife, Carol Dallo. “He did not just let life go by. He would be right in there helping with whatever.” Mr. Dallo became blind...
Jeannette teacher Raymond Bronzie wrestled most out of life on and off the mat
In his long life, there was very little that Raymond Bronzie couldn’t or didn’t do. He helped train the chimpanzees in the Johnny Weissmuller “Tarzan” movies. He was a finalist for the Olympic swimming and wrestling teams. He was a Golden Glove boxer. He rode a bicycle cross-country. He was...
Sutersville man passed on baseball career for college education
David Dubinsky wanted to go to college so badly, he said no to the Baltimore Orioles. Scouts from the major league team were at a high school baseball game Mr. Dubinsky was playing in. They were there to scout the opposing team, but Mr. Dubinsky had hit a home run...
Greensburg man was mine sweeper in Korean War, serious historian back home
As an Army combat engineer in Korea, Donald Baker once was sweeping for mines when he heard an explosion behind him. He and his men realized they had walked over a live mine but had missed it. Despite that close call, the combat engineers of the 1st Cavalry Division, Dog...
North Huntingdon nurse made lasting impression on hospital staff, patients
Generations of staff and patients at Forbes Hospital came to know the kindness and caring of nurse Joan Saversky — a regard she also showed for others when she wasn’t on duty. “There was a certain loving care she gave to us kids and to all the patients she saw...
Greensburg husband, wife died 5 days apart, remembered as ‘classic American couple’
Howard and Frances Loflin were the “classic American couple,” according to daughter Stephanie Mulligan. “All of our friends tell me that my parents showed them what true love and marriage was like when they grew up in homes that didn’t have love,” Mulligan said. Meeting in kindergarten in Oberlin, Ohio,...
Greensburg man loved cycling, Scottish heritage
David Hamilton and some of his closest friends were avid cyclists, and when they found out the Regional Trail Corp. was planning to bring part of the Great Allegheny Passage through his hometown of Van Meter in Fayette County they sprang into action. “They called themselves ‘The Over the Hill...
Scottdale woman broke down barriers, loved people
Patricia Walker did not know she was opening doors for future generations when she stepped foot on a train that would take her to San Antonio, Texas, in 1950. The then 17-year-old made a decision about her life — rather than follow in the footsteps of a lot of young...
Mt. Pleasant fixture owned service station, founded ambulance service
Jack Caruso Jr. is fairly certain that almost everyone in Mt. Pleasant knew his father, Jack Sr. “He was a figurehead in Mt. Pleasant forever,” he said. “You could ask anyone in town and they’d have their own little story about my dad.” As the owner of a longtime service...
Penn-Trafford teacher, coach, inspired young athletes
Pat Cortazzo flipped a coin with another teacher to decide who would coach the Trafford High School football team and who would coach basketball. Cortazzo, who loved football and was a quarterback at Geneva College, “lost” and accepted the basketball position, according to his son, Sam. It turned out to...
Hannastown man grew up in Italy before opening Latrobe barber shop
Shirley DaRold joked her father was older than sliced bread. Except it’s not really a joke: the first commercial loaf of sliced bread was sold in Missouri in 1928. By that time, Luigi “Fast Louie” DaRold was already 3 years old and had moved from Murrysville’s White Valley neighborhood across...
Greensburg woman’s spiritual mission: ‘Kindness and love for everyone’
Joyce McCauley may not have been missionary material at the beginning, but that didn’t deter her from following a calling that would take her life in a radically different direction. The mother, wife and businesswoman decided to enter the foreign mission field with her husband, Don, in the early 1990s....
Scottdale man remembered for time in fire service
John Leroy Chain knew he was carrying on a tradition when he joined the Scottdale Volunteer Fire Department. But what he didn’t know, was that it was a tradition that would carry on to his son and grandson. “His grandfather and people before him were firefighters, so it’s been generations,”...
Longtime McKeesport Daily News sports editor covered kids, pros
For more than three decades, Norman Vargo wrote about everything from high school volleyball to Super Bowls. He was there to chronicle the Pittsburgh Steelers’ dynasty in the 1970s, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ World Series title in 1979 and the Pittsburgh Penguins Stanley Cup runs in the early 1990s. As the...
Latrobe outdoorsman blazed new trails
When Kevin Seremet went into the woods, he went as far off the beaten path as he could go. “He always said he wanted to step on land that no other man had ever stepped on before,” said his brother, Kenneth Seremet. Kevin Seremet was always happiest outside. He gardened,...
Unity man had zest for life, traveled Europe
Dwight Sarson’s graduation trip was an adventure to remember. He and his friend hitchhiked across Europe in 1972, traveling to Italy, Sweden, France, England and Germany, said his wife, Dana Santone Sarson. “They had a grand time,” traveling and living on bread and wine to save money, she said. “That...
‘Beloved by thousands,’ William Penn doorman made people feel special
Jon-Paul Malezi, doorman at the Omni William Penn Hotel in Downtown Pittsburgh for 25 years, had a way of making people feel special, and they loved him for that. If a guest showed up in a rain storm, Malezi was out in the street with an umbrella to make sure...
Greensburg woman remembered for passion of cooking
The smell of Sylvia Fontanella’s beef risotto recipe often wafted through her Greensburg home, a signature meal of hers. Cooking and baking for her family was a favorite past time of hers, her great-niece Lisa Fox said, along with trying to spend as much time with the children in the...
Latrobe woman remembered for love of people
Joan McGuire loved to be around people, especially her son, David Sichula. “My mother and I had a very close relationship,” Sichula said. “She was my best friend, and I was her best friend.” The duo spent a lot of time together, with Sichula taking her to visit London and...
