(Credit for Photo: Photo Courtesy of Nancy Andrews)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra has announced its lineup for its 2026/2027 PNC Pops Season, which will feature shows with Jeff Goldblum and the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra and Hamilton’s Leslie Odom Jr. This year’s movies with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra series features movies from the Harry Potter, Star Wars and Lord of the Rings franchises.

According to a report from WPXI, here is the full 2026-2027 lineup:

Jeff Goldblum with the PSO

• Oct. 6 at 7:30 p.m.
• Jeff Goldblum, vocals

PNC Pops: Everything I Know

• Mandy Gonzalez Sings Lin-Manuel Miranda with the PSO
• Oct. at 7:30 p.m
• Oct. 10 at 7:30 p.m.
• Oct. 11 at 2:30 p.m.
• Mandy Gonzalez, vocals

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I

• Film with Live Orchestra
• Oct. 30 at 7:00 p.m.
• Nov. 1 at 2:30 p.m.

PNC Pops: Natural Woman

• Sheléa Sings Aretha Franklin
• Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m.
• Nov. 14 at 7:30 p.m.
• Nov. 15 at 2:30 p.m.
• Byron Stripling, conductor
• Sheléa, vocals

How To Train Your Dragon

• Film with Live Orchestra
• Nov. 20 at 7:00 p.m.
• Nov. 22 at 2:30 p.m.

Leslie Odom Jr. with the PSO

• Dec. 8 at 7:30 p.m.

Highmark Holiday Pops

• Dec. 11-13 & 18-20
• Daniel Meyer, conductor
• Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh

It’s A Wonderful Life

• Film with Live Orchestra
• 80th Anniversary Celebration
• Dec. 16 at 7:00 p.m.

PNC Pops: Once Upon a Time

• Disney in Concert
• Jan. 22 at 7:30 p.m.
• Jan. 23 at 7:30 p.m.
• Jan. 24 at 2:30 p.m.
• Lawrence Loh, conductor

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

• Film with Live Orchestra
• Feb. 5 at 7:00 p.m.
• Feb. 7 at 2:30 p.m.

PNC Pops: Ragtime, Blues & All That Jazz

• Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m.
• Feb. 27 at 7:30 p.m.
• Feb. 28 at 2:30 p.m.
• Byron Stripling, conductor
• Bobby Floyd, keyboardist

PNC Pops: Music of Billy Joel

• April 9 at 7:30 p.m.
• April 10 at 7:30 p.m.
• April 11 at 2:30 p.m.
• Stuart Chafetz, conductor
• Tony DeSare, vocals and piano

PNC Pops: Summer Breeze

• Yacht Rock Classics
• May 7 at 7:30 p.m.
• May 8 at 7:30 p.m.
• May 9 at 2:30 p.m.
• Byron Stripling, conductor
• Jesse Nager, vocals
• Brie Cassil, vocals
• Tony Vincent, vocals

Star Wars: A New Hope

• 50th Anniversary Celebration
• Film with Live Orchestra
• May 25 at 7:00 p.m.

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

• Film with Live Orchestra
• June 25 at 7:00 p.m.
• June 26 at 7:00 p.m.
• June 27 at 2:30 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased on pittsburghsymphony.org by clicking here or by calling 412-392-4900. Subscription packages are also available now and July is when single tickets are available.

(File Photo of the Shell Logo)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Monaca, PA) A meeting will take place this Thursday from 6-8 p.m. at the Penn State Beaver auditorium in Monaca to discuss a permit. This permit would allow Shell to both expand and modify parts of its petrochemical plant operations that would directly impact the air quality in Beaver County. The meeting will involve questions from attendees and you can RSVP for this event by clicking here.

(Photo Courtesy of the Pennsylvania Lottery)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Middletown, PA) The Pennsylvania Lottery announced yesterday that someone in Pennsylvania who bought a Mega Millions ticket recently won $2 million. The winning ticket was sold online and according to the Pennsylvania lottery’s website, the ticket matched all five white balls in Friday’s Mega Millions drawing: 6, 19, 36, 40, 55. The winner has not been identified and they have one year to claim the prize. You can view the current and past winning numbers by visiting the Pennsylvania Lottery’s website by clicking here. Nobody hit all five numbers and the yellow Mega Ball, so the jackpot will roll to an estimated $60 million for the next drawing tonight. The Pennsylvania Lottery also stated that winnings that were online of $2 million for Mega Millions must be claimed at lottery headquarters in person.

