Pitt-Greensburg to display art, honor alumni, hold festival during Blue & Gold Homecoming Celebration

The University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg will honor outstanding alumni, showcase campus and local art and host festival activities during its annual Blue & Gold Homecoming Celebration continuing through Saturday.

The art show is underway at Millstein Library on campus. Running through Oct. 7 on the library’s second floor, it features more than 100 creative works by 40 artists, including 68 pieces submitted in a judged category.

Works have been entered in the show by students, faculty and staff, while nearly 70% were submitted by community members from the region.

Those attending the show may vote for their favorite works through Thursday. An artists’ reception is set for 6 p.m. Friday. Visit greensburg.pitt.edu and click on “The Art Show” under the Events heading for more information.

The library is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and 1 to 9 p.m. Sundays. This Saturday, in conjunction with the Blue & Gold festival, it will have special opening hours from noon to 3 p.m.

Festival set for Saturday

The festival will feature a variety of activities between noon and 3 p.m. near the library.

A picnic, photo booth, corn hole toss challenge and “Word Circus” will begin at noon. Pumpkin decorating and a mascot race are slated from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. A beer garden, pickleball and kids’ activities will get underway at 1 p.m., with an ice cream social scheduled at 2 p.m.

Those attending will learn about a set of metal wings that will feature a design representing the campus. It’s one of a series of such art pieces placed at locations across the county through the Wings Across Westmoreland project, sponsored by the Westmoreland Cultural Trust.

Wrapping up the festival, the History Club will place items in a time capsule to be buried in recognition of the campus’ 60th anniversary. It will be opened to mark the 75th anniversary.

Alumni to be honored at dinner

The alumni association will welcome guests from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday for a dinner and awards celebration in the Hempfield Room of Chambers Hall. Cocktails will be served at 5:30 p.m.

Jesse Brocious of Greensburg, a member of the Class of 2005, will receive the Alumnus of Distinction Award. Greensburg resident Anthony “Andy” P. Garsteck Jr., a 1974 Pitt graduate, has been selected for the Volunteer Excellence Award, while Sara Hoover, who earned her undergraduate psychology degree in 2015, will receive the Young Alumni Leadership Award.

The Distinction Award honors alumni who are outstanding in professional achievement and in service to the university and to their community.

Senior vice president of real estate and facilities for First Commonwealth Bank, Brocious received the Strategic Thinker Award at the Pennsylvania Bankers Association’s 2020 Emerging Leaders Conference.

In 2017, Brocious, his wife, Ashley, and longtime friend, Robert Marsh, founded West Point Auto Works in Greensburg. They opened a second location last year in Monroeville.

Brocious and his wife have supported a number of local organizations, including fire departments, Central Westmoreland Habitat for Humanity, West Point Little League and Derry Area football.

He volunteers at alumni events and sponsors activities such as the Blue & Gold art show, a golf outing and the Merry Mingle alumni Christmas event.

Garsteck is active with the alumni board of directors, serving on the events committee. He helps with set-up and welcoming attendees at events including the university’s student Move-In Day and Senior Send-Off.

President of the men’s basketball alumni club, he distributes spirit gear at Bobcat basketball games and spearheaded an awards night for players.

The person who nominated Garsteck for the volunteer wrote that he “is a shining example of what a volunteer should be. … It doesn’t matter what or when — if you need help, he will be there.”

Garsteck retired as a letter carrier in 2017 and previously worked as a production supervisor for Volkswagen of America.

The Young Alumni Leadership Award recognizes a graduate 35 or younger for distinguished leadership in their career, in their community or at the university.

A licensed professional counselor, Hoover serves clients of all ages at the Family Counseling Center of Armstrong County in Leechburg. She specializes in working with victims of trauma.

While a university student, she volunteered with the local Blackburn Center and interned with the Court-Appointed Special Advocates of Westmoreland. She later earned a master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

She continues to stay in touch, serving as a judge of the annual campus resume contest.

Visit www.greensburg.pitt.edu/alumni/awards to register for the alumni dinner. The cost is $30 per person.

Blood drive, lecture slated

On Wednesday, a blood drive will be held from 11:30 am. to 4 p.m. in the Chambers Hall gymnasium. Participants can register in advance at redcrossblood.org, but walk-ins are welcome.

Michael P. Colaresi, director of the Pitt Disinformation Lab, will discuss “disinformation and the threat to democracy” at 7 p.m. Wednesday in Ferguson Theater at Smith Hall. The free talk is presented as the annual Dr. Bernard Cobetto Lecture on Contemporary Ethical Issues. Visit https://bit.ly/cobetto-2022 to reserve a seat.

Visit greensburg.pitt.edu/about/blue-and-gold for more information on the various activities planned during the Blue & Gold Homecoming Celebration.