Around the Rivers

‘Purple Rain’ Dance Party Celebrates Music of Prince

Rare Prince photos, memorabilia and music will be part of the event by Dream Catchers Films.

Few performers draw a crowd as eclectic as Prince, and Dream Catchers Films wants to celebrate those fans—and their favorite artist—with a special event. The film company will turn Dormont’s Hollywood Theater into the Purple Rain Dance Party on June 30, featuring all things that celebrate the famed eccentric artist. In addition to a showing of Purple Rain, the event will include an art gallery of rare photographs of the artist, as well as his music. Guests are welcome to show up in costume. “Last year, while the film was on and we were playing music, people were kind of dancing in the aisles and in their seats,” said Leonard Lies of Dream Catchers Films. “I think even the people working there were surprised at how much fun it was." This is…

• Photos (3)

Around the Rivers: USC Grad Organizes 5K In Memory of Her Father

Jessica Woiner Fera is helping organize the first annual Miles Against Melanoma 5K on June 16.

Registration is underway for the first annual Miles Against Melanoma 5K. The family-friendly walk or run on June 16 at South Park will raise awareness and funds for melanoma. 2002 Upper St. Clair High School graduate Jessica Woiner Fera signed on as co-director of the organization due to her experiences with the disease. Her father, Tim Woiner, died in April 2010 after a three-year battle with melanoma. He was 59 years old. "He never used a tanning bed and never had a bad sunburn," Jessica said. "My dad never thought a mole would take his life. I want people to understand the severity of melanoma and the importance of yearly skin exams. If you become educated about the disease, and know what to look for when it comes to new and changing …

• Photos (3)

Around the Rivers

Updated: 9-Year-Old Special Needs Boy Who Fell From Second-Story Window in Stable Condition

Cranberry boy was transported by medical helicopter to Pittsburgh.

The 9-year-old special needs boy who was injured when he fell from a second-floor window of his home on Eden Way Court in Cranberry is in stable conditon. Sgt. Chuck Mascellino, of Cranberry police, said the boy was alone in his bedroom when he fell from the window at about 7 a.m. Friday and landed in the home's driveway. Both parents were home at the time. When emergency responders arrived at the home, the boy was semi-conscious, Mascellino said. The child was rushed to UPMC Passavant in Cranberry before being flown by medical helicopter to a hospital in Pittsburgh. "The child is considered stable, but being closely monitored," Mascellino said. There is no further information on the boy's injuries as of Friday afternoon, Mascellino said. …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (2)

Around the Rivers

IHOP to Open Monday in McCandless Crossing; CVS to Start Construction

IHOP is the third restaurant to open in the mixed-use center at the intersection of McKnight Road and Duncan Avenue, which has been under development since the fall of 2009.

IHOP, known for its pancakes and omelettes, will open its fourth Pittsburgh restaurant Monday in the McCandless Crossing shopping center.  Doors will open at 6 a.m. Monday in the mixed-use center at the intersection of McKnight Road and Duncan Avenue. Hours will be 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 6 a.m. to 12 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays. After the first few weeks of opening, the restaurant's hours will shift to being open 24/7, a spokeswoman for IHOP said.  IHOP is the third restaurant to open in the mixed-use center, which has been under development since the fall of 2009. The center, when fully built out, is expected to encompass 1.2 million square feet, and include a grocery store, movie theater, medical and executive …

• Photos (2)

Around the Rivers

Moon Singer Nominated for Independent Music Award

Singer-songwriter Brooke Annibale has been nominated for best adult contemporary album.

Moon native Brooke Annibale is nominated for a 2012 Independent Music Award. The singer-songwriter and Moon Area School District alum's latest release Silence Worth Breaking is up for the best adult contempory record of the year category.  Annibale, who performed at Moon Park at the township's 2011 July 4 festival, released the 10-track album last March. She performed recently at Backstage Bar in Pittsburgh's Strip District.  More than 300 self-released and independent-label music artists have been nominated for this year's Independent Music Awards. Judges for the honor include Tom Waits, Ozzy Osbourne and Keith Richards. Winners will be announced in April.  Check out Silence Worth Breaking on iTunes.

