Patrick Varine stories, Page 119
News and events in the greater Murrysville area for the week of April 29, 2021
Submit news and events to the Murrysville Star by emailing pvarine@triblive.com. Food collection event set for May 1 Busy Beaver and the Rotary Club of Delmont-Salem will host a May 1 food collection event for the Westmoreland County Food Bank. It will be from 8:30-11:30 a.m. in the former AMC...
Franklin Regional Thespian Club goes live for spring play, ‘The Dining Room’
Ian Sunny has played plenty of characters during his four years in the Thespian Club at Franklin Regional Senior High School. For his final production, he and seven cast mates will get the chance to revel in not one, but up to four “final” roles. “This is a chance to...
Classic, custom cars line Level Green to show support for child battling cancer
Oliver Tester, 5, of Level Green, is a big fan of the Subaru WRX. So when staff at Tester’s school, Level Green Elementary, decided to organize a drive-by on April 24 in support of Tester, who has been battling high-grade soft-tissue sarcoma, they made sure the car company’s sporty compact...
President Biden name-checks Pittsburgh in speech to CongressVideo
President Joe Biden invoked the Steel City in his speech to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday night, asking why wind turbine blades can’t be made in Pittsburgh rather than Beijing, China — essentially challenging U.S. businesses to bring manufacturing jobs back from overseas. President Biden: "There is simply...
911: No injuries in Westmoreland Manor fire
No one was injured Wednesday afternoon in a roof fire that emergency officials suspect started in the kitchen at Westmoreland Manor in Hempfield. Multiple companies led by Midway-St. Clair VFD responded shortly before 4:30 p.m. for a report of a fire at the senior facility on South Grande Boulevard. A...
Pine-Richland grad Kelsey Hillock draws on jazz influence for new single, ‘No Lie’Video
Growing up in Richland Township, Kelsey Hillock was probably one of the few 12-year-olds who could count 1940s jazz singer Sarah Vaughan among their favorite musical artists. Today Hillock, 25, is pursuing her passion for modern music with Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday as her inspiration. She’s recording under...
Pittsburgh man faces federal firearms charges after Perry North warrant raid
Pittsburgh police assisted federal agents over the weekend in serving a federal arrest warrant in the city’s Perry North neighborhood. Pittsburgh Police SWAT joined U.S. Marshals and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives in executing the warrant for Oronde Shelton, 48, in the 200 block of Waldorf Street....
Kings restaurant on Route 66 in Salem closes after more than 3 decades
The Kings Family Restaurant on Route 66 in Salem closed for good this week, after more than three decades in business. “Over the course of the past year, moving from regular business to strictly carryout, this is a restaurant we just weren’t able to keep, from a financial standpoint,” said...
Franklin Regional school board primary includes 10 candidates
Unlike the 2019 primary, when the Franklin Regional School District’s Sloan “elementary campus” project dominated much of the election discussion, the 10 candidates seeking open school board seats in 2021 cited a wide variety of reasons for running. They range from emphasizing fiscal responsibility and maintaining the district’s reputation for...
TribLive Taste Test: National Pretzel DayVideo
Monday is National Pretzel Day! So who makes the perfect pretzel? Find out, as TribLive Taste Test team members Jonna Miller and Patrick Varine set out to tackle a task sure to leave them parched and in need of a glass of water: what brand has the best pretzel? We...
Murrysville-Export-Delmont covid figures tallied for the week of April 26, 2021
The most recent data from the state Department of Health shows 1,452 coronavirus cases in the Murrysville area since the pandemic started in March 2020. Twenty-one new cases were reported in the past seven days. The health department on Monday released figures for the three ZIP codes that comprise the...
Robinson stenographer earns national recognition, certification
During her early days as a court reporter, Karyn Valeriano found that two years of training at the Community College of Allegheny County didn’t help her nerves when a couple of attorneys started arguing and talking over top of one another. “As I gained more experience and confidence, I realized...
Last week of April honors ‘father of Pennsylvania forestry,’ Joseph T. Rothrock
Joseph T. Rothrock dedicated much of his life to educating Pennsylvanians about the importance of the forests and natural areas that were once much more abundant in the Keystone State. Born in 1839 in Mifflin County, Rothrock began his career as a botanist and surgeon before starting the “Michaux Forestry...
