Daniel J. Murdoch (Passed on August 6th, 2025)

Daniel J. Murdoch, 76, of Rochester passed away peacefully at his residence in Rochester on August 6th, 2025.

He was born in Monaca, a son of the late Archibald and Marcella (Booth) Murdoch, whose lineage intriguingly traced back to John Wilkes Booth. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brothers, Archibald and Mark Murdoch. He is survived by his beloved wife of nearly 38 years, Rose Mary Bosco Murdoch, three daughters, Sandra (Scott) Nail, Danielle (Gary) Whoric and Laurel (Steve) Michele and two stepsons, Robert Allen Kruise and Keith Christopher Kruise. He was also the grandfather of fifteen grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his siblings, Susan (Jack) Niedergal, Michael (Monica) Murdoch, and Kevin Murdoch.

Before his career, Daniel attended Monaca High School and demonstrating his commitment to service, he enlisted in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. Upon returning to civilian life, he embarked on a career as a MetLife representative, where he dedicated over 20 years of service.

His passion for life extended well beyond his professional endeavors. He was a devoted President of the Search 1 Rescue Team of Beaver County who made significant contributions to the safety and well-being of his community. He was also an outdoorsman at heart who loved to fish, camp and hunt in Cook’s Forest.

His service to others continued through his active membership in the Rochester VFW Post 128 and the American Legion Post 19 in New Brighton. Dan’s involvement in these organizations reflected his unwavering patriotism and his desire to connect with fellow veterans.

A Celebration of Life service will be held with military honors with date and time to be announced at a later date at the Rochester V F W Post 128, 179 Virginia Avenue, Rochester. Private interment will take place at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies, 1158 Morgan Road, Bridgeville. Arrangements have been entrusted to Simpson Funeral and Cremation Services, 1119 Washington Avenue, Monaca.

The family has suggested memorial contributions be made, if desired in Daniel’s memory to the Wounded Warriors Foundation.

Shirley Ellen (Snyder) Boles (1930-2025)

Shirley Ellen (Snyder) Boles, 94, formerly of Beaver, passed away on August 4th, 2025 at Heritage Valley Beaver.She was born in Monaca on October 24th, 1930, a daughter of the late Edison John and Dorothy Dale (Henry) Snyder.  In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Edward Boles; her two brothers and three sisters. She is survived by her daughter, Linda Mathesius; her son, Robert (Mary Lisa) Boles; her five grandchildren, Erik Mathesius, Katie Boles, Robby Boles, Sarah Boles, Emily Boles; and two great-grandchildren, Millie and Reid (RJ).

Shirley was a member of Saint Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Boardman, Ohio. She was an active member of the Mahoning County Amateur Radio Association where she held an extra class license as a Ham Radio Operator. She was an avid golfer and loved to dance. She was also a part of the Stone Croft Christian Woman’s Club who met at The Fez monthly. She dedicated much of her life to helping others.

Services for Shirley were private. The GABAUER-TODD FUNERAL HOME & CREMATION SERVICES, Inc., 340 Third Street Beaver, was honored to care for Shirley and her family during this most difficult time.

Charlotte F. Fausti (1932-2025)

Charlotte F. Fausti, 93, of Conway, passed away peacefully on August 6th, 2025. She was born on January 1st, 1932, a daughter of the late Maurice Brown and Charlotte Whinery and was lovingly raised by her late stepfather, Clarence Whinery. In addition to her parents and stepfather, she was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Wallace C. Fausti, her brother, Maurice Brown Jr., her sister-in-law, Gerry Brown and his son-in-law, Dave Conroy. She is survived by her children, Christopher Fausti, Terry (Sheryl) Fausti and Jacqueline Conroy, her sister, Margaret Whinery, her grandchildren, David Conroy, Laura Fausti and Douglas (Stephanie) Fausti and her great-grandchildren, Bradley Conroy, Aubrey Fausti and Olivia Fausti.

