Articles written by Rick Boston
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Fire Damages Freedom Township Home
An afternoon fire in Freedom Township on Sunday, Nov. 26, brought a response from 10 fire departments and closed a portion of Dunnings Highway for several hours while firefighters battled the blaze....
McKee Playground To Hold Community Tree Lighting Event
With the holiday season here, tree lighting events and Christmas parties will be held throughout the Cove region. On Friday, Nov. 4, the McKee Playground will be hosting a community tree lighting ceremony at the McKee Community Center at 6:30 p.m....
Claysburg Police Officer Given Top Gun Award At Blair Drug and Alcohol Recognition Dinner
The Drug and Alcohol Partnership held its annual Recognition Awards Dinner on Thursday, Nov. 16, at The U.S. Hotel in Hollidaysburg. The awards dinner celebrates the work of community partners in...
Potter Named to C-K School Board Following Resignation
Claysburg-Kimmel School District voters went to the polls on Nov. 7 to elect a school board and a day later that same board appointed a member to fill the unexpired spot of a member who resigned the previous night. Board members Roger Knisley, Heidi...
Roaring Spring Borough Passes Tentative 2024 Budget with No Tax Increase
Roaring Spring Borough Council approved a tentative 2024 budget with no tax increase but a significant jump in its contribution to the fire department at its Monday, Nov. 13, meeting. Earlier this year the Friendship Volunteer Fire Company asked...
SCSD Elects New Members
The Spring Cove School Board will have a decidedly different makeup with four new members set to take a seat at the table and two current members departing. Unofficial results from last Tuesday’s general election show first-time candidate Gretchen...
Roaring Spring Borough Acts on Road Complaints
After North Main Street in Roaring Spring Borough was reopened after a summer of reconstruction, borough officials began receiving complaints about the ride quality of the new road, mainly several dips along the road. Taking citizen concerns...
Martinsburg Man Pleads Guilty to Firearms Charges in Federal Court
A Martinsburg man was in federal court last month and rendered guilty pleas to seven charges related to the trafficking of firearms including selling “ghost guns” and “hit kits” with no identifying serial numbers. Harry Miller, 47, was...
New Enterprise Man Jailed For Gun Threat
A New Enterprise man who was jailed in Bedford County after police said he pointed a gun at a man and threatened to shoot him is behind bars after allegedly threatening to shoot another man and pointing a gun at him. According to the charges filed be...
Claysburg Woman Sentenced to Life In Prison For Murdering Husband in 2018
The Claysburg woman convicted last month of first-degree murder in the 2018 shooting death of her husband has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Bedford County President Judge Travis Livengood handed the life...
Bobcat Martinsburg Begins to Bounce Back After Fire
As Chief of the Martinsburg Volunteer Fire Company, Randy Acker is accustomed to having his days interrupted by the whistle. Throughout his decades-long career in the fire service, Acker has been...
Medical Event Led to Last Week's Bobcat Fire in Martinsburg
The fire that destroyed a Martinsburg business last week started when a man working with a blow torch suffered a fatal heart attack. According to Blair County Coroner Patty Ross, Rodney Walters, 52,...
Commissioner, Judge Retention Highlight County Office Races
On Nov. 7, Blair County voters will decide who sits in the three seats at the commissioner’s table with four candidates vying for a chair. Two incumbents, Republican Amy Webster, and Democrat Laura Burke are joined on the ballot by Republican Dave...
Spring Cove School Board Battle Highlights Local Election
When Cove-area voters head to the polls on Nov. 7, those who live in the Spring Cove School District will choose from a mixture of incumbents and newcomers to fill five seats. Of the eight candidates on the ballot, Brian Gahagan, Troy Wright, and Sam...
RS Proposes Increased Fire Company Allocation Without Raising Millage
Earlier this year the Friendship Volunteer Fire Company asked the Roaring Spring Borough Council to include a 1-mill tax increase in its 2024 budget to help fund the fire department. Citing increased costs, dwindling contributions, and equipment...
Hopewell Man Jailed For Fleeing North Woodbury Township Police on Motorcycle
A Hopewell man is behind bars after leading North Woodbury Township Police on a chase through Martinsburg on his motorcycle. According to the criminal complaint, on Oct. 6, while at the North Woodbury Township police station, an officer heard the...