• Photos (1)

Around the Rivers

Cranberry First Responders to Get New Public Safety Training Facility

Construction on the 5,537-square-foot building could begin by May.

After 10 years in the making, Cranberry is moving forward with plans to build a public safety training facility for its firefighters, police officers and EMS workers. “We’re thrilled,” said Bruce Hezlep, president of the Cranberry Township Volunteer Fire Company. “It will be very well used.” Designs for the 5,537-square-foot building were unveiled at Thursday’s board of supervisors meeting. A rendering of the brick structure — which will be located near the township’s public works building off Route 19 — displays two garage bays for fire engines and a training room that can seat 125. The room also can be divided into two classrooms that seat 40 people each.  In addition to security cameras and an emergency generator, the building also will…

• Photos (2)
• Documents (1)

American Dispatches

Center of Harmony Brings Together Community, Wellness, Retail Shops

After months of renovations, the center celebrates its grand opening Saturday.

Around the Rivers features stories from Patches in the region. This story originally appeared on Cranberry Patch.  Retail shops, community centers and yoga studios can be found readily enough on their own around the area, but The Center of Harmony's owners are taking those concepts and sticking them all under one roof. Add to that a location inside a century-old building within the heart of Historic Harmony, and you’ve got a rare combination. “There’s really not anything else like this in the Pittsburgh area,” said Dana Lowers. Along with Josh Meeder, Lowers is cofounder of The Center of Harmony, a onetime opera house on Mercer Street built in the 1880s that has been reconfigured to house a variety of tenants. Tying the center together is …

• Photos (13)

Around the Rivers

Sewickley's Tuskegee Airmen Monument Honors Western PA's Black Pilots

Groundbreaking ceremony takes place in the Sewickley Cemetery.

Around the Rivers features stories from other local Patches. This article originally appeared on Sewickley Patch. When Dr. Harry Lanauze, 85, took up a shovel Thursday, Timothy McCray wasn't going to leave the Tuskegee Airman pilot flying solo. Together, Lanauze and McCray, an 82-year-old Air Force veteran, turned the first bit of dirt at the Sewickley Cemetery. The groundbreaking ceremony marked the beginnings of a memorial that celebrates the Greater Pittsburgh Tuskegee Airmen legacy and recognizes the history of Western Pennsylvania’s first black military aviators. “It’s long overdue,” said Lanauze, of McKeesport. The Tuskegee Airmen trained at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama to become fighter pilots and the first black aviators in the U.…

• Photos (26)

Around the Rivers

Around the Rivers: Wine and Pesto Festival Celebrates Italian Traditions

Grape crushing and a pesto challenge are part of the festival, which will begin at 3 p.m. Sunday at Fern Hollow.

Here's a look at another Patch headline this week from around our region's three rivers. This story originally appeared on Sewickley Patch. If you’ve ever wanted to learn to make wine the traditional way, you’ll have an opportunity to get your feet wet from 3 to 6 p.m. Sunday at the Fern Hollow Nature Center.  The third annual Wine and Pesto Festival will offer attendees a chance to learn hands-on, traditional wine making and sample entries in the pesto challenge. About 750 pounds of grapes will be crushed by hand, the first step in a several-month process resulting in about 40 gallons of wine. An antique crusher with hand-crank will be used to mash the grapes, but children will be allowed, even encouraged, to crush the grapes using their …

• Photos (3)

Around The Rivers: A 'CopBlock' Tape, A Rocking 'Cindystock,' A WPIAL Ruling and A Notable Birthday

Here's a review of the week's headlines from around our region's Three Rivers.

Muggles in Patch communities spent much of last week assembling costumes and stocking up on supplies of chocolate frogs, acid pops -- and maybe even a magic spell or two? -- in anticipation of the local premiere of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II." Patch kept you up to date on local Potter-mania, and it brought you plenty of other stories as well from Around the Rivers over the past week. Among them:   "Pittsburgh CopBlock" Documents Moon Police An activist group that calls itself Pittsburgh CopBlock has cast its lens on Moon Township Police, among others, as it records videotapes of police incidents around the region and posts them on YouTube. Pittsburgh CopBlock is an offshoot of the national CopBlock.org. According to the…

• Photos (10)
• Videos (2)