Charlotte worked at Stangl’s Bakery in Ambridge before joining Bell Telephone as a phone operator. She was a devoted member of the former Our Lady of Peace Church in Beaver County. She was also active in the Christian Mothers group. She shared a close friendship with a group of seven dear friends, with whom she regularly played pinochle, bunco and bingo. Charlotte also enjoyed bowling and cherished time spent with her grandchildren.

All services will be private and services and arrangements have been entrusted to Alvarez-Hahn Funeral Services and Cremation, LLC, 547 8th Street, Ambridge.

Lane restrictions and work for both utility and road restoration will occur on Route 65 in Avalon Borough, weather permitting

(File Photo: Caption for Photo: PennDOT, PSP, PTC, Construction Industry Highlight National Work Zone Awareness Week)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Avalon Borough, PA) PennDOT District 11 announced that beginning Monday through Saturday, August 11th-August 16th weather permitting, lane restrictions on Route 65 in Avalon Borough will occur. From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily from August 11th through August 16th, single lane restrictions will occur as needed on Route 65 in both directions between Fisk Avenue and South Ohio Street. Roadway restoration work will be conducted by crews from Team Fishel.

Inspections activities will occur on the Beaver-Rochester bridge weather permitting

(File Photo of Road Work Ahead Sign)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver County, PA) PennDOT District 11 announced that beginning Monday through Thursday, August 11th-August 14th weather permitting, inspections activities will occur on the Beaver-Rochester bridge. From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day from August 11th through August 14th, lane restrictions will occur on this bridge which carries Route 51 over the Beaver River in Rochester and Bridgewater boroughs. Bridge inspection work will be conducted by crews from Mackin Engineering and the Sofis Company and motorists will be assisted through this zone of work by flaggers.

I-376 Parkway East closures occurring this weekend if weather permits

(File Photo: Caption for Photo: PennDOT, PSP, PTC, Construction Industry Highlight National Work Zone Awareness Week)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Allegheny County, PA) PennDOT announced that I-376 Parkway East will be closed if weather permits this Saturday night through Monday morning between the Squirrel Hill Tunnel and the Edgewood/Swissvale interchange. During the closure of this interchange, PennDOT confirms that an overhead sign will be replaced and demolished. From 9 p.m. on Saturday until 5 a.m. on Monday. Traffic will experience detours on this interchange on Exit 77. According to PennDOT and WTAE, here are some detours and more information about the closures happening on I-376 Parkway East:

POSTED DETOURS 

Westbound traffic (inbound toward Pittsburgh) 

  • Get off the parkway at Wilkinsburg (Exit 78B) 
  • Continue onto Route 8 (Ardmore Boulevard) 
  • Bear left to continue on Route 8 (Penn Avenue) 
  • Turn left onto Fifth Avenue 
  • Bear left onto the ramp toward westbound I-376 to Boulevard of the Allies 
  • From Boulevard of the Allies (Route 885), take the ramp to West I-376 toward Downtown 
  • End detour 

Eastbound traffic (outbound from Pittsburgh) 

  • Exit at Forbes Avenue/Oakland (Exit 72A) 
  • Continue straight onto Forbes Avenue 
  • Turn left onto Bellefield Avenue 
  • Right onto Fifth Avenue 
  • Right onto Penn Avenue 
  • Bear right onto Route 8 (Ardmore Boulevard) 
  • Take the ramp to I-376/Pittsburgh/Monroeville 
  • Stay right onto the ramp to eastbound I-376 
  • End detour 

EXITS STAYING OPEN 

PennDOT says Exit 74 (Squirrel Hill/Homestead) will remain open during the parkway closure. 

Westbound drivers can use the Edgewood/Swissvale interchange, but traffic will be down to one lane in that area. 

ALTERNATE ROUTES 

PennDOT suggests avoiding the Parkway East altogether if possible and using an alternate route, such as Route 837 or Route 28.
 

LANE RESTRICTIONS 

On Saturday, August 9th, eastbound I-376 will be only one lane from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. between Churchill (Exit 79B) and the PA Turnpike (Exit 85) for base repairs. 

