Murrysville Star category, Page 35
Clouds hamper annual winter solstice walk in Murrysville
Westmoreland Conservancy officials got decent weather but unfortunate cloud cover for their annual winter solstice walk on Thursday evening. The shortest day of the year saw the sun setting at 4:57 p.m. About 16 participants were hoping to see it in spectacular fashion from an observation deck built by a...
Western Pa. faithful react to Pope’s same-sex couples edict — could bring ‘new era of openness’
For Donna Fischer, Pope Francis’ statement permitting priests to bless same-sex couples is a step in the right direction for the LGBTQ community. The Vatican released a document Monday elaborating on a letter Francis wrote to two cardinals that was published in October. The document affirms that priests can bless...
Export teen sentenced to prison term for Jeannette shooting
An Export man pleaded guilty Wednesday to shooting two men in a Jeannette home in October 2020. Khalil Myers, 19, was originally charged with attempted homicide and aggravated assault in connection with a shooting that injured two men at a South Third Street home. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge...
Lee defeats Megaludis to win Senior National Freestyle title
It was a battle of Franklin Regional High School graduates Sunday in the finals of the Senior National Men’s Freestyle Championship in Fort Worth, Texas. Spencer Lee, a 2017 grad, defeated 2011 grad Nico Megaludis, 6-2, in the finals. Lee had two first-period takedowns and added another takedown in the...
East suburban real estate transactions, week of Dec. 21, 2023
Chalfant AYT Assets LLC sold property at 236 Highland Ave. to Lucia Alexandra Giamanco for $95,000. Edgewood Richard Bereznak sold property at 109 Harlow St. to Leah Valtin Erwin and Forrest James Jackson for $308,000. Forest Hills Kathleen Kyle sold property at 135 Avenue L to Angie Jolicoeur for $160,500....
Annual Franklin Regional Holiday Telethon will benefit new ‘Mini-THON’ club’s fundraising effortsVideo
It may have been two decades ago, but Franklin Regional multimedia teacher Becky Magness doesn’t have any trouble recalling the first holiday telethon her multimedia students produced. “Our first one was live outside of Walmart, and it was so cold that our cameras were actually freezing,” Magness said. They also...
‘Pilgrimage Jr.’ debuts kid-centered version of the Nativity storyVideo
Delmont Christmas Pilgrimage organizers debuted the “Pilgrimage Junior” on Dec. 2, a child-friendly, interactive way to tell the Nativity story. Participants could ask questions of the Nativity characters and get up close with animals that are part of the story. The event, new this year, was geared toward preschool and...
Franklin Regional swimming team has new coach, youthful squad
Franklin Regional has a new swimming coach, and he’s inherited a young team. Dan Taylor, who recently coached at Fox Chapel, takes over for Vic Santoro, who resigned after the 2022-23 season. Taylor is a teacher in the Franklin Regional School District at the middle school. He once served as...
Braylon Littlejohn leads Butler to road win at raucous Franklin Regional
These are the moments Braylon Littlejohn dreams of. “Always put the blinders on and just walk in on the game,” said the senior star, who scored 24 points Friday night to lead visiting Butler past Franklin Regional, 63-60, in a WPIAL boys basketball game that lived up to its hype....
Westmoreland Meals on Wheels programs prepare for winter weather
The weather outside isn’t frightful. At least not yet, and weather predictions say Western Pennsylvania is in for another mild winter. But volunteers at Delmont Meals on Wheels aren’t taking any chances — they are collecting donations for Winter Weather Kits that will be distributed to all 50 of its...
Murrysville area: Delmont park rentals, ‘Hot Chocolate Hikes’ and more
Email news briefs and event information to pvarine@triblive.com. Change in Star production schedule The Murrysville Star will not have a print edition during the week of final week of 2023 and the first week of 2024. The next issue after Dec. 21 will be delivered Jan. 11. Over the holidays,...
Delmont Police awarded federal hiring grant
The Delmont Police Department got a holiday gift in the form of a $125,000 federal hiring grant. Now borough officials just need to decide if they want to put it to use. “We’re not in need of hiring another officer, but I also didn’t think we would get this grant,”...
