Patrick Varine stories, Page 142

Patrick Varine
Patrick Varine
Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
New Murrysville voting precincts approved 
Murrysville voters in the Newlonsburg and Sardis precincts will likely be standing in long lines on election day this November. The good news? It will be the last time. On Monday morning, Westmoreland County Judge Chris Scherer approved a redistricting plan that will split the massive precincts — which have...
Murrysville council to take public comment on fracking well application
After four months of testimony from officials seeking to bring the first fracking well into Murrysville, residents will soon have a chance to give their opinions. The public hearing for the Titan well pad, proposed by Huntley & Huntley Energy Exploration — which recently announced a name change to Olympus...
Some Pucketa Creek residents remain frustrated with FTMSA sewage solution
What began as a possible solution for a handful of property owners living with failing septic systems along the Pucketa Creek border with Washington Township has led to a potential financial hardship for some of their neighbors. Their initial source of frustration was a years-long delay in getting access to...
‘Scottie Pride’ returns as community relishes Southmoreland’s undefeated football season 
The last time the Southmoreland Scotties made the WPIAL playoffs, the Pittsburgh Pirates were World Series champions. That was in 1979. Today, the Scotties (5-0) are the highest-scoring team in the WPIAL Class 2A Century Conference — and they’ve already clinched their first playoff berth in four decades. “Everyone’s really...
CROP Walk marks 40 years in Murrysville, helping feed the hungry
Roger Schneider moved to Murrysville in 2000 from Pittsburgh, where he previously helped organize an annual CROP Walk, an acronym for Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty. When he arrived, he found a local CROP Walk had been established for more than two decades, dedicated to raising money for the less...
Trail Life troop will be recognized for work at ‘forgotten’ Salem cemetery 
Tucked away on Mark Drive, just south of Delmont in Salem Township, is a cemetery that dates back to the Revolutionary War. And thanks to the efforts of Trail Life USA Troop 2717, the Lessig Riddle Cemetery — named for the former owners of the farm in that area and...
Fallen Rostraver firefighter will be honored at national memorial
Michael Godzak joined the Rostraver Township Volunteer Fire Department as a junior member at 12 years old. For the next 47 years, the Belle Vernon native rose through its ranks, serving a stint as chief for nine years in the 1980s and early ’90s. On April 29, 2018, Godzak was...
Murrysville church will mark bicentennial in 2020 
Pastor Joseph Hedden Jr. drove past the house of worship he knew as “Hill’s Church” for years before discovering its true name is much longer: the Emmanuel Reformed United Church of Christ. “I didn’t know it was called anything other than ‘Hill’s Church,’” Hedden said. What Hedden knows now, after...
Westmoreland Choral Society will hold ‘Technicolor’ coat drive
Westmoreland Choral Society members are hoping Joseph’s “Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” can help provide coats for others as well. The society’s Oct. 4 concert, which features music from the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice musical, will kick off a partnership between the society, the Community Clothes Closet in New Kensington...
E.C. Cruisers show off vintage cars to benefit county children’s bureau
The E.C. Cruisers have been showing off vintage cars and trucks for a quarter-century, raising money in the process for the Westmoreland County Children’s Bureau Christmas fund. This year’s show, held Sept. 15 at the Delmont Volunteer Fire Department, saw a record 180 registered cars and a bump in the...
Perryopolis doctor charged with swapping pills for sex
A Perryopolis family doctor is charged with 28 counts of swapping opioid medication for sexual favors, according to U.S. Attorney Scott Brady. Emilio Ramon Navarro, 58, of Coal Center was indicted on 29 charges, according to a Justice Department news release. Between April 2018 and April 2019, Navarro unlawfully dispensed...
Rye whiskey with Pennsylvania roots raises nearly $20,000 at auctions
Century-old bottles of rare Western Pennsylvania rye whiskey are making a few organizations very happy this week, and it’s not just the buzz from throwing back a couple shots. Bottles distilled in 1909 and 1911 were auctioned off within days of one another this week, with one fetching $14,000 to...
