Norwin Star category, Page 108
Irwin hosts craft show and karaoke charity event
Irwin was a hopping place Saturday afternoon with music and crafts for the 13th Annual Sing For Their Supper event and the Downtown Irwin Fall Craft Show. Karaoke singers at the C. Harper Family Courtyard at The Lamp Theatre helped to raise money for the Westmoreland County Food Bank. Restaurants...
Christian Zilli, Mario Perkins help Hempfield past Norwin
Christian Zilli made himself known Friday in his return to football at Hempfield after taking two seasons off. The senior basketball and baseball player threw for one touchdown and ran for another to help Hempfield defeat rival Norwin, 28-14, in the WPIAL Class 6A opener for both squads. The season...
Rillton man accused of fighting with state agents, police serving search warrant
A Rillton man who blamed a 2015 bank robbery on a heroin addiction was jailed Thursday on $100,000 bond after allegedly fighting with police and state narcotics agents serving a search warrant at his home. Justin W. Buckholz, 31, was arraigned on three counts of possession of a controlled substance...
Westmoreland tax delinquent property sale expected to be very different this year
Hundreds of tax delinquent properties could be auctioned off Monday as part of Westmoreland County’s annual sale, but this year’s event will look different in the age of the coronavirus pandemic. The tax sale will be conducted at Science Innovation Center Theater in Science Hall on the Youngwood campus of...
North Huntingdon commissioners debate fine points of noise ordinance
As they develop a township noise ordinance, North Huntingdon commissioners this week focused on what should be considered quiet hours. “I think the hardest thing to consider is what we designate as ‘quiet hours,’” said Commissioner Brian Blasko, who said he felt 7 a.m. was early enough to allow construction...
North Huntingdon commissioners agree to consider special-use permit for chickens
North Huntingdon commissioners may be at odds over allowing residents to keep chickens, but they did come to a consensus on how to move forward in updating the existing ordinance. Board members Thursday agreed to take a look at President Zachary Haigis’ suggestion of requiring a special-use variance to keep...
Chick’s Picks ready for normalcy of Friday night lights
Welcome to Week 1 of the high school football season. As we approach kickoff Friday night, we can all safely say what we have endured thus far in 2020 has been one of the most trying, unsettling, uncertain times in our lives. The Friday night lights will certainly be a...
Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for Week 1
Here’s a look at some don’t-miss matchups in Westmoreland County for Week 1: Class 6A Hempfield vs. Norwin 7 p.m. Friday, Norwin Stadium, North Huntingdon A rivalry between neighboring schools that have struggled in Class 6A. Both teams will feature new quarterbacks and numerous other starters. … Christian Zilli returns...
Iwin police chief resigns; acting chief named
Irwin council named a veteran police officer as the borough’s acting chief after the chief of seven years resigned last month. Chief Roger Pivirotto’s resignation was effective Aug. 20, but he will remain an employee until Dec. 2, Shari Martino, borough manager, said Wednesday. Council accepted Pivirotto’s resignation on Sept....
Debate rises over proposed North Huntingdon backyard chicken rules
After several North Huntingdon residents asked the municipality to permit chickens in residential neighborhoods, township officials appeared split over implementing rules that would allow hens to be raised on parcels less than a quarter acre. During an hour-long public hearing Tuesday, about a dozen residents supporting a proposed ordinance to...
Norwin, Franklin Regional recognized for Special Olympics
Norwin and Franklin Regional high schools are among nine in Pennsylvania to be nationally recognized as a Special Olympics Unified Champion Banner School for their commitment to inclusion in sports, academics, and extracurricular activities. “Receiving this distinction as a Unified Champion School shows that Norwin has made inclusion a priority...
Westmoreland County girls soccer preview: Good luck keeping up with Norwin
Team speed is a trait often associated with girls soccer at Norwin. Opponents can feel more like track sprinters as they chase the Knights down the field and back. Expect more foot races to the goal again this fall. Of all the skilled teams with wheels that Norwin has trotted...