Franklin Regional softball’s Ciara Camacho has baseball past, Division I future
A college softball career at Kent State awaits Ciara Camacho, who two years ago was new to the game. She didn’t know a slap hitter from a designated hitter, a courtesy runner from a pinch runner. The Franklin Regional junior played baseball for most of her youth sports career, mixing...
Franklin Regional boys off to blockbuster start
Franklin Regional’s boys basketball coaches like to take a game film and pick it apart. They dissect it into dozens of short clips for instructional purposes. Some are examples of perfect execution. Others are used to emphasize what might have worked better. Either way, it gives the players something to...
Franklin Regional uses a little R&R to beat Hempfield
Franklin Regional needed a little R&R. No, not rest and relaxation. If there is a tired boys basketball team out there, it is not this one. The Panthers went to Rowell and Rankin to keep their record perfect. Seniors Cam Rowell and Cooper Rankin each scored 21 points as the...
East suburban real estate, week of Dec. 10. 2023
Churchill Estate of John Patterson sold property at 2525 Greensburg Pike Unit 102 to Antonette Fairbanks and Miroya Monsour for $190,000. Tarek Abulleil sold property at 3306 Scathelocke Road to Gerald Daniel and Janet Bednarz for $329,000. Lori Jean Putnam trustee sold property at 1625 Williamsburg Pl to Natural Home...
Franklin Regional notebook: Boys basketball team sprints out of gates
The ball went up in the jump circle and Franklin Regional took off. Showing a fast-paced style, the Panthers ran to a 2-0 start to open boys basketball season with a pair of wins at the 19th Hempfield Tip-off Tournament. “We’re trying (to run),” coach Jesse Reed said. “That is...
Led by NAHL-bound Max Rutkowski, Franklin Regional hockey turns things around
After beginning the season 1-4, the Franklin Regional hockey team has turned things around. The Panthers have won three consecutive games and are playing their best hockey of the season, according to coach John Winebrenner. “We made a bunch of lineup adjustments, and the team is playing with confidence,” he...
Indoor pickleball facility proposed for Murrysville
Even for a die-hard pickleball fan, the weather is making it difficult to get on a local court and enjoy playing. Jillian Bateman-McIntosh of Murrysville has taken notice and hopes to build a six-court indoor pickleball facility just off Route 22 in Murrysville. “I moved here from Boston where the...
Delmont decorating fundraiser will be featured on NBC’s ‘Today’ showVideo
Since 2020, residents in Delmont’s Monticello neighborhood have decorated their homes to the hilt for the holiday season, part of a fundraising competition that allows them to present an annual gift to two local charities. On Christmas Day, they will get their own gift — a nationally televised segment on...
Murrysville area: Holiday school concerts, Santa Claus Parade, more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Holiday school concerts The Franklin Regional School District’s band and choral programs will present their annual holiday performances over the coming weeks. Here is a schedule: • Dec. 13: Sixth-grade chorus and Gold Notes, 7 p.m. at the FR Middle School’s Little...
Franklin Regional marching band performs in Pearl Harbor parade during Hawaii trip
The Franklin Regional Panther Marching Band spent early December basking in the warm glow of the Hawaiian sun. In addition to performing in the shadow of the USS Arizona Memorial, the band also performed in the annual Pearl Harbor parade in Honolulu. Over the past decade, FR marching band members...
Watch the Franklin Regional marching band perform at today’s Pearl Harbor parade in Hawaii
Franklin Regional Panther Marching Band members will take part in the annual Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade today in Hawaii, and school officials have provided a link to watch the parade live. Livestreaming at 9:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m. in Honolulu), the parade will be the culmination of the band’s weeklong trip...
Murrysville council approves budget, beer distributor, short-term rental regulations
About $2.7 million in capital projects including road work and park improvements is funded in Murrysville’s 2024 budget. The spending plan, approved Wednesday does not include a tax increase. Property taxes will remain at 12.15 mills in the $15.6 million budget. Just under 3.5 mills dedicated for Murrysville’s capital improvement...
Murrysville Council OKs lease for gas, oil rights under 2 parks
Murrysville Council has approved oil and gas rights leases for several hundred acres of land beneath its two largest parks. Council voted 4-2 Wednesday to enter into separate leases with the sole bidder, Olympus Energy, for 74 acres below Duff Park and just under 306 acres of Murrysville Community Park,...