(Credit for Photo: Photo Courtesy of the Pittsburgh Zoo)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium is exploring the development of a new stand-alone cultural destination on the North Shore known as the Pennsylvania Aquarium. The project is currently in a conceptual phase to determine if the facility is both viable and sustainable for the region. An economic impact study has been commissioned and a coalition of regional leaders is forming to evaluate funding and community impact. According to Dr. Jeremy Goodman, the president & CEO of the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium, the Commonwealth is currently the most populous state without a stand-alone aquarium. No final decisions have been made regarding a specific location for the facility, even though site feasibility will be part of the evaluation process. There is currently no established construction timeline for the project. If completed, the aquarium would be the first major attraction built on the North Shore since PNC Park opened in April of 2001. The concept involves a large-scale destination that is designed for both immersive habitat experiences and aquatic conservation storytelling. Leaders emphasized that the Pennsylvania Aquarium would expand existing offerings from the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium rather than duplicating them. The facility is intended to operate as a stand-alone destination that is separate from the main zoo grounds. The project is expected to strengthen the city’s position as a national leader in environmental education while expanding both tourism and regional economic activity. Planned benefits include the creation of new jobs and immersive learning programs that are focused on aquatic life and water systems. The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium stated that it is committed to a responsible evaluation process before moving forward with this project.

(Credit for Photo: Photo Courtesy of Business Wire and the Associated Press)

PITTSBURGH & CHICAGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Mar 17, 2026–Today, Kraft Mac & Cheese introduces PowerMac, a brand-new innovation delivering 17g of protein and 6g of fiber per serving. Kraft is known for bringing two icons – macaroni & cheese – together and making them the Best Thing Ever. Now, America’s #1 mac & cheese 1 is uniting the benefits consumers are seeking with the same cheesiness fans know and love. PowerMac expands the blue box lineup with added nutrition while staying true to the taste, convenience and affordability that has made Kraft Mac & Cheese a trusted household favorite for nearly 90 years.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260317869993/en/

(File Photo of a Farmer’s Market Truck Carrying Farmer’s Market Truck)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Memorial Park Church in the North Hills of Pittsburgh is now calling on volunteers to help pack meals for the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. Meals will be donated to that food bank for distribution to families in need. Volunteers can show up at the church to help on Saturday, April 18, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. or Sunday, April 19, from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. and from 11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Community members of all ages are welcome, and those interested can sign up online by clicking here.   

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – Pope Leo XIV holds his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square at The Vatican, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia, File)

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Pope Leo XIV will accept the Liberty Medal in Philadelphia on the eve of July 4 in a remote broadcast from Rome but won’t travel to the U.S. during its 250th birthday celebrations this year.

Leo, the first American pope, will instead spend the Fourth of July on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, the arrival point for many desperate migrants trying to reach Europe from Africa.

He will be honored on Independence Mall on July 3 for “his lifelong work promoting religious liberty and freedom of conscience and expression around the world — ideals enshrined by America’s founders in the First Amendment,” the National Constitution Center said in a press release Monday.

The center awards the Liberty Medal each year to someone “of courage and conviction” who promotes liberty around the world. Past recipients include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and U.S. Rep. John Lewis, the late civil rights leader.

Leo, born Robert F. Prevost, was raised in Chicago and attended Villanova University near Philadelphia, graduating in 1977.

He has a busy year of travel planned, including a grand tour of Italy and trips to four African nations. The Vatican has confirmed he will not travel to the United States this year, despite an invitation from President Donald Trump.

Leo has followed in his predecessor’s footsteps in highlighting the plight of migrants around the world.

Pope Francis had made Lampedusa his first trip outside Rome after his 2013 election, when he celebrated Mass there on an altar made of shipwrecked migrant boats and denounced the “globalization of indifference”— a mantra that increased tensions with the first Trump administration.

Francis visited Philadelphia during a six-day trip across the U.S. in 2015.

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – This April 2, 2021, file photo shows bridges spanning the Allegheny River in downtown Pittsburgh. Republicans in Congress are making the politically brazen bet that it’s more advantageous to oppose President Joe Biden’s ambitious rebuild America agenda than to lend support for the costly $2.3 trillion undertaking for roads, bridges and other infrastructure investments. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The Heinz Endowments has recently pledged $750,000 to support Pittsburgh’s citywide comprehensive plan, which is known as PGH2050. The funding is facilitated through a partnership with The Pittsburgh Foundation and it is expected to save city taxpayers more than $1 million. PGH2050 is managed by the Department of City Planning and it serves as a long-term growth strategy for the city’s 90 neighborhoods. The initiative aims to coordinate efforts in climate resilience, economic development and housing over the coming decades. This grant is intended to ensure that planning decisions are informed by direct resident input and he project is now moving into its final phase, which involves extensive outreach to local stakeholders.