Arnold Palmer airport begins final phase of runway widening, suspends flights
A final push to complete improvements to the runway at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport was set to begin Tuesday night, with the airport suspending all flights for more than two weeks to accommodate construction. Spirit Airlines, the Unity airport’s sole commercial carrier, is expected to hit the pause button on...
Southwest Pennsylvania again takes center stage in presidential campaigns this week
Pennsylvania’s importance in the Nov. 3 election is apparent again this week in a series of stops planned in the Pittsburgh region by the Trump and Biden campaigns. Former Vice President Joe Biden stopped in Harrisburg on Monday for Labor Day. The week will ramp up Wednesday with Vice President...
WPIAL Class 6A football breakdown: NA, Central Catholic cream of shrinking crop
The expansion to six classifications four years ago has been a bonanza for many of the WPIAL classes. Close regular season battles for playoff berths have led to some nail-biting moments in the postseason. That has not been the case for the WPIAL’s largest classification. While the number of teams...
Sing for Their Supper and Crafts planned
Downtown Irwin will be the site of the 13th annual Sing for Their Supper and Craft Show, an annual fundraiser for the Westmoreland County Food Bank, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sept. 12. Those who think they have a great singing voice can entertain by singing along with a...
Westmoreland County looks to fight ‘brain drain’ caused by department head resignations
Westmoreland County lost five of its top administrators this year through resignations and retirements, creating what one official called a “brain drain” in local government. The latest to leave was Amanda Bernard, who resigned as the county’s human resources director in late August to take a similar job with a...
Westmoreland boys soccer preview: Franklin Regional chasing 3rd straight WPIAL title
Forty-two wins, 33 shutouts, 15 goals allowed. The numbers speak for themselves at Franklin Regional, where the boys soccer program has put together quite a two-year run. The Panthers have all but monopolized the space on stingy defense with a deliberate style of play that, paired with some exceptional homegrown...
Eastern-area real estate transactions for the week of Sept. 6
Churchill Daniel Gardner sold property at 1914 Hampstead Drive to Kevin and Paige Strasbaugh for $254,000. Delmont James Harry sold property at 324 Abbe Place to Bradley Van Hyning and Courtney Milne for $164,900. Forest Hills Arlene Hayek sold property at 236 Cascade Road to Yevgeniy Shrayber and Vanessa Veltre...
Westmoreland County coaches give The Birdie the old ‘social distancing’ treatment
The Birdie has been asked to social distance before so the concept is not altogether new to the local prep football expert. “More than 6 feet, usually,” he said. “More like six football fields. Sometimes I wonder if people don’t really like me.” Even before covid-19 wrapped its claws around...
Cross country coaches make tweaks to run meets, generate ‘enthusiasm, optimism’
With the hope of having a fall high school season and understanding meets most likely would take a form unlike any before, cross country coaches throughout the WPIAL collaborated with each other and others from across the country to develop ideas as well as generate enthusiasm and optimism. Pennsylvania teams...
Westmoreland County hiring poll workers to handle heavy expected voter turnout
Westmoreland County will hire as many as 1,800 poll workers for election day. Elections Bureau Director JoAnn Sebastiani said recruiting has been underway for the last several weeks to have each of the county’s 307 voting precincts fully staffed on Nov. 3. “We’re going to take as many poll workers...
Westmoreland controller’s office to put audits online
For the first time, audits from the Westmoreland County Controller’s Office are available online. Controller Jeffrey Balzer said financial reports compiled by his staff will be made public, a departure from past practices that required formal requests under the state’s open records laws to review the department findings. “I have...
North Huntingdon to hold hearing on backyard chickens ordinance
The debate about keeping chickens in North Huntingdon’s residential areas will continue. Township commissioners scheduled a public hearing at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Town House, 11279 Center Highway, to hear another round of what has been heated discussion on the subject, including where residents can have chickens and how...
Norwin’s Sydney Gray verbals to VMI for soccer
Norwin is used to churning out NCAA Division I girls soccer talent. It is practically a yearly occurrence for the perennial power. College coaches know where to find high-caliber players who will fit into their system. Sydney Gray became the latest player from the school to choose a D1 program...
