the almanac M AY 24, 2026
SOUTH HILLS COMMUNITY NEWS
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OUT OF THIS WORLD
Upper St. Clair community day a ‘cosmic’ event By Eleanor Bailey ebailey@thealmanac.net
With the state of affairs around the globe, Upper St. Clair attempted to provide a brief respite. On May 16, the high school’s student council transported the community to another world, presenting a virtual utopia when it hosted “Cosmic Community Day, 2026.” “We do think USC really is out of this world,” said Peter Markowitz, student council president. “100 percent,” agreed Dylan Childs, who is senior class president. “With a lot of current events going on in our world and a lot
ELEANOR BAILEY
Children grab flags being passed out by marching units in the Upper St. Clair community day parade.
of division, I think community day is a really good time to come together, de-stress a little bit and just have fun.” Approximately 70 teenagers from the student council were on campus before 8 a.m. on a Saturday morning to assist with activities, which day kicked off with a 5K fun run and walk. A Toddler Trot followed before an opening ceremony that featured dignitaries such as District Judge Ron Arnoni as well as politicians Natalie Mihalek, Devlin Robinson and recently elected Jennifer Mazzocco. The day, which concluded at 4 p.m., featured fair booths with representatives from organizations throughout the community and school district, a petting zoo, cake bake-off, pony rides, tie-dying activities, food booths, a parade as well as tours of the historic Gilfillan Farm and demonstrations at the 1830 Log House. “Community day is one of my favorite days,” said Childs. “I like being out here, seeing everyone, seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces. It just makes my day.” Having the opportunity to showcase the school’s activities is also a highlight. Most every club or activity offered within the district was represented.
MIKE JONES
ELEANOR BAILEY
A llama amuses Ariana Brown and Liliana Namestka at the petting zone during Upper St. Clair community day festivities. In addition to visiting with the llama the two friends enjoyed feeding the goats and lambs.
Riders on horseback and wagons travel along U.S. Route 40 through Scenery Hill, Pa., during the National Road Festival last May.
Editor’s note: With new settlements being established in the Northwest Territory, leaders of the still young United States tackled another issue — how to link cities in the east with new opportunities in the west. This happened through an act of Congress creating what came to be known as the National Road.
By Mike Jones ELEANOR BAILEY
Banner bearers Peter Markowitz (center) and Dylan Childs (left) played key roles in organizing Upper St. Clair’s community day activities. Markowitz is the president of the high school’s student government organization while Childs is senior class president. The theme for this year was Cosmic Community Day.
“Community day is a really great opportunity for people who aren’t as involved to get involved or find something that they want to do in the fu-
ELEANOR BAILEY
Reenactors from the 9th PA Reserves put on a demonstration for spectators during Upper St. Clair community day activities. In addition to being part of the living history demonstration, the historic Log House was open for tours.
THE NATIONAL ROAD LINKED A YOUNG NATION
ELEANOR BAILEY
Oliver Reichstein, 7, has his picture taken as a fireman at a selfie station set up by the Upper St. Clair VFD.