Burket Steps Down from CK Board
The Claysburg-Kimmel School Board is down a member following the resignation of 10-year school director Craig Burket at its Oct. 11 meeting. Burket said he was honored to serve on the board and said his resignation is due to moving out of the...
Freedom Township Accident Claims Life of Claysburg Man
A Claysburg man died from injuries suffered in a two-vehicle crash in Freedom Township on Wednesday morning, Oct. 4. According to Hollidaysburg State Police, Dennis A. Maurer was killed when a 2016 Chevrolet Cruze driven by a 79-year-old woman...
Claysburg Educational Foundation Gives District Students Opportunities Beyond Basic Curriculum
Every year the boards and administrations at public schools across Pennsylvania agonize over the budget. The numbers start high, and as they start doing the math, weighing the cost of programs against the expected funds from the two main sources of r...
Two Hospitalized After Box Truck Hits Horse-Drawn Buggy from Behind
North Woodbury Township police are investigating the cause of an accident that sent two people to the hospital after their horse-drawn buggy was hit from behind on Cove Mountain Road near Auction...
Sheetz Reveals Plan for Sarah Furnace Property
The historic Sarah Furnace property at the intersection of Dunnings Highway and Quarry Road in Sproul is about to spring to life after nearly eight years of serving as a deteriorating symbol to the past from its lonely spot on the side of the road....
In Digital or Print, Community Newspapers Tell the Whole Story
This year marks the 83rd National Newspaper week. Since 1940, the first week in October has been set aside to shine a spotlight on community newspapers and remind readers why they play an important role in their lives. This year’s theme of “In...
Claysburg Woman Found Guilty of Husband's Murder
A Claysburg woman was found guilty of her husband’s murder in Bedford County court almost five years to the day she shot and killed him at their Kimmel Township home. Nancy Focht, 75, was found guilty of first-degree murder and tampering with...
Local Districts Part of State-Wide Bomb Threat Hoax
Two area schools were part of what officials called a “state-wide” bomb threat hoax on Wednesday, Sept. 20. According to Pennsylvania State Police, districts across the state, including Claysburg-Kimmel, and Spring Cove, received a bomb threat em...
Local Fire Companies Gearing up for Fire Prevention Week
Sunday, Oct. 8 kicks off Fire Prevention Week across the country with fire departments reaching out to their respective communities to educate on the importance of fire safety. Fire Prevention Week...
Concern Grows Over C-K Students Attending Out-of-District Schools
The public comment portion of school board meetings gives citizens the chance to bring issues to the board’s attention, and at its Sept. 13 meeting, the Claysburg-Kimmel School Board learned of a concern about district students enrolling in other...
Authority: Discovery of PFAS in Martinsburg Water Not Cause for Alarm
Municipal water authorities have a laundry list of contaminates they are required to test for regularly to ensure the water supply meets the Safe Drinking Water Standards set by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), and...
Preserving History: Williamsburg Group Raising Funds to Memorialize Blair County Children's Home
Aug. 2, 1975, began like any summer day in Williamsburg. With morning temperatures in the high 60s, residents were bracing for a day that was expected to reach 95 degrees by mid-afternoon. What they d...
A Couple's Drunken Scene at Central Football Game Leads to Charges
An Altoona couple was arrested on Friday, Sept. 8 after police said they caused a drunken disturbance at the Roaring Spring Athletic Field where Central High School was slated to take on Tyrone in a game that was postponed due to lightning....
Supply Issues Delay Five Points New Traffic Lights Installation
At its Monday, Sept. 11 meeting, Roaring Spring Borough Council learned that a supply issue will delay the completion of the Five-Points project by at least five months. According to Borough Manager...
Stormwater Tax Shouldn't Affect Cove Immediately
A recent ruling by a Commonwealth Court that West Chester Borough labeling storm water fees as a tax could cost the state’s municipalities hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue from tax-exempt bodies has no immediate impact on Cove-area...
Memorial Park Closes Season with Community Appreciation Day
It has been a long hot summer that drew thousands of visitors to Morrisons Cove Memorial Park. Whether cooling off at the pool, enjoying weekend skating, bowling on the new lanes at the bowling alley,...
