Patrick Varine stories, Page 169
Franklin Regional board may change grading scale, broaden range
Franklin Regional school director Paul Scheinert hoped students were benefiting from having a more rigorous grading system where “A” grades (the district uses a plus/minus system as well) range from 92 to 100%, “B” grades range from 82 to 91% and so on. But seeking to give students a more-level...
‘Game of Thrones’: Breaking down ‘The Last of the Starks’Video
***WARNING: SPOILERS THROUGH SEASON 8, EPISODE 4 OF ‘GAMES OF THRONES,’ AND MILD BOOK SPOILERS*** Opinions were sharply divided among the “Thrones’n’at” panel regarding “The Last of the Starks.” With two episodes to go, the show jumped back into political intrigue, tense throne-room conversation and characters not knowing who their...
Historical society kicks off 2019 season with free tours of Murrysville cabin
This weekend, members of the Murrysville Historical Preservation Society will offer free tours on property with a history that stretches 250 years. Free public tours of the Hoey/Staymates log house will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. May 11 to open its 2019 season featuring living history demonstrations and...
Franklin Regional budget proposal would hike taxes by 2.2 mills
Franklin Regional school board will take the first step next week toward adopting a 2019-20 budget that includes a 2.2-mill tax hike. The board’s May 13 meeting will include a vote to adopt a proposed final budget of $59.7 million. That is about $1.45 million more than this year’s budget....
Friends of Murrysville Parks will host bird walk
The Friends of Murrysville Parks group will host a May 12 bird walk to identify the various species of birds in Duff Park. The walk will be at 7:30 a.m. Walkers will meet at the Pasture Rose trail head and park along the road opposite the trail, 4203 Round Top...
IUP professor named as a Fulbright scholar, headed to Honduras
An Indiana University of Pennsylvania professor has been named a Fulbright scholar and will spend the upcoming academic year seeking out new species of amphibians and reptiles and supporting conservation efforts in Honduras. Josiah Townsend, an associate professor at IUP, was chosen as a 2019-20 Fulbright U.S. Scholar grant recipient....
‘Game of Thrones’: From the Great War to the Last War
***WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD THROUGH SEASON 8, EPISODE 3 OF ‘GAME OF THRONES’*** Just before tonight’s episode started, I posted a Facebook message saying I had a feeling “Game of Thrones” was about to make me feel like a real jerk for being critical of last week’s “The Long Night.” Barely...
AAUW forum set for Murrysville, Franklin Regional primary contenders
The Murrysville Area American Association of University Women will host a May 10 candidates’ night for local residents running for municipal and school board seats. The forum will be at 7 p.m., May 10 at the Murrysville municipal building at 4100 Sardis Road. It will be televised on Comcast local...
Murrysville’s massive voting precincts to be split after court grants petition
When the 2020 election rolls around, more than 7,000 Murrysville residents won’t have to wait nearly as long to cast ballots. A county judge on Friday signed off on a petition brought by Murrysville’s two major political committees, which seeks to break up two massively oversized voting precincts. Lines at...
‘Tuesdays at Townsend’ brings live music to Murrysville park
Murrysville recreation and library officials will offer area residents a bite to eat and a band to listen to this summer at Townsend Park. The “Tuesdays at Townsend” music series will feature the following bands and vendors: • June 25: Jimmy & the Frogmen with Earth Wheel & Fire Pizza...
Murrysville resident to perform with Edgewood Symphony Orchestra
Amy Simpson of Murrysville, a pianist, teacher and church musician, will perform Beethoven’s Fifth Concerto on May 11 with the Edgewood Symphony Orchestra. As a performer, she was recently featured in Stravinsky’s “Symphony in Three Movements” with the West Virginia University Orchestra. As accompanist, she was a winner of the...
Delmont has 2 candidates for 3 open council seats in primary election
Delmont has three open council seats and only two people interested in filling them. Incumbent Republican Becky Matesevac and newcomer Dennis Urban, husband of Delmont Mayor Alyce Urban, are the only two candidates standing in the May 21 primary election. That means a reasonably strong write-in candidate could become the...
