Recent Stories

Human Interest

August 14, 2017

First 2017 United Fund Check Presented to Director of Ellwood Family Center

Andrew Kindle, Treasurer of the Ellwood City United Fund, presented a check to Ricki Coccia, Director of Ellwood Family Center as the first disbursement of collected funds for the year 2017. “All agencies will receive 20% less because of the shortfall in the 2017 campaign,” Kindle said. The United Fund had discussed holding the money for a later disbursement date, but decided that it would cause a hardship on the agencies who really need the funds. Kevin Green, CEO/Ex Dir of City Rescue Mission, agreed and stated, “we thank you for the recent gift(allotment), it will be put to good…

August 8, 2017

The Public Works Construction is ‘Progressing Well’

The demolition of the Ellwood City Public Works Building and a few other surrounding lots is progressing well, according to Borough Manager, Robert Villella. As part of the Ellwood City Revitalization project, the demolition and rebuild of the Public Works Building was deemed one of the top necessities. “The previous building was extremely outdated and not efficient, and in some ways even dangerous for our workers, the layout was impractical, making it hard to store the necessary items, and it was becoming an eyesore in the community. Overall it was just in not only the workers best interest, but also…

July 27, 2017

Art On The Avenue Expected To Be a Hit

Judging by how well last year’s Author Fair went, library director Veronica Pacella expects Art on the Avenue to be just as popular. “It was such a hit last year, everyone had a great time. We had upwards of 250 people attend the Author Fair last year, the library was so crowded I couldn’t even get to all of the authors to speak with them because they always had a crowd around their table,” Pacella said. “We had 25 authors last year and we will have 28 artists this year – so we expect an even bigger crowd.” Art on…

July 26, 2017

Children’s Art Camp: ‘Art Camp is Torture, this is Fun!’

Marianne Hilke, a long-time art enthusiast and instructor, is teaching the four-day-long children’s art camp at Daysprings which started Monday. The camp is from 10-11:45a.m. with a snack break intermission. Each day the children watch a short video about a famous artist which is followed by art projects done with graphite, pastel, crayon and colored pencil. Today, the students, aged 7-9, learned about critically acclaimed artists Pierre Renoir and Walt Disney – then used colored pencil to recreate a Renoir painting and graphite to sketch Mickey or Minnie Mouse. “The children get to do fun and creative things while simultaneously…

July 21, 2017

Ellwood City “Revivalization”

Over thirty youth enjoyed a program on yoga presented Tuesday evening by Ashley Smith, a yoga instructor from Ellwood City, as part of the enrichment component added to the youth’s daily arts and crafts projects supervised by Joseph Cioffi. They were given information on the subject and then eagerly participated in several poses such as the Shavasana pose (pictured). Ashley emphasized the health related impact that yoga can have, especially for stress relief, that all ages can benefit from. “Many people have the misconception that yoga is only about strengthening your body, but really it’s also about training your mind and…

July 20, 2017

Barry Quick Mart Celebrates Grand Opening

After spending nearly six months turning the former service station into a lively convenience store, the owners of Barry Quick Mart, located on Line Avenue, are joined by their family, friends, and customers to celebrate their grand opening today until 4p.m. Kuldip and Malkit Singh co-own the store together, which features general convenient store items, food, and gas pumps, two of which are full service, and they’re already pleased with the customer support. “Business is picking up every day and the community has been very supportive. We heard about the business opportunity and pursued it. We are not here to…

July 19, 2017

Boy Scout to Erect Charles Follette Jr. Memorial

The heroism of a Lincoln High Eagle Scout was slowly getting forgotten as generations passed – but one Neshannock Life Scout is determined to keep the young hero’s legacy going. On October 2, 1942, 14-year-old Charles Follette Jr. was attending a Lincoln High School football game working as crowd control for the Eagle Scouts to ensure spectators stayed off the field. During the game the seniors were doing a fundraiser by wheeling a gasoline powered popcorn roaster around the stadium to sell popcorn. Somehow during the game the machine caught fire and Follette and a few of his fellow scout…

July 18, 2017

Ellwood City Coloring Books On Sale Now

With the help of many local artists, the Ellwood City Art Club has prepared an Ellwood City coloring book that is now available for purchase at select locations throughout the town. The coloring books feature hand drawn art by local artists of all ages and will provide hours of fun and unique coloring opportunity. They are on sale for $10. All proceeds benefit the Ellwood City Art Club. Due to limited quantity, get them while they’re still in stock! Books can be purchased at the following locations: The Color Center, Lawrence Ave. Dayspring Gifts, 6th St. Sweet Caroline’s, Lawrence Ave….

July 17, 2017

Carpenter’s Project: “A Very Successful Year”

Last Friday marked the completion of the 16th successful year of the Carpenter’s Project. Over 230 adults and youth volunteered to assist in the renovation of 75 projects on a total of 46 homes, working from morning until evening all week with a “much needed” half day on Wednesday, Executive Director and volunteer of the project since its fifth year, Steven Miller said. The groups were broken up into 21 work crews; 10 paint crews, 6 carpentry crews, one cement crew, one brush (trimming) crew, one demolition crew, one power wash crew, and one window crew, with each crew consisting…

July 17, 2017

Dealerships Offer Chance at Jobs While Students Pursue Program

Butler, PA – Students who enroll in Butler County Community College’s auto technician certificate program now have the opportunity to work at one of four nearby new-car stores while pursuing the nine-month course and upon graduation, find a job that eventually pays $30 per hour or more, a dealership administrator said. Job demand for those skilled in the advanced technology found in today’s vehicles is high, said Cathy Glasgow, president of Butler County Ford, which with Baglier Buick GMC, No. 1 Cochran Subaru and Diehl Automotive will provide students a chance to learn how to change oil filters, and rotate…