Donald Smith (1956-2025)

Donald Smith, 68, of Aliquippa, passed away on January 21st, 2025, in Heritage Valley Beaver. He was born in Sewickley on August 18th, 1956, the son of the late Donald Smith and Betty (Fitzgerald) Boring. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by a son, Logan Ayers and his stepfather, Thomas Boring. He is survived by his loving wife, Kim, two sons, Donnie Smith & Neal Ayers, two granddaughters, Eliana Smith and Olivia Ayers, a grandson, Damien Ayers, a sister, Marilyn Palmer, a niece and nephew, Jaci and Jaison Palmer, an aunt, Mary Fitzgerald and his father-in-law and mother-in-law, Edward and Christine Crognale.

Donald was a musician and drummer for fifty-five years. He was very passionate about working on cars and fishing, a huge animal lover, and lovingly drove his wife Kim crazy every day.  Donald was a truck driver for twenty-five years, up until his retirement.

At the family’s request, no services are being planned.  Arrangements have been entrusted to the John Syka Funeral Home, 833 Kennedy Drive, Ambridge.

Herbert M. Boring (1941-2025)

Herbert M. Boring, 83, of Conway, passed away on January 21st, 2025. He was born in Conway on June 20th, 1941, a son of the late Lowry and Freda (Allwes) Boring.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife Joyce F (Scott) Boring, his brothers: Lowry Jr, Theodore, Virgil, Marcellos, Robert and Clayton Boring and his sisters, Freda (Fritzie) Kresach, Virginia Johnston and Vallie Evans.

He is survived by his daughter Tracy (Robert) Charlovich of Conway, his grandchildren Nicholas Charlovich of Conway, Jacob Charlovich of Pittsburgh and Allyson Charlovich of Ambridge, his sisters Adele Huffman of Elkton and Betsey Lytle of Albany, Ohio, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

There will be no visitation or funeral service. Arrangements have been entrusted to the John Syka Funeral Home, Inc., 833 Kennedy Drive, Ambridge.

Barb Johnson (1944-2025)

Barb Johnson, 80, of Crafton Heights, formerly of Rochester, passed away on January 20th, 2025 in St. Clair Hospital. She was born on November 27, 1944, a daughter of the late Ruby Lee and John Crawford. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her sister and brother-in-law, Ruth and Ed Bender. She is survived by her three children, Curt (Heather) Murray, Greg Murray and Heather (Steve) Styer, four grandchildren: Courtney (Ben) Hacker, Claire Murray, Ruby Styer and Jordan Styer; a brother and sister-in-law, John & Anita Crawford and numerous nieces and nephews.

Barb worked as a nurse, and then she retired as a case manager with Highmark/Blue Cross Blue Shield. She was a member of Allegheny General Alliance Church where she enjoyed volunteering for the kids programs and Urban Impact.  Barb loved football, she was an avid Rochester Ram and Steelers fan. She was a member of the Highmark/Blue Cross choir and she also volunteered to escort the company mascot.  Her group of friends turned into a Red Hat Society, as a group they traveled which Barb really enjoyed.  She also loved to see theater productions, watching Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune, and drinking tea.

A memorial service will be held on Friday, January 24th at 11 a.m. in the Huntsman Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Rochester, 502 Adams Street.

Private interment will take place in Sylvania Hills Memorial Park.

James L. “Jim” Wojcuich (1944-2025)

James “Jim” L. Wojcuich, 80, of New Sewickley Township, passed away at his residence on January 19th, 2025.

He was born in Cecil Township, Pennsylvania on May 19th, 1944, a son of the late Rudolph Wojcuich. In addition to his father, he was preceded in death by his son, Stevie Hoko, a great-grandchild, Stephen Hoko Jr. and his brother, Thomas Wojcuich. He is survived by his wife, Margaret Hoko, two daughters, Michele (Ed) Sutton and Denise (Vic) Martin, a son, Richard Hoko, sister-in-law, Janet Wojcuich, six grandchildren: Ashley (Ryan Scott) Hoko, Taylor (Leo Scarsellone) Hoko, Madalynne Martin, Max Martin, Abigail Sutton, and Zak Sutton; two great-grandchildren, Brayden and Kinsley and a special cousin, Patti (Sis) Meyer.

James was a self-employed mechanic as well as a machinist at American Machining & Fabrication. He was a member of the Saxon Club, Rochester Eagles, and the VFW in Unionville. He spent much of his life near the water, as he was an avid fisherman. Once you made a friend in James, you had a friend for life.

Friends will be received on Thursday, January 23rd from 1 P.M. until the time of services at 4 P.M. in the Gabauer Funeral Home & Cremation Services, Inc. 1133 Penn Avenue, New Brighton. Pastor Bill Beatty will officiate.