Additionally, the Rodi Road on-ramp to eastbound I-376 will be completely closed from 7 p.m. tonight to 9 p.m. Saturday for milling and paving. 

Rodi Road Detour: 

From Rodi Road 

  • Turn right onto Business Route 22 (William Penn Highway)
  • Continue straight onto westbound I-376
  • Bear left to take the Churchill (Exit 79B) exit
  • Turn left onto Beulah Road
  • Turn left onto Churchill Road
  • Turn left onto the ramp for eastbound I-376
  • End detour

If the work is completed early, lane restrictions will be removed. 

Carolyn Romano Hewko (1940-2025)

Carolyn Romano Hewko, 85, passed away unexpectedly on August 2nd, 2025 at her home. She was born in Beaver Falls on May 1st, 1940, the daughter of the late John R. and Elvira Sebastian Romano. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her brother, John T. Romano, her sister-in-law, Laura Goerhing Romano, her dear son-in-law, Paul D. Susich, and her nephews, William J. Romano and John Romano, Jr. She is survived by a daughter, Lynn M. (Dave) Caffro, a son, Johnny Hewko, a granddaughter, Megan (Steven) Hewko-Ward, a grandson, William Hewko, three great-grandchildren and a loving niece, Crystal Romano Presto.

Carolyn graduated from Beaver Falls High School and Geneva College. She was a dedicated teacher at Beaver Area High School for over 35 years, who was beloved by students and faculty alike. Her loss will be deeply felt by those she touched during her long career.

Carolyn was an excellent cook. Her red clam sauce was beyond compare and always a favorite at the Christmas Eve dinner table. She enjoyed teaching, traveling, dancing, and watching both Jeopardy and CSI. She was also an 80s disco queen, a stunning beauty who was outspoken to a fault and was indeed a special lady. Her presence will be missed by many.

Friends will be received on Monday, August 11th from 3-7 p.m. in the Noll Funeral Home Inc., 333 Third Street, Beaver, who was in charge of her arrangements. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Tuesday, August 12th at 10 a.m. at Saints Peter and Paul Church, Beaver, 200 Third Street, Beaver. Carolyn will be laid to rest at Beaver Falls Cemetery.

Online condolences may be shared at www.nollfuneral.com.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Carolyn’s name can be made to the Beaver Area Memorial Library, 100 College Avenue, Beaver, Pa. 15009.

Gloria A. Botte (1931-2025)

Gloria A. Botte, 94, of Industry, formerly of Koppel, passed away surrounded by her family’s love and under the care of her hospice nurse, Amanda, the early morning of August 4th, 2025.

She was born in Koppel on March 18th, 1931 in Koppel, a daughter of the late Ann Percic. In addition to her mother, she was preceded in death by her husband, Paul S. Botte, her son, Paul J. Botte, her sister and brother-in-law, Janet and Ron Reeher and her longtime companion, Richard Wanner. She is survived by her son, Michael (Jodi) Botte, her brother, John (Kathy) Percic, her daughter-in-law, Diane Golnik Wilk, her grandchildren, Jennifer (Tim) Laveing, Paul Botte, and Teya Botte, her great-grandchildren: Jonathan (Abbey) McGeary, Justin Laveing, and Jocelyn Laveing (Matt) Veon, Ethan Botte, Devin Botte; along with her great-great-grandchildren, Jase Laveing, and Alexis, Allison and Jameson McGeary, as well as countless nieces and nephews.

Gloria was a resident of Industry most of her life, Gloria worked as a special education paraprofessional with McGuire Home and New Horizon School. In her spare time, she could be found in nature, especially walking at Brady’s Run Park. She also enjoyed winning at pinochle, having dessert after every meal, especially sfogliatella, line dancing, antiquing, feeling the sun on her face and listening to the wind. She will be remembered by her family as the consummate caregiver. She was also Catholic by faith.

