Story by Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio. Published July 16, 2026 2:10 P.M.

(Patterson Township, Pa) – Beaver County is featured on the 2026 schedule of stops for the Vietnam Veterans Moving Wall. The wall is a half-size replica of the Washington D.C. Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Those who cannot travel to Washington are given an opportunity to see their loved ones’ names in their own community.    

The 74 panel wall is almost as long as a football field and includes over 58,000 etched names of Vietnam veterans who lost their lives. 

An opening ceremony was held Thursday morning at Franciscan Manor in Patterson Township.

Vietnam Veterans Southwestern Pennsylvania Chapter 862 played a big role in making the event possible. Their President, Larry Googins, acted as the primary speaker for the ceremony and welcomed numerous guests including District Attorney Nate Bible, County Commissioner Jack Manning, and Sheriff Tony Guy. 

The ceremony also featured a presentation of wreaths and a reading of names for our local fallen Vietnam veterans, in addition to a 3 volley salute by Chapter 862, the playing of Taps, and a vocal performance of America the Beautiful.

Googins closed the ceremony by saying “Welcome home”.    

Afterwards, family members and those in attendance began to walk the walls looking for and reading the names.  

The Moving Wall is open to the public 24 hours a day until July 20th at Franciscan Manor. 

Parking is available at the Patterson Township Fire Department.

Beaver County Radio

BEAVER – Due to the Code Red weather conditions, the Beaver Area Chamber of Commerce canceled tonight’s Third Thursday event.

“For the safety of our store owners, vendors and community, we are unfortunately canceling tonight’s event,” the chamber posted on social media.

The Code Red air quality alert, in response to wildfire smoke from Canada and Minnesota, indicates that the overall air quality within a day could be unhealthy.

The Third Thursday event was scheduled to feature a performance by singer Chris Jamison, plus food trucks, crafts and local art.

Beaver’s next Third Thursday is scheduled for Aug. 20.

(Credit and Caption for Photo: Workers from Mascaro Construction move dirt to cover Little Blue Run, which covers 955 acres in Beaver County and Hancock County, W.Va., on Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2018, in Lawrenceville, W.Va. (Andrew Rush, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver County, PA) Desri, which is a renewable energy company based in New York, is now developing a one-gigawatt battery storage project on the former Little Blue Run site, which is located in Greene Township.

The Beaver County site had to shut down in 2012 because its water was contaminated.

The project run by Desri is called Little Blue Project.

(File Photo of Police Siren Lights)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Center Township, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in Beaver reported today that a forty-three-year-old man from Beaver Falls was charged after a two-vehicle crash occurred in Center Township yesterday at 1:18 p.m.

According to police, Chenglong Chu was driving onto State Route 8005 (Exit 42) and hit the back of the vehicle that was driven by fifty-four-year-old Brent French of West Jefferson, Ohio.

French was waiting to enter Pleasant Drive when Chu hit his vehicle.

There were no reported injuries.

(Credit and Caption for Photo: <p>Pennsylvania’s new budget preserves universal free school breakfast with an additional $14.3 million, a move child advocates said will boost students’ health and academic performance. (Adobe Stock)</p>)

(Reported by Danielle Smith, Keystone News Service)

(Harrisburg, PA) Pennsylvania’s bipartisan budget takes a few small steps forward in addressing early childcare and education but still falls short, according to Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children. The fifty-point-eight-billion-dollar spending plan contains modest investments in programs for kids and families. The Partnership’s Kari King says they appreciate the support, but notes lawmakers leaned on leftover funds instead of new revenue. King says in early education, the governor proposed nine point five million dollars for Pre-K Counts and Head Start, but the funding target wasn’t reached. King says the budget includes an additional five million for the childcare recruitment and retention fund, which provides bonuses to childcare staff and programs. That investment is seen as vital as the commonwealth addresses a staffing crisis, which puts pressure on the workforce and the overall economy.

(Credit and Caption for Photo: Gecko Robotics, headquartered in Pittsburgh’s North Side, plans to open a manufacturing facility in Sewickley, which will focus on defense manufacturing. (James Engel | TribLive)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Sewickley, PA) Gecko Robotics, a Pittsburgh-based robotics and defense firm, will open a new manufacturing facility in the Sewickley area soon.

The company announced its plans for the 10,000-square-foot facility at the 2026 Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit, which finished yesterday in Carlisle.

This facility will sit at an industrial park in Aleppo Township about 3 miles from Sewickley’s business district.

(File Photo of a Road Work Ahead Sign)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Allegheny County, PA) PennDOT District 11 announced that beam placement work on Interstate 79 in Marshall Township and Franklin Park Borough, Allegheny County will continue tomorrow night, weather permitting.

Northbound I-79 will be reduced to a single-lane of traffic between the Route 910/Wexford (Exit 73) off and on-ramps from 7 p.m. tomorrow to 6 a.m. on Saturday morning to accommodate beam placement work.

(File Photo of a Gavel)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today that a resident of Ross Township has been sentenced in federal court to 15 years in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release, on his convictions of production and possession of material depicting the sexual exploitation of minors.  

Chief United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon imposed the sentence on forty-six-year-old Ralph Talerico yesterday. 

According to information presented to the Court, in and around June through July of 2023, Talerico produced videos of two children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Talerico also possessed videos and still images depicting the sexual exploitation of minors, some of whom were prepubescent and under 12 years of age on or about June 6th, 2024.

(File Photo of a Gavel)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(New Castle, PA) United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today that a resident of New Castle, pleaded guilty in federal court yesterday to charges of trafficking fentanyl and cocaine base.

Thirty-year-old Akeem Evans pleaded guilty before Senior United States District Judge David Stewart Cercone to possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, a quantity of fentanyl on March 13th, 2024, and possession with intent to distribute a quantity of cocaine base on September 12th, 2024.

Judge Cercone scheduled Evans’ sentencing for November 13th, 2026 and he could face a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $1 million, or both on each of the two counts provided by the law.