Registration open for Franklin Area midget football
Registration is now open for the Franklin Area Midget Football Association. Sign-up days are set for 6-8 p.m. on May 8, and 10 a.m. to noon on May 18, at the practice field next to the Murrysville municipal building, 4100 Sardis Road in Murrysville. Teams are organized into four divisions...
Photos: Construction progressing at Murrysville Community Park’s ‘destination playground’Video
Work is ongoing at the “destination playground” and splash pad at Murrysville Community Park. Public works crews took advantage of warmer weather this week, with the goal of opening the roughly half-million-dollar park in early summer. The final design includes separate playground areas, one for 2-to-5-year-olds, and another for 5-to-12-year-olds,...
Franklin Regional senior’s tough decision? Choosing between elite collegesVideo
No one likes to make a difficult decision. But it helps when that decision is which of four of the most prestigious academic institutions in the United States to attend for college. As he considered his post-secondary education, Franklin Regional senior Bhav Jain had to choose among acceptance letters from...
Search continues for cows roaming southern Murrysville
The search for a group of black Angus cows roaming southern Murrysville continued Wednesday. “We’ve been getting one or two calls per day,” said Officer Christer Smith of the Murrysville Police Department. “It’s been ongoing for about the past week.” On Wednesday, the Westmoreland County Animal Response Team, or CART,...
Murrysville Photo Contest winners capture natural beauty, military tribute
The winners of the 2018 Murrysville Photo Contest were announced on Tuesday night, at a ceremony held at the Murrysville Community Center. The first-place winners and grand-prize winner were: • Matthew Sayer, “Mantis in the Grass” (grand prize winner) • Louise Gladkowski, Landscape category, “Shadows Show a Special Tribute” •...
Study: Elder fraud costs Pennsylvanians an estimated $1.2 billion per year
Elderly Pennsylvanians are being defrauded to the tune of an estimated $1.2 billion per year, according to a recent study, and when it happens, many do not report it to the authorities. Research company Comparitech released a study that ranks Pennsylvania among the top 10 states in the nation in...
‘Game of Thrones’: Breaking down ‘The Long Night’Video
***WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD THROUGH SEASON 8, EPISODE 3 OF ‘GAME OF THRONES’ AS WELL AS MINOR BOOK SPOILERS*** Join us for our extremely limited video series, “Thrones’n’at,” where we discuss the latest episode of HBO’s “Game of Thrones.” Obviously, we’re a little late to the game, considering there are three...
Delmont schedules borough-wide clean-up for mid-May
Delmont’s annual borough-wide clean-up is set for May 16-18 at the borough public works garage on Bierer Street. Three dumpsters will be placed at the garage where residents can dispose of a wide variety of trash at no cost during daylight hours. Participants may be asked to provide proof of...
Vandergrift photographer will be art league’s featured speaker
Photographer and illustrator Tom Gallovich of Vandergrift will be the featured speaker at the East Suburban Artists League’s meeting on Thursday. Gallovich — author of “Power Composition for Photography: Develop Your Artistic Eye,” which provides advice for aspiring shutterbugs — is a former instructor at the Oakbridge Academy in Lower...
No injuries in Murrysville car-versus-cow crash
No one was injured Monday night when a car driving on School Road South in Murrysville struck a cow, county emergency dispatchers said. That includes the cow. “I believe the cow walked away,” said Murrysville Police Chief Tom Seefeld. However, it is not the first time a motorist has come...
Landslide costs add to PennDOT’s funding challenges
In a typical year, PennDOT officials budget about $30 million for flooding and landslide damage. In 2018, they spent $127 million fixing that damage, according to PennDOT Secretary Leslie Richards. Richards, along with Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, mentioned the landslides last week while discussing more than $4 billion from the...
State police seek possible witness to fatal Center Township crash
State police out of Troop A in Indiana are seeking the public’s help in identifying a woman who may have witnessed or provided aid during a fatal three-car crash April 19 in Center Township. Authorities said Makenzie Marie Deditch, 17, of Grafton, W. Va., and Williard F. Allshouse Jr., 67,...
South Hills forum will explore ‘The Problem with Plastics’
The Izaak Walton League of America’s Allegheny County chapter will host an April 30 forum that will explore personal and political solutions to the issues plastics recycling has begun to present. “The Problem With Plastics and What We Can Do About It” is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday at the...
