Mary Ann Thomas stories, Page 28

Apollo-Ridge School District now has a direct-to-garment printer that will provide students creative and commerce opportunities. Arconic’s foundation and its technology center in Upper Burrell jointly worked on awarding the $25,000 grant to the district. The Pittsburgh-based metals manufacturer awards grants to community and educational efforts in areas where they...

Lower Burrell Councilman Rob Hamilton will not seek reelection later this year in order to pursue a doctorate. Hamilton, 32, a veteran, has a full plate with a young family and a new position as executive director of Veterans Place of Washington Boulevard in East Liberty. Hamilton is in the...

After a heated discussion last month over a Lower Burrell Council member not meeting a person seeking reappointment to the city’s Zoning Hearing Board, council is formalizing its process to meet appointees for its boards and committees. Council last month shelved a proposal to reappoint John Kamarados, an attorney, to...

The Pennsylvania Game Commission launched a live webcam on a bear den under a porch in Monroe County this week. It’s the same den where the commission installed a webcam two years ago. The adult bear hibernating there currently could be the same one, the commission said in a press...

As the pandemic continues to hammer traditional fundraising, Upper Burrell Volunteer Fire Company is teaming up with a fire company from Allegheny County for a Luck of the Irish raffle offering a $15,000 cash prize. “The pandemic has caused us to find new and innovative ways to do business,” said...

The Upper Burrell Planning Commission has granted conditional approval for the development of a Dollar General store at Route 780 and Dewey Drive. Township supervisors will have to grant final approval for the project to proceed. But first, the store’s developer will have to address several issues raised by township...

While the VALarena roller rink in North Apollo paused their reopening this month, some loyal customers have raised more than $3,200 to help the cash-strapped, nostalgic icon reopen. For more than 70 years, generations have laced up for skating sessions in the cozy rink with the same snack bar that...

Pennsylvania had the sixth best black bear harvest in 2020, taking 3,608 bears. However, last year’s harvest was 20% lower from 2019 statewide and 24% lower in the southwestern part of the state. In 2019, hunters set a record in harvesting 4,653 bears. The annual average has been running 3,675...

Although the 82-mile-long Shenango River in Northwestern Pennsylvania earned recognition as Pennsylvania’s 2021 River of the Year, promoters of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Buffalo and Loyalhanna creeks said they were happy to see their waterways finish in the Top 5. Sponsored by the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the River...

The Armstrong County Commissioners are donating $15,000 of the $100,000-plus needed to pay to open five locks on the Allegheny River in Armstrong County for recreational boaters on summer weekends. The Allegheny River Development Corp., a nonprofit group of boaters and river supporters, contracts with the U.S. Army Corps to...

It’s food trucks galore with Lower Burrell Volunteer Fire Company No. 3 scheduling three themed roundups with up to 16 food trucks and craft beer. The events are set for May 1, July 24 and Oct. 9. Although the pandemic caused Lower Burrell No. 3 and Kinloch (fire company No....

Got a nasty pothole on your street that needs to be fixed but you don’t know who to call? Lower Burrell residents don’t even have to call. They can send an email directly to the city’s public works department. Timely public access is one of the features of a new...

Catching the fastest bird alive, the peregrine falcon, is another day at office for bird control experts at the Pittsburgh International Airport and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A peregrine falcon would not leave the airport grounds earlier this month despite biologists’ efforts to shoo away the threatened raptor. Experts...

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and the state Game Commission have teamed up to offer one website for residents to buy hunting and fishing licenses. HuntFishPA replaces the previous Pennsylvania Automatic Licensing System (PALS) platform known as The Outdoor Shop. It’s accessible on all mobile devices. Previously, licenses for...

Butler County Community College’s announcement of $2.2 million from public and private sources for a new site in Ford City increases its sites to five Western Pennsylvania counties. The college’s new location in Ford City, known as “BC3 @ Armstrong,” will cost $4.5 million to construct. School officials say it...

Citizens Bank, Trib Total Media and Pittsburgh Cares have named Center of Life in Pittsburgh’s Hazelwood neighborhood as a 2021 Champion in Action, an award that comes with $35,000 in funding and promotional and volunteer support. The announcement was made Wednesday at Hazelwood’s Spartan Community Center, where Center of Life...

After having to cancel last year because of pandemic restrictions, the annual Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival is coming back. It will celebrate its 10th year June 11-13 with a Jeep parade through downtown Butler and events at Cooper’s Lake Campground in Worth Township, which is near Slippery Rock, and a...

The federal headquarters of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released $750,000 in its work plan to the Pittsburgh District to fix sinkholes on the grounds of its Natrona lock and dam on the Allegheny River in Harrison. The money is part of an additional $57.4 million disbursement for the...

Organizers of the largest job fair in the Alle-Kiski Valley say there are jobs to be had for those job seekers not spooked by the pandemic. “There have been jobs here the whole time, and there will continue to be openings in the Alle-Kiski Valley,” said Rick O’Domes, CareerLink Alle-Kiski...

Although his father tried to dissuade him from entering politics because he didn’t think it would mix well with the family funeral home business, Ross G. Walker III became the longest-tenured chairman of the Upper Burrell Board of Supervisors. This month, he began his 23rd year as chairman and 24th...

Pam Key, a preschool teacher, psychiatric nurse, martial artist and grandmother, has been chosen to lead Burrell School Board as it tries to navigate a historic pandemic with educational challenges. She succeeds board member and former board president Tricia Shank, who nominated Key to lead the nine-member board. “It was...