Friends will be received Saturday, August 9th, from 12 noon until 2 p.m. in the Noll Funeral Home, Inc., 333 Third Street, Beaver, who was in charge of her arrangements. Interment will take place at St. Mary’s Cemetery, 2045 Darlington Road, Beaver Falls. Online condolences may be shared at nollfuneral.com.

Gerald “Jerry” Mark Florence (1957-2025)

Gerald “Jerry” Mark Florence, 67, of New Brighton, passed away on August 2nd, 2025 at his home.

He was born in Rochester on December 6th, 1957, in Rochester, a son of the late Edward Florence and Joanne Rose. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his sister, Karen Florence. He is survived by his children, Jerry Brown, Justin Brown and Brian Taylor, six grandchildren, his brother, Eddie (Kelly) Florence, two nephews, Scott (Maela) Florence and Eddie (Alexis) Florence, five great nephews, one great niece and a special friend, Jessica, as well as many friends and relatives.

Gerald was a graduate of New Brighton High School. He enjoyed fishing, golf, gardening, and watching sports. He will be remembered as a kind and gentle man who was friendly with everyone. His memory will be forever cherished in the hearts of his family and friends.

A Celebration of Life ceremony for Gerald will be held on Saturday, August 9th at 10 a.m., at Lifeway Christian Fellowship, 1207 7th Avenue, Beaver Falls, with Pastor Kevin Lee officiating. Arrangements have been entrusted to the J&J Spratt Funeral Home, 1612 Third Avenue, New Brighton.

United Airlines tech issue that impacted more than 1,000 flights resolved, residual delays expected

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – A United Airlines jet begins to taxi at O’Hara International Airport in Chicago, May 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

(AP) A disruption to a system housing United Airlines’ flight information that caused more than 1,000 delays has been resolved, but delays continued into Thursday.

The impacted system, called Unimatic, houses flight information that is fed to other systems including those that calculate weight and balance and track flight times, according to United. It’s not clear what caused the problem, which was resolved late Wednesday. While residual delays were expected, United said its team was working to restore normal operations.

About 35% of all the airline’s flights were delayed and another 7% were canceled Wednesday, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks flight disruptions. By midmorning Thursday, 5% of United flights for the day were delayed and 4% were canceled. FlightAware reported 43 cancellations at Chicago O’Hare by Thursday morning, including 42 United flights.

An alert on the Federal Aviation Administration website Wednesday said all United flights destined for Chicago were halted at their departing airports. Flights to United hubs at Denver, Newark, Houston and San Francisco airports also were affected.

The airline’s travel alert page noted that a technology disruption might impact flights to or from several U.S. airports from Thursday to Sunday including Denver, Newark, Washington, Houston, New York, Los Angeles, Orlando, Chicago, San Francisco, Honolulu and Guam and some in Europe, such as London, Frankfurt and Munich.

“Safety is our top priority, and we’ll work with our customers to get them to their destinations,” an emailed statement from the Chicago-based airline said.

The system outage, as the company described it, lasted several hours, the statement said. It wasn’t related to recent concerns about airline industry cybersecurity. United said it was treating it as a controllable delay, meaning it paid customer expenses such as hotels when applicable.

In an interview, United Airlines passenger Benjamin Fuentes, who flew from Boston to Houston, told KTRK-TV that they were told that they would be waiting for a while after the plane landed.

“The first hour, people were already standing up and just walking around the cabin because there was nothing to do,” he said. “I got on Netflix.”

After about an hour, they were told that the system was down nationwide, he said. Eventually, they learned that they found a gate, but it took another 45 minutes before they got there, he said.

The FAA said in a statement Thursday that it was aware of the disruption to United operations, noting that delays may continue as the airline recovers.

“We’ve offered full support to help address their flight backlog and remain in close contact with United,” the FAA said.

United Airlines apologized on social media and said in some cases it would pay for hotel and other expenses incurred by travelers because of the delays.

“Hey there, we apologize for the travel disruption today,” the airline told a customer on the social platform X. “Our teams are working to resolve the outage as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience.”