Patrick Varine stories, Page 64

Officials at Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Laurel Region are hoping lions, tigers and bears will elicit a few “oh my” reactions at a “Wizard of Oz”-themed fundraiser Friday night in Irwin. The “BIG Night Out Gala” will bring an immersive experience to life in service of the classic...

Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Event listings must be submitted at least eight days in advance in order to make the deadline for the Star. • • • Franklin Regional homecoming bonfire The annual Franklin Regional homecoming bonfire will take place from 5:30-8 p.m. Sept. 29 in...

A 12-year-old girl who had reported missing from Pittsburgh’s Larimer neighborhood has been found and is safe. Kamarah Sanders, 12, had last been seen on Tuesday at her home on the 6000 block of Carver Street. Police described her as 5-feet-5-inches, 90 pounds with black hair and brown eyes. She...

Pittsburgh police said a woman who had been missing from the city’s Marshall-Shadeland neighborhood was found safe. Cayla Combs, 27, had been missing since Tuesday morning. Police describe her as 5-feet-1-inch tall, 200 pounds, with brown eyes. Her hair is half-black and half-blonde. Family members said Combs was a danger...

Two people were homeless Wednesday evening after a trailer fire that killed two of their pets. Neither of the homeowners was injured when a mobile home caught fire early Wednesday evening in the 100 block of Bennett Drive in Salem, fire officials said. Crews were called about 5 p.m. and...

Bells Mills Road connecting South Huntingdon and Sewickley townships has been closed at the Bells Mills Road bridge, after a vehicle struck the bridge on Tuesday, according to PennDOT officials. Damage to the bridge necessitated the road closure, according to PennDOT spokesperson Melissa Maczko. Vaughn Neil, an engineer with Westmoreland...

Nathan Ruggles’ work as an audio describer at Prime Stage Theatre means he is responsible for bringing the visual elements of live theater to visually impaired audience members. “It’s all about making that visual imagery present and accessible to people who have visual impairment,” said Ruggles, 48, of Pittsburgh’s Mount...

Franklin Regional school officials did some administrative restructuring Monday night, in pursuit of providing more and better support services for students. FR’s education director Jennifer DiFulvio will step into a new role as assistant superintendent where she will work alongside current assistant superintendent Matthew Delp, who was hired last month....

Jim Fry of Manor has fond memories of stopping at Kings Restaurant when he was younger and getting a slice of hot apple pie with the chain’s trademark cinnamon ice cream. Fry and business partner Preston Gorman of Plum hope to make some new memories, but this time at the...

Work on the bridge carrying Rosslyn Road over the Parkway West in Rosslyn Farms has been completed, PennDOT officials said Monday. Officials closed the bridge in early February after a truck struck it. Repair work began in late August. The bridge reopened to traffic Sunday evening, according to PennDOT....

If you say the phrase “supermarket tabloid” to someone and ask what image comes to mind, there’s a good chance they will mention “Bat Boy,” the infamous (not to mention fictional) subject of a 1992 Weekly World News story and the poster child for the height of tabloid silliness. “Bat...

It sure is tough to get through a wedding in Westeros. Veterans of this universe are well aware of the body count that nuptials can produce. I’m not sure if anyone other than Tommen “Baratheon”...

When Theo van de Venne was looking to move from Belgium to a new home in the U.S., he and his family immediately were drawn to Murrysville. “In December 1976, we had just spent almost four years in Brussels, where I worked for Westinghouse Europe,” van de Venne said. “Murrysville...

It’s small, it’s stinky and it can allegedly ward off vampires. It’s garlic, and it’s also apparently gaining quite a bit of popularity with home gardeners. According to a recent poll conducted by AllAboutGardening.com, home gardeners in a dozen U.S. states searched “how to grow garlic” more than questions about...

Following a successful pilot program at its Irwin store, Busy Beaver officials have put an autonomous robot to work checking inventory at its Delmont location, a move that has bumped up technology across the board. “We’ve implemented electronic shelf labels, which is a change from the pilot, which was done...

At 7 years old, Casey Schraeder of Murrysville already was showing a keen eye for economics. “He was part of the baking contest at the Delmont Apple ’n Arts Festival, and he wanted to know why the adults got more money for winning than the kids,” said Schraeder’s grandmother Angela...

Sarah Welch said there was going to be a wonderful group of women from Erie meeting them Saturday at the Mt. Pleasant Sportzone. And Welch couldn’t wait to hit them. Unfortunately, she’ll have to. The 43-year-old Youngwood resident is the captain and team president for WestCo Roller Derby, whose members...

In rural South Huntingdon, a large stone block under the roof eaves at Sewickley Presbyterian Church bears the date 1832. The stone marks when the building was constructed, and it was plenty long ago — but the church itself was already 60 years old by that time, formed just a...

Murrysville planning commissioners will consider a recommendation for the second Olympus Energy fracking well in the municipality. Canonsburg-based Olympus is seeking to build the Hermes unconventional gas drilling well on a 147-acre property just southwest of the Rolling Fields Golf Club, on the 5000 block of Logan Ferry Road. The...

The Lash family of Sewickley Township knows a few things about keeping a farm going. They’ve kept their family farm running for more than two centuries and recently were named Conservation Farmers of the Year by the Westmoreland Conservation District. Once a dairy operation, the Lashes have had to make...

Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. • • • ‘High Tea’ to benefit Laird Hall First Presbyterian Church officials in Murrysville will organize a “high tea” to raise funds to replace the doors on the church’s Laird Hall. It will be from 1:30-4 p.m., Oct. 23 at the...

In recognition of Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month in September, the V Foundation for Cancer Research has announced a host of fundraising initiatives, including sales of a T-shirt to benefit a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit. The WWE and V Foundation have been partners since 2016 in Connor’s Cure, a nonprofit that got its...