John Everett Spence (1941-2025)

John Everett Spence, 83, of Baden, passed away at home on January 19th, 2025. He was born on March 29th, 1941, the son of the late John and Viola Spence. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Shirley Triska-Spence, sister-in-law, Becky Triska and cousin, Ronnie Triska.

He is survived by his stepdaughter and her husband, Pam and Jack Spence, brother-in-law, Brad Triska, sister-in-law, Linda Triska, niece, Tawny (Hunter) Triska-Pollard, as well as many cousins and friends.

John was a dedicated steam fitter technician and also owned the House of Elegance beauty shop in Beaver. He had a deep love for his and Shirley’s farm in Marshall Township where they hosted many gatherings. A proud member of Steam Fitters Local 449, John also cherished spending time with his furry friends, especially enjoying visits to his stepdaughter’s home where he played with her cats.

Visitation will be held on Thursday, January 23rd, from 4-7 P.M. at Alvarez-Hahn Funeral Services and Cremation, LLC., 547 8th Street, Ambridge. A funeral service will take place at 10:00 A.M. on Friday, January 24th at the funeral home, followed by burial at Beaver Cemetery.

Heating, data tracking, and documents discussed at Commissioners work session

Story by Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio News. Published January 22, 2025 11:36 A.M.

(Beaver, Pa) The Beaver County Commissioners met Wednesday morning for their weekly work session.

It was relayed during the meeting that solutions are being explored regarding heat in the entrance of the Courthouse. The Commissioners would like to see some type of heat source in place for Officers of the Sheriff’s Department and residents using the entrance.

Also during the meeting there was a brief discussion regarding the processing of documents currently stored in the Wampum Mushroom Mines. As the Commissioners continue to explore possibilities of moving the documents, County Controller Maria Longo is working to find out which documents can be destroyed or digitized and which ones need to remain.

Multiple resolutions were also discussed briefly during the session. One in particular is for the Recreation Department to deploy a visitor tracker system. The system would be used to track cell phone data to determine the amount of visitors to the county during events.

Another resolution brought up was a ban on electronic heaters in County Government facilities. All personal space heaters would effectively be banned due to fire concerns and interference with the building heat systems.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fundraiser spaghetti dinner being held for victim of assault at an Aliquippa VFW bar

(File Photo of Center Township Map)

(Reported by Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano)

(Center Township, PA) There will be a fundraiser spaghetti dinner on Saturday, February 1st in Center Township for Preston Coleman. Coleman’s condition is unknown after he was assaulted at an Aliquippa VFW bar two weeks ago. Donations of pasta, sauces, rolls, salads and desserts are requested. There will also be a silent auction for all donated baskets that will be raffled. The dinner will be held at the VFW hall at 138 Stone Quarry Road in Center Township from 1-4 p.m. and it costs $15 for adults and $10 for kids. For more information, please call 724-462-8821.

Gambling reaches peak of over $6 billion in 2024 thanks to online gaming

(File Photo of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board logo)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver County, PA) Gambling in Pennsylvania reached a high of over $6 billion because of the online gaming industry last year. Taxes reached around $2.7 billion from the fees each year for this revenue and to operate slot machines. According to a report from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, 2024 revenues increased by 7.73% for over $6.1 billion. 

Pennsylvania is not keeping up with giving mental health services to school students

Source for Photo: A report card from the group Inseparable found Pennsylvania has one school counselor for every 369 students, while the recommended ratio is 1 to 250. (Adobe Stock) Danielle Smith – Keystone State News Service

(Reported by Danielle Smith of Keystone News Service)

(Harrisburg, PA) As young people struggle with mental-health issues, schools often provide the best avenue for getting them help. However, Pennsylvania has fallen behind in providing services to students. A mental-health report card for Pennsylvania found that more than 57-thousand children with major depression didn’t receive treatment. Kate Fox is behavioral health policy coordinator with Children First P-A. She says schools are vital for identifying mental-health warning signs and intervening early, and emphasizes the need for system-wide, sustainable reforms that create a workforce pipeline for diverse mental-health professionals to support children in and out of schools. Fox says the report card also shows only one school social worker for every 3416 students, and that recommended ratio is one for every 250. Fox points out that access to school-based mental-health services in Pennsylvania varies significantly, largely due to funding disparities. Wealthier districts generally offer more robust support compared with underfunded districts. She adds the ADA was first passed in 1990 under President George H-W Bush, and its legal precedent was based on the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

 

TSA intercepts two separate handguns at Pittsburgh International Airport in airport security in 2025 so far during the same morning

(File Photo of Transportation Security Administration logo)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) According to TSA, two separate handguns were intercepted at Pittsburgh International Airport on Tuesday morning. The first situation occurred when a loaded .32 caliber handgun with six bullets that belonged to an unidentified man was intercepted. The second situation occurred when a .40 loaded caliber handgun was intercepted after being brought to the airport by a man from Baden. These are the first firearms that were intercepted in 2025 at the Pittsburgh airport after forty-two were found last year.