Pittsburgh jazz legend Earl ‘Fatha’ Hines to receive historical marker in DuquesneVideo
James Johnson, who runs the Afro-American Institute of Music in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood, said it would be tough for any jazz piano player to go through life without being influenced — consciously or not — by the legacy of Earl “Fatha” Hines. Born in 1903 in Duquesne, Earl Kenneth Hines...
Local health systems look to CDC guidance on resuming J&J covid vaccinations
U.S. health advisers on Friday urged resuming covid-19 vaccinations with Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose shot, saying its benefits outweigh a rare risk of blood clots — in line with Europe’s rollout. Federal health officials uncovered 15 vaccine recipients who developed a highly unusual kind of blood clot, out of nearly...
North Huntingdon police locate missing 11-year-old boy
North Huntingdon police located a missing 11-year-old shortly before 10 p.m. Friday night, after a roughly four-hour search of the Penns Woods area east of White Oak Park. Police said neighbors assisted with the search, and thanked the community for its help in a Nixle alert message sent shortly after...
Charges filed in Murrysville area for the week of April 19, 2021
Charges filed with Export District Judge Charles Conway. All individuals have the right to a preliminary hearing and are innocent until proven guilty before a judge in the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas. • Tony L. Randolph, 48, of Castle Shannon, with driving under the influence (refusal), endangering the...
News and events in the Murrysville area for the week of April 26, 2021
Food collection event set for May 1 Busy Beaver and the Rotary Club of Delmont-Salem will host a May 1 food collection event for the Westmoreland County Food Bank. It will be from 8:30-11:30 a.m. in the former AMC Theater parking lot off of Hollywood Boulevard, near Delmont. Food bank...
‘On the Move’ in the Murrysville area for the week of April 22, 2021
Murrysville officials declared April 21, 2021, as “Coach Botta Day” in honor of Franklin Regional football coach Greg Botta, who is retiring after 27 years with the team. “It’s been an honor and a privilege to work and live in this community for a long time,” Botta said. “It means...
Savini makeup school grad wins contest to spend 1st night in ‘Buffalo Bill’s House’Video
When Jeannette Milo was a student at Tom Savini’s makeup effects program in Monessen, she watched movies such as “Silence of the Lambs” with the goal of one day working on such a film. Little did she know, a decade later, she’d be the first person to spend the night...
New Jersey company to expand its presence at Westmoreland business park
Directors for the Westmoreland County Industrial Development Corp. have approved an option agreement for a lot at the Westmoreland Business & Research Park that will add a new manufacturing facility and office building, along with potentially 50 new jobs. The agreement gives WAB Associates six months to finalize the $218,050...
Murrysville girls mind the goal for 16U national championship contendersVideo
Two Murrysville teens will be protecting the net when the Steel City Selects 16U girls’ ice hockey team heads to Denver for the Chipotle-USA Hockey Tier II National Championships at the end of the month. For the team’s starting goaltender, Abby Manzewitsch, 16, it will be the third time in...
Trio of Pa. bills addresses gaps in drug rehabilitation process
Pennsylvania legislators unanimously passed several bills Tuesday aimed at ensuring that friends and family of people struggling with addiction issues are kept “in the loop,” so to speak. House Bill 944, written by State Reps. Mark Longietti, D-Mercer, and Eric Nelson, R-Westmoreland, would require in-patient rehabilitation facilities to notify a...
Pittsburgh police: Missing 12-year-old boy safe
A 12-year-old Pittsburgh boy who had been missing for about two days has been found and is safe, city police said Tuesday afternoon. Brice Rose had last been seen on Sunday in the city’s Warrington neighborhood, where he resides, police said....
Pine-Richland community shows ‘silent support’ for fired football coach Eric KasperowiczVideo
Reaction to the firing of Pine-Richland high school football coach Eric Kasperowicz has been swift and strong. It has ranged from confusion and anger over the school board’s lack of an explanation — citing their policy not to comment on personnel matters — to students rallying outside their football stadium,...