ture. It’s also a great way to get information out there and for all classes to interact.” Brady Miller, Porter Livingston, Fisher Leimkuehler and Collin Ziegler all agreed. The four freshmen are student council representatives. They volunteered to work community day and were assigned parking lot duties. “At least we had a prime spot for the parade,” said Leimkuehler with a laugh. The entire freshman experience, however, had been a positive one for the group because they said they were able to meet students from all four grades and community day proved SEE COSMIC PAGE A6
mjones@observer-reporter.com
To have a United States of America during its infancy, you had to have a truly united country. Not just by national unity with its citizens, but by physically connecting the east with what was then the western frontier across the Allegheny Mountains. Or at least that’s what President George Washington thought at the time. “It was his dream,” historian Brady Crytzer said of the idea of a national road. “He understands that America is an east-west country. There are thousands of people over the mountains and he fears it could break into two (countries).” While Washington didn’t live to see his dream become a reality, his successors picked up the torch and continued down that path. “He lays the groundwork for it to be done. It’s always his vision,” said Crytzer, who
released a new book in April called “The National Road: George Washington and America’s First Highway West,” that is listed as an Amazon Top Release. To help ease the movement of goods and livestock across the mountains, the federal government wanted to build a route from Cumberland, Md., to Wheeling in what was then Virginia (present-day West Virginia) in order to connect the Potomac River to the Ohio River. It would not be easy building a road traveling 130 “treacherous” miles, including over steep and rugged terrain through the mountains, Crytzer said. While the young nation’s third president Thomas Jefferson is credited with signing the act to create a national road in 1806, it’s Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin who did the heavy lifting. Gallatin lived on Friendship Hill overlooking the Monongahela River near New Geneva, Pa., which gave him credibility SEE ROAD PAGE A2
South Fayette fifth-grader appears on Cheerios cereal box By Brad Hundt
bhundt@observer-reporter.com
In many ways, Jordy Greene is just like his peers at South Fayette Intermediate School. With the school year wrapping up, the 10 year-old is looking forward to a summer of playing with his friends and enjoying some video games. But he’s very much not like his peers in that he successfully overcame an exceptionally rare genetic disorder that is known to have afflicted fewer than 100 people around the world. And because of this, he will be appearing on boxes of Cheerios cereal as part of a fundraising campaign for the hospitals in the Children’s Miracle Network. The Cheerios boxes with
Greene’s image on them are available at Costco stores, and the fifth-grader will be at the Costco outlet in Robinson Township on May 30 with the Cheerios boxes as part of the “Make Big Change For All Kids” campaign. How are his friends in school reacting to having one of their classmates on a cereal box? “They’re in shock and they’re really happy,” Greene said. “They thought that was only for celebrities.” The fact that Greene’s is appearing on a cereal box and he is able to look forward to a summer of fun is itself something of a miracle. Around the time he was 5, Greene became frequently ill, and was eventually diagnosed with XLP2. Sometimes called XIAP De-
LOCATION Montour Trail marker to honor George Washington PAGE A3 What’s happening, B4
ficiency or X-Linked Lymphoproliferative Disease 2, it’s a genetic disorder that primarily affects boys and can be accompanied by frequent fevers, infections and rashes, along with digestive issues and a host of other problems. “I wasn’t feeling good,” said Greene, whose parents are Dustin and Natasha Greene. He had nausea and stomach pain, and his growth stalled. The initial, incorrect diagnosis was Crohn’s disease, but failed treatments for Crohn’s and further investigation revealed it was XLP2. Greene entered Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh two summers ago for a bone marrow transplant. This time, it worked. Greene was able to leave the hospital on his ninth birthday.
COURTESY OF SOUTH FAYETTE SCHOOL DISTRICT
The Cheerios boxes with Jordy Greene’s image on them are available at Costco stores, and the fifth-grader will be at the Costco outlet in Robinson Township on May 30 with the Cheerios boxes as part of the “Make Big Change For All Kids” campaign.
“Thankfully, it worked and I’m cured,” Greene said. As a result, Greene has become a national “champion” for the Children’s Miracle Network. He has traveled to Salt Lake City and Orlando,
SPORTS Area athletes shine at WPIAL championships PAGE B1 Classifieds, B5
COURTESY OF SOUTH FAYETTE SCHOOL DISTRICT
South Fayette fifth-grader Jordy Greene is appearing on boxes of Cheerios in order to support the Children’s Miracle Network. He is pictured with his teachers, from left, Angela Johnson, Mark Kuglar and Kelly Dissen.
Fla., as part of the program. It was through being a champion that Greene was able to get his image on the Cheerios box. Shoppers at Costco can make donations to the Children’s Miracle Network through May
at the store’s registers, or by scanning the code on the boxes of Cheerios. “I’m grateful,” Greene said. More information on the Children’s Miracle Network can be found at cmn.org.
SIGHTS & SOUNDS Life as a swing in ‘The Great Gatsby’ PAGE B4 Real estate transactions, A2
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