New director takes the helm at Penn Area Library 
Jessica Beichler sees a lot of opportunity for growth at the Penn Area Library, where she began serving as director Sept. 3, following the retirement of Dorene Miller. “I like the community here,” said the Trafford resident, who previously served as director. “There are people moving into the community who...
Local U.S. Attorney Scott Brady appointed to federal advisory committee
U.S. Attorney Scott Brady of the Western District of Pennsylvania has been named to the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee, one of nine U.S. attorneys to be appointed by U.S. Attorney General William Barr. “The U.S. Attorneys who comprise the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee play a critical role in carrying out...
Greensburg joins in Global Climate Strike 
Xander Davis, a senior at Hempfield Area High School, is concerned about climate change. “I’m worried for a future about which I once had hopes and dreams,” said Davis, one of several young people who spoke Friday outside the Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg. More than 100 people joined in...
Murrysville officials working to develop ordinance for 5G antennas
If 5G antennas are going to begin sprouting in Murrysville, local officials want to ensure they’re not unsightly. “They’re not just a pole out of the ground with an antenna,” Murrysville Chief Administrator Jim Morrison told council at its Wednesday meeting. “They’re permitted up to 28 cubic feet of cabinet...
Fort Ligonier will auction 1911 Old Overholt bottle at ‘Cannon Ball’ event
When it comes to capitalizing on Western Pennsylvania’s rye whiskey history, the Fort Ligonier Association isn’t going to get left out. In addition to a rare whiskey auction happening Thursday in Kentucky that includes a bottle of 1909 Old Overholt — a West Overton distillery once owned by Henry Clay...
Christian Life pastor to retire in October
When the Rev. Gary Simpson came to Christian Life Church in Trafford, the Haymaker Village neighborhood was a grassy field, and a stop sign was perfectly capable of handling traffic at the corner of Forbes Road and Route 130. That was in 1985. “Children who were born in the early...
Murrysville woman named Big Brothers Big Sisters executive director
On Sept. 24, Juniper Grill in Murrysville will host a guest bartender night, where Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Laurel Region will tend bar and all tips will go to support the group’s mission of mentoring children in Western Pennsylvania. One of those guest bartenders will be the group’s...
Judge denies appeal of Franklin Regional’s ‘elementary campus’ project 
The Sloan Project Concerned Citizens group has maintained throughout its appeal of Franklin Regional’s Sloan “elementary campus” project that Murrysville officials did not go far enough in imposing conditions on the project. Paramount to the group’s appeal was its contention the Sardis/Crowfoot roads area was not suited for the increased...
Learn to preserve fresh food at Penn State Extension’s canning seminar
Tony Thomas’ grandfather kept a small garden behind the house Thomas and his wife bought a couple years ago, in Pittsburgh’s Morningside neighborhood. After a season spent amending the soil, tilling it and laying down compost, he and his wife have a backyard vegetable and flower garden bursting at the...
Export councilman completes 2,500-mile Cross Country Chase 
Joe Ferri’s 1947 Indian Chief motorcycle made it the full 2,500 miles of the Cross Country Chase, from Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., to Key West, Fla., in 10 days. Along the way, Ferri and fellow riders — including several other members of the Allegheny Mountain Chapter of the Antique Motorcycle...
‘Goat-scapers’ will bring their appetite to Pitt’s Greensburg campus 
Western Pennsylvania’s cutest landscapers will soon be back at work in Westmoreland County. Two herds of goats from Allegheny Goatscape will begin clearing hillsides at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg on Sept. 24. The herds — shepherded by their “guard donkeys,” Hobo and Diamond — will clear weeds and...
Eastern Pa. city joins Pittsburgh, Sharpsburg in banning wild-animal acts
Following in the footsteps of two Allegheny County communities, Whitemarsh Township officials in eastern Pennsylvania voted to ban wild and exotic animal circus acts last week. The move comes after similar bans enacted in both Pittsburgh and Sharpsburg, and will affect the town of Plymouth Meeting in Whitemarsh, where the...
Some Delmont residents unhappy with hauling service
Topics vary at monthly Delmont council meetings, but one topic has come up fairly consistently over the past year or so: complaints about trash service, provided in the borough by Republic Services. “Everything that we signed onto as part of this contract has gone away,” said resident Randy Otto, who...


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