Harry Funk stories, Page 11

Optimism abounds at high school graduations, as each year’s seniors look forward to receiving their diplomas while well-wishing family members and friends prepare to applaud. For those attending Chartiers Valley High School’s May 31 commencement, speeches by three particularly eloquent members of the Class of 2023 buoyed the overall sense...

Considering that he runs one 5-kilometer event a year, Darryl Wiley conceded that his latest effort might not land him in the winner’s circle. “I’ll see you at the finish line,” he told fellow runners prior to the start of a June 11 race in Boyce Park. “I’m not going...

Verona joined a growing number of municipalities to pledge support for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Active People, Healthy Nation initiative. During their June 13 meeting, council members Dr. Nancy Carpenter, Red Craig, Trish Hredzak-Showalter and Sylvia Provenza took turns reading a proclamation that “recognizes the importance...

Forgoing the typical student’s summer vacation is par for singer Clara McGough’s course. “She practices all the time,” her mother, Julie, attested. “She doesn’t have a lunch at school. Instead, she takes a study hall, which is her practice period.” With the conclusion of Bethel Park High School’s academic year,...

For the Hartwood Acres concert in Allegheny County’s new Acoustics in the Park series, the featured musician is a singer who grew up nearby. Aspinwall native Katie Simone will perform at 7 p.m. June 21 in Hartwood’s Sculpture Garden, accompanied by guitarist Mark Lucas. “This gig for the county at...

When he graduated from Riverview High School in 2007, Jack Craig knew exactly what he wanted for a career. Exactly one semester into college, he decided that his lifelong goal of being a zookeeper wasn’t for him. Actually, a clue in that regard may have come earlier. “My Riverview claim...

He may have racked up decades’ worth of accolades for his songwriting and performing prowess, but Jeff Black likes to keep touring simple. “I just usually throw my guitar and my mandolin in the van, and I take off and I go,” he said. “Sometimes I have a banjo with...

When Caliente Pizza & Draft House took on sponsorship of the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix’s International Car Show, the next logical step was to enter a vehicle in the nation’s largest vintage street race. “We were thinking about building one,” Hampton resident Perry Bogacz said. “And we also were looking...

They say everything is bigger in Texas, and that applies to convention centers. Picture the one in Monroeville, which seems sizable enough at 100,000 square feet. Now multiply that by 18 and try to visualize the scope of Houston’s George R. Brown Convention Center. Gateway High School student Prince Sadam...

Midway through her Gateway High School Commencement welcome address, Juliana Guido had to pause. “I didn’t think I was going to cry,” she said. But the subject matter merited tears. “I think it’s appropriate to take a moment to remind all of my fellow classmates on this field with me...

As a prelude to her May 27 valedictory address, Hampton resident Maryam Bou Samra provided a disclaimer for her classmates: “If you think you see me crying at any point when I give my speech, I’m definitely not. It’s probably just something in my eye.” Other members of the Class...

In 2022, longtime Oakmont-Verona Memorial Day Program master of ceremonies Russell Truby asked U.S. Army Maj. Dimitri Facaros to provide remarks. “He had the idea that I come last year, and I couldn’t make it based on a work conflict,” Facaros said while serving as featured speaker for this year’s...

People have plenty of reasons to visit Oakmont, and assistant borough manager Phyllis Anderson struck up a recent conversation with folks who stopped by in their electric vehicle. “They were from out of town,” she said. “They saw on the map that we have charging stations. “So yes, we put...

See how you do in coming up with six-letter answers for these prompts: “She played Hermione Granger in the ‘Harry Potter’ movies.” “This Anne was Henry VIII’s second wife.” “A common truck engine is named for this German inventor.” Those are examples of what a trio of then-Plum Senior High...

If you wonder what students in the 1960s possibly could have in common with today’s youngsters, a new mural at Gateway’s Ramsey Elementary School provides an answer. “Everybody loves Snoopy,” artist Hannah Gresock said. “And when I was in the hallway painting it, every kid was like, ‘Is that Snoopy...

The Bethel Park Farmers’ Market is supposed to take place rain or shine. For the 2023 season, opening day provided the precipitation. And the following Tuesday supplied the sun. “Today more than makes up for last week,” market manager Lindsey Sibert said amid ideal conditions on May 9. “We’re hoping...

What now is called the South West Regional Chamber of Commerce was somewhat nomadic in the 1980s. Civil engineer Richard Kasmer, who served as chamber president for two years and was on the board of directors for 24, recalls meeting on the upper floors of a Bridgeville bank and dental...

Coming up is a concert with a cause that transcends entertainment. Not only do performers in the 13th annual Music of the Heart Recital have the chance to display their talents, they can demonstrate how participating in the Wesley Family Services Creative Arts Program has helped them overcome social, communicative...

Amid the dazzling array of artwork on display at Bethel Park High School was a graphite drawing that was on its way to a new home in Washington, D.C. Beginning in June, senior Tatum Brown’s “Canaries in the Coal Mine” will be exhibited at the U.S. Capitol for a year...

Say you encounter an offer for a credit card that boasts a 0% introductory annual percentage rate for the first 12 months after opening an account. Oh, and the rate increases to between 18% and 29%, based on your creditworthiness, at the end of that year. Do you take the...

Students in Bethel Park High School’s first-year environmental club helped complete a municipal Shade Tree Commission project at Miners Memorial Park. They also learned some relevant lessons, including best practices for mulching, their main activity for April 21, the day before Earth Day. “If you can just keep this in...

Milwaukee’s nickname may be Brew City, but the title just as well could apply to another town. “I know Pittsburgh had more breweries,” Richard Ober said, and he’s done the research to prove it. With “200 Years of Brewing in Allegheny County,” Ober and co-author Robert Musson compiled a comprehensive...

A 0.86-mill real estate tax increase of is included in the proposed final 2023-24 budget, as approved unanimously on May 8 by Hampton Township School Board. The increase, projected to generate an extra $1.56 million for the school district, is necessary to help revenues meet an anticipated $61.51 million in...

In 1973, a group of Hampton history buffs launched an effort to preserve and re-create the past at the Pine Creek Covenanter Church, built about 1837. On May 21, the community is invited to celebrate the golden anniversary of what became the Depreciation Lands Museum, with special activities planned from...

For anyone who thinks people stopped taking pride in their work, meet Robert Hester. “You happen to have popped in on me at the same time I’m going to make my 100th package,” he told a recent visitor to his Monroeville Mall workplace, as Hester and a colleague placed a...