Patrick Varine stories, Page 104
After falling short in primary, Monessen mayor plans write-in campaign
After losing the Democratic primary this spring, incumbent Monessen Mayor Matt Shorraw is planning a write-in campaign to seek a second term in office. “I’ve been able to leverage my bipartisan connections at all levels of government in order to secure funding and make our initiatives a reality,” Shorraw said....
TribLive Taste Test: Is there a sugar-free drink mix conspiracy afoot?Video
Today on the TribLive Taste Test, we test a conspiracy theory that three different brands of fruit-punch-flavored, sugar-free drink mix are actually all the same thing. In addition, we also tested a whole slew of other sugar-free drink mixes ranging from a Sunkist mix, made to taste exactly like a...
Voices of Westmoreland, volunteers encourage Reschenthaler to support ‘Build Back Better’ agendaVideo
Soaring income inequality. A lack of home care workers statewide. Green-industry jobs that can keep young families in the area. Those were just a few of the reasons a group of about a dozen people, including representatives from nonprofit Voice of Westmoreland, held a protest outside U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler’s...
Export officials remove parking-lot paving from state grant application
Export officials will have to resubmit a proposal for state grant funding without plans to repave the borough’s central parking lot. But they aren’t exactly sure why. “This is a multi-modal transportation grant, the same (type of state grant) the county came to us with for our park-and-ride a few...
Mold discovery prompts Monessen officials to move city hall
Monessen officials have voted to relocate the city’s offices after mold was discovered inside a city hall wall and other locations throughout the building, according to Mayor Matt Shorraw. On Aug. 27, Monessen Council voted 4-1 at a special meeting to move city operations from 557 Donner Ave. to the...
Red Sand Project adds new sites to help draw awareness to human traffickingVideo
Members of the Westmoreland County Human Trafficking Task Force are always seeking unique ways to draw attention to the issue they are battling, according to Lynn Mance of Delmont. One of those ways is participating in the Red Sand Project, where volunteers like Mance fill the cracks in a public...
Western Pennsylvania well-represented in ‘Art of the State’ juried exhibition
Art is a deeply personal experience, from the feelings a person gets when viewing a painting to the emotions that started the artist’s brush moving in the first place. For Pamela Cooper of Greensburg, one of the artists whose work will be part of the State Museum of Pennsylvania’s 54th...
Murrysville native ‘truly gained a family’ through Penn State THONVideo
Penn State’s THON initiative — raising money to support the families of children affected by childhood cancer, culminating in a 46-hour dance marathon at the school’s main campus — sounded like a lot of fun to Emily Vannatta of Murrysville. The 2015 Franklin Regional graduate, who now lives in Arkansas,...
Pennsylvania Arts & Crafts Labor Day Festival returns to Mt. Pleasant TownshipVideo
Traveling the region selling beef jerky is turning into a fine retirement for Greg and Gayle Tompkins. The husband and wife take Ohio-based Tommy’s Jerky to fairs and food festivals, including the 28th annual Pennsylvania Arts & Crafts Labor Day Festival, taking place through Monday at the Westmoreland Fairgrounds in...
Medic One invests more than $300,000 in new cardiac equipment
Murrysville Medic One staff operates eight ambulances, four wheelchair vans, four squads, two all-terrain vehicles, seven trailers, an emergency support unit and two boats to support its dive team. In addition, it’s not unusual to see Medic One members and their emergency support unit operating well outside their typical service...
Mixed-use retail, apartments proposed for Route 22 corridor in Murrysville
Murrysville officials are considering the second proposal for upscale housing in the Route 22 corridor in recent months. Chris Hamm of KDH Consulting Engineers this week showed council plans for Kistler Place. It’s a 5,800-square-foot building proposed on 3.6 acres near the intersection of Kistler Road and Route 22. The...
‘United 93’ re-release will benefit Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial
Ahead of the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, AMC Theatres and Universal Pictures will re-release “United 93,” the story of passengers who prevented a third terrorist attack and forced the hijacked plane down in a field near Shanksville. Directed by...
Things get dark for Dr. Strange in Marvel’s ‘What If…’ series
Spoilers ahead for the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe up through Episode 4 of “What If…” There’s a good reason why “The Twilight Zone” came on TV at night. First, if it aired in the morning, the vast majority of the viewing public wouldn’t be around to watch it. But, second,...