RS Man Accused of Stealing Thousands from Skills Machines
A Roaring Spring man is facing charges in Bedford County for conspiring with three other people to steal thousands of dollars from Pennsylvania skills machines at a Queen business. Zacheriah J. Hammel, 23, was arraigned by Bedford Magisterial...
Suspect in Greenfield Township Assault Still at Large
A Claysburg man wanted by police on felony assault, strangulation, and firearms charges is still on the run after escaping capture following an Aug. 21 incident in Greenfield Township when, according...
Head Start Returns to Williamsburg After a Nearly Three-Year Hiatus
Nearly three years after shutting its classroom doors in Williamsburg, Blair County Head Start is back in a new location, with a new executive director, but with the same goals that define the Head...
Manhunt in Claysburg Forces District to Cancel Activities; Suspect Remains at Large
The Claysburg-Kimmel School District canceled all student practices and extracurricular activities Monday afternoon, Aug. 21, while local and state law enforcement conducted a manhunt for William P. Dibert, 26, of Saxton. According to police, Dibert...
New School Year Brings Reminder of School Bus Laws
With most area students returning to the classroom this week, motorists are being advised to be alert for stopped school buses and to come to a complete stop when children are getting on and off the bus. Pennsylvania state law mandates that...
Keeping it Clean: Roaring Spring Man's Love for Law Enforcement Keeps Police Cars Looking Pristine
Korb Freeman is a man who doesn't like to waste time. The 24-year-old Roaring Spring man works full-time at Shirley's Cookies in Claysburg, and while that is how he makes his living, it's the free...
Cove Fire Companies Earn Awards at Convention
Members of the Freedom Township and Freindship Volunteer Fire Companies traveled to Lewistown last weekend to join approximately 3,500 firefighters from 27 counties at the 131st Central District...
Claysburg-Kimmel Eliminates Jazz Class
When the Claysburg-Kimmel School District eliminated a music teacher position at the end of last school year, the hope was that no music programs would be affected, however, parents were recently notified that jazz band will no longer be offered due...
Road Work in RS Nearing Completion
The Five-Points and Main Street projects are "75-80 percent" complete, according to Roaring Spring Borough Council President Rodney Green. Green said the work, which began in the spring, has gone...
Heat-Related Illnesses Rise with the Temperature
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) warns that summers are getting hotter and extreme heat is increasing every year. The lowest high temperature for July was 75 degrees with daytime temperatures in the 80s in all but two days, according to the...
Roaring Spring Water Line Replacement Going Smoothly
It has been a busy summer in the Borough of Roaring Spring with three construction projects taking place simultaneously. The Five-Points and Main Street projects will be more aesthetically pleasing...
Tractor-Trailer Damages Royer Cemetery Near Williamsburg
A closed bridge and a bad decision by a truck driver led to thousands of dollars in damage to Royer Cemetery near Williamsburg on the morning of Wednesday, July 12. According to Jeff Gunnett, who, alo...
Sheetz Announces Sarah Furnace Property Renovation Plan
The Sarah Furnace property at the intersection of Dunnings Highway and Quarry Road in Sproul will be seeing life again after Sheetz announced its intention to renovate the house and surrounding...
Carnival Week Shows Values of Cove Youth
Very few things test a person’s character more than money. A found wallet is a temptation at any age, but during Cove Carnival week, there were several examples where the next generation of Cove leaders proved that honesty is the rule. Memorial...
Ag Parade Brings Out The Best in People
When Martinsburg Borough Police Chief Kerry Hoover turned his cruiser onto Market Street to lead the Agriculture Parade, he knew there would be a crowd, but was taken aback by what he saw. As Hoover a...
Dog Tag Tribute Lost On Carnival Grounds
Most every child has that one possession that means the world to them. Whether it's a toy, a blanket, or stuffed animal, it's a prized possession that brings them comfort and security, and even the th...
Municipal Ordinances Outline Firework Rules
With the Cove Carnival kicking off this week and two nights of fireworks scheduled, area residents could be in the mood to extend their Fourth of July celebration. But if you decide to break out any leftover fireworks and set them off, you will be...
Road Ownership and Sign Ordinance Highlight RS Agenda
Businesses and homes along Nason, June, and Hillcrest Drives in Roaring Spring pay property taxes to the borough but may be surprised to learn that those roads belong to Conemaugh Nason Hospital, and Nason CEO Tim Harclerode wants to give them to...