Harry Funk stories, Page 2

Growing up with an older brother who is autistic proved to be a major inspiration for J.J. Ortiz. “I always saw him doing a lot of drawings. He’d do maybe 50 to 100 sketches a day on pieces of paper,” the Aquinas Academy of Pittsburgh senior said. “That’s kind of...

Hampton Township and Deer Lakes school districts could be teaming up on the wrestling mat. The school board in Hampton is scheduled to vote Aug. 12 on approving a cooperative program between the districts. Deer Lakes has no wrestling program, but some students are interested in participating in the sport....

When photographed from space, earth looks like a big blue marble. But closer to home, another color of nature is much more prevalent. And these days, it may be the favorite of Hampton student Ruby Heitzenroeder. In her final year at Central Elementary School, she placed first in Pennsylvania and...

To maintain smaller sizes for some elementary-level classes, Hampton Township School District administrators are requesting the hiring of long-term substitutes to teach additional sections. Superintendent Michael Loughead said the number of first graders at all the district’s elementary schools has grown for 2024-25. “We didn’t expect all three, honestly, but...

You might say that it takes a parish. More specifically, it takes a significant portion of the congregation to pull off St. Aidan Parish’s Summer Festival, which opened July 31 for, coincidentally, its 31st year. “Over this festival week, we need more than 900 volunteerships to be filled, which is...

Another reason to visit the Pine Community Center is on the way. Northern Tier Regional Library is in the process of establishing a new branch at the multipurpose building, with the grand opening scheduled for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 14. “We couldn’t have asked for a better location,”...

Picture yourself in a saddle on horseback, traversing the tranquil surroundings of a wooded area. For Tarentum resident Cindy Bowser, such a scenario once ranked among her favorite activities, and she mentioned one of her favorite places to venture. “Harrison Hills Park is small, but it is gorgeous with that...

The reunion concerts continue for a gospel ensemble that once performed at Cleveland’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Praise, Worship and Deliverance traces its roots back to the late 1980s and a tuneful Martin Luther King Jr. remembrance at Penn State New Kensington, where musician Roberta Breninghouse was an...

A long-standing business soon will be gone, at least from its Ross location. Duro Cleaners has been a McKnight Road fixture since Dwayne Trimble started offering dry-cleaning services, and it continued after O’Hara resident Joe Ferrante became the owner in 2017. “The customers were great. They’ve always been great here....

As the owner of a dance school in Ross, combined with her day job at the time of elementary school principal, Cynthia Zurchin wanted to make sure she could see as clearly as possible. “I had gone for an eye appointment, and I was fully expecting that I was going...

You may think of a haircut as not such a big a deal. Carnegie resident Sandahl Taylor begs to differ. “It can really change somebody’s life,” she said. “You can see somebody be able to get a job. It can provide them with hope. And it can simply tell them...

Today’s toast of Pittsburgh sports is about to be immortalized in art. Paul Skenes, the rookie who is the first Pirates pitcher in 49 years to start a Major League Baseball All-Star Game, will be the subject of a live acrylic painting by Baldwin Township artist Kait Schoeb at a...

By reputation, Pittsburgh seems to be a meat-and-potatoes kind of town. These days, though, plenty of people are sticking with the potatoes and forgoing the meat. And milk and cheese, for that matter. Amy Cottrill, who originated the Pittsburgh Vegan Festival back before very many folks knew what “vegan” meant,...

As an artist with a passion for painting Pittsburgh landmarks, Linda Barnicott had the idea for a 2024 project depicting an iconic restaurant chain. She remembers discussing the possibility with a young man who visited her vendor booth at a holiday market. It turned out that his grandfather had owned...

California has produced a pair of presidents. If the question pops up on Trivia Night, the answer probably is Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. As it applies to Rotary International, two leaders of the worldwide service organization once belonged to the club in Washington County’s California Borough, which had about...

They say you don’t have to be an athlete to sprint, jog or stroll for 3.1 miles. But it helps. Given his prowess on the football field and baseball diamond, Killian Cavanaugh would have had no trouble completing a course of that distance in an event scheduled for July 27...

Women generally are well aware that once they reach a certain age, mammograms are in their best interest. Sometimes they need a gentle push in that direction, and UPMC Health Plan offers a distinctive one for its members. “We call them on the phone to invite them, or we send...

Maybe you grew up washing with the golden hue of Dial, the emerald green of Irish Spring or the snowy white of Ivory. Whatever the color of the brand at hand, a soap bar was a soap bar. Richland resident Laura Bogacz effectively takes the opposite approach with her business,...

With high school in the rear-view mirror, this year’s graduates embark on paths that they hope will lead to prosperity, accomplishment and happiness. In preparing her farewell address for the North Hills Class of 2024, Avery Gallagher provided some perspective in that regard. “I thought a lot about what I...

The portrait shows a youthful, handsome Marine in his dress blues, a slight smile surrounded by his square jaw and bright eyes conveying pride and determination. That’s the way his parents wanted to remember him when they commissioned Washington County artist Nat Youngblood to paint the image of 2nd Lt....

Journalists aren’t supposed to refer anything as “first annual,” but if all goes as planned, that’s the case for the June 9 Pride celebration in Ross. “We already have the date for next year,” Amy Bialek said, and it again will be on the second Sunday of June. She serves...

Looking into a crowd of children wearing bathing suits in anticipation of being first-ever guests at the new Bethel Park Splash Park, state Rep. Natalie Mihalek decided to keep her comments brief. “I don’t want to be the one standing in the way of kids going to the splash pad,...

A revitalization project for West View’s main thoroughfare received a major financial boost when U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Aspinwall, announced a $1 million federal investment in the borough. “West View came to me with a great project that supports streetscaping, that supports infrastructure improvements to make kids, families, folks with...