Murrysville area: Free movie, recycling event and more
Free barbecue, movie for first responders, veterans The Delmont Recreation Committee will host a free barbecue and movie night for all first responders, veterans and their families at 5 p.m., Sept. 11 at the Kepple Pavilion in Newhouse Park. Refreshments from Yellow Bridge Brewing and White Valley Distillery will be...
Home care turns into a home rescue for hospice aide in MurrysvilleVideo
Editor’s note: Neighbor Spotlight is a monthly feature that aims to let our readers learn more about the people in their communities who are working to make them a better place, who have interesting stories to tell or who the community feels deserve “15 minutes of fame.” If you would...
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers declares state of emergency along Monongahela River
Late Wednesday afternoon, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers declared a state of emergency because of flooding conditions along the Monongahela River and its tributaries. The emergency declaration empowers the Corps to undertake support and actions in response to the heavy rainfall that has spilled over the banks of waterways...
Penn State Extension in Hempfield plans ‘Fall Frolic’ gardening programs
Gardeners across Westmoreland County are invited to the Sept. 18 “Family Frolic” at the Penn State Extension Master Gardeners Demonstration Gardens in Hempfield. Children can learn about garden concepts at programs like “Compost Pizza,” “Growing Food from Scraps” and “Planting Fall Peas.” Their parents can learn about fall soil testing,...
Pittsburgh Youth Chorus creates new BIPOC artist-in-residence position, institutes sliding tuition scale
The Pittsburgh Youth Chorus will kick off its 2021-‘22 season with a return to in-person rehearsals, an income-based sliding scale for tuition, and a new artist-in-residence program for Black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC). “PYC’s conducting staff is comprised of white women and men whose musical training is rooted...
Monessen joins Westmoreland Land Bank, features in upcoming ‘Cheap Old Houses’ showVideo
Monessen is the 25th town to join the Westmoreland Land Bank, which offers partners the tools to repurpose vacant and tax-delinquent properties. And what better way to draw attention to those properties than to have one featured on a national TV show? A home on the 700 block of Second...
Franklin Regional, teachers’ union ratify new 6-year contract
The Franklin Regional School District and its teachers’ union ratified a new contract covering the next six years. “I think it’s a fair deal,” said Mike Landsberg, president of the Franklin Regional Education Association. “I think both sides can look at it and say, given the circumstances where we are...
State police locate missing Hempfield man
State police safely located a Hempfield man missing from his home since Wednesday night. Police from Troop A in Greensburg were joined by the Westmoreland County Rough Terrain Fire & Rescue team, Hempfield firefighters and Murrysville Medic One personnel on Thursday morning, as a state police helicopter made several passes...
Murrysville happenings: Recycling, ESAL among upcoming programs
Glass recycling, food pantry event set Murrysville and trash hauler Republic Services will once again partner for a glass recycling “pop-up” event from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 18. It will be at the Veterans Field parking lot, 4200 Sardis Road in Murrysville. All colors of glass bottles,...
‘Real Men Wear Pink’ concert fundraiser set for Saturday in Salem
Chris Guido didn’t know that real men wear pink. To be more accurate, he did not know about the American Cancer Society’s “Real Men Wear Pink” campaign, in which community leaders are nominated to spearhead fundraising drives for the society to raise awareness and help fund research to battle breast...
Reporter David Kaplan leaving WTAE after 6 years
Reporter David Kaplan is leaving WTAE after six years as a journalist in Pittsburgh. Kaplan made the announcement on his verified Twitter account. “This town cares deeply about the neighborhood, (and) it was always a priority for me to capture that,” Kaplan wrote Wednesday evening. “Not quite ready to say...
Rep. Mike Doyle announces positive coronavirus test despite being vaccinated
Congressman Mike Doyle has tested positive for coronavirus, the U.S. representative announced Wednesday evening via his Twitter feed. “I’m feeling okay and only have mild symptoms, but I’ll be quarantining in DC (sic) for a 10-day period, as the District of Columbia requires,” wrote Doyle, D-Forest Hills. Doyle added he...
