the almanac O C T O B E R 26, 2025
SOUTH HILLS COMMUNITY NEWS
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Peters Township woman wins silver medal At jiujitsu world event By Jill Thurston Staff writer
jthurston@observer-reporter.com
COURTESY OF JOE PISZCZOR
Jen Pardini spoke at the Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern Pennsylvania fundraising dinner on Oct. 15.
Bridgeville woman who was brutally assaulted advocates for domestic violence victims By Jennifer Garofalo For the Observer-Reporter newsroom@observer-reporter.com
When someone asks Jen Pardini about the night her ex-boyfriend brutally attacked her and nearly ended her life, she answers the questions openly and without a hint of hesitation. Nothing, the survivor-turned-advocate said, is off limits: not the night he fractured her skull with a hammer, the abuse that preceded it, her recovery, or the life she’s built since. “I always say that I think everything happened to me for a reason,” Pardini said, “and I want to help others in any way I can.”
‘No one thought I would live’
Pardini’s 2½-year relationship with William McCann Oberschelp was mired by mental and emotional abuse caused by his sub-
stance abuse. They broke up briefly, said Pardini, but then reconciled. The 28-year-old Bridgeville woman said she believed things would be different, that they would be better. Instead, she got back onto the proverbial roller coaster that is often present in domestic violence cases. “They abuse you. They tell you it’s going to be OK, and you believe it. Then they do it again,” Pardini said. Worsening isolation accompanied the mental and emotional abuse. The night Oberschelp attacked her, Pardini said, he’d checked himself out of a mental health facility, drank alcohol, then took an Uber to a gas station near her parents’ home in Peters Township. He used a spare key to get into their home and walked into COURTESY OF JEN PARDINI Pardini’s room. Jen Pardini was flown to Allegheny General HospiShe said she opened her tal, where she underwent emergency surgery after her SEE MATTERS PAGE A2 ex-boyfriend fractured her skull with a hammer in 2023.
Carri Czyzewski, 48, of Peters Township, returned from the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) Master Worlds Championship in Las Vegas in August with a little more weight in her luggage. The local real estate agent, wife and mother of two earned a silver medal in the Women’s Purple Belt Middleweight Division. The Master Worlds Championship is the premier event for juijitsu athletes ages 30 and older, open to blue belts and above, according to Sharon Czyzewski, mother-in-law to Carri Czyzewski and a top fan. “I’ve watched Carri grow her skills and not only her physical strength these past few years, but also her courage and determination,” said Sharon Czyzewski. Carri Czyzewski describes her nature as competitive and previously she was an amateur boxer. Becoming a real estate agent 12 years ago prompted her to seek training in self defense. She started to train in Krav Maga, the Israeli hand-to-hand combat system developed for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), which she now also teaches. “The majority of fights or attacks end up on the ground. I really enjoyed that part of self defense.
Striking and kicks are OK, but I really enjoy ground fighting, and I knew I wanted to get into that deeper and that took me to jiujitsu,” Carri said. Juijitsu is a form of martial arts centered on ground fighting. She said she does a sport style of jiujitsu, not a self-defense one, which is designed to “make you comfortable on the ground, where most women are the most uncomfortable.” “I’m a highly competitive person, and when I got my purple belt, I knew I needed to compete. I just didn’t feel authentic as a purple belt without testing myself against other people like me.” The highest belt is a black belt, two above purple. “I’m older and here, locally, there’s not a lot of women like me who want to compete, so I knew I had to go to worlds to compete with other women my age, my size, my belt rank. You get women from all over the world … Brazil, Australia, Texas, England, all over.” This year, she competed against five other women to earn the silver medal. “These women are so amazing,” Carri said. “The camaraderie, I can’t explain it. It’s very pro-women. We are all very proud of ourselves. It’s scary to get out there and do this. It takes a lot.” Her first match on Aug. 28 was won against a SEE MEDAL PAGE A2
COURTESY OF CARRI CZYZEWSKI
Carrie Czyzewski with her silver medal in jiujitsu
Park bench dedicated in Bethel Park youth’s memory By Eleanor Bailey Almanac Staff Writer ebailey@thealmanac.net
Echoes of the laughter of a little boy drifted through the minds of those in attendance at Pine Tree Park during a bench dedication ceremony in his memory. On Oct. 20, family, friends and neighbors gathered in the 1.01-acre park of N Street in Ward 4 of Bethel Park to remember Joey Fabus and dedicate a bench and plaque in his memory. Fabus used to play in the park while visiting his aunt, Carrie Berry, before he passed away at age 8 due to an inoperable tumor. “We used to come here all the time with Joey,” said his mother, Cynthia, who is Ber-
ry’s sister. “He used to play here and do his thing.” Bethel Park Council President John Oakes and Councilman Todd Cenci wanted to do their own thing, too. They used their own personal funds to install a bench near the playground and basketball court in remembrance of Fabus, who died Jan. 21, 2015. “Joey was a bright and amazing young boy who touched the lives of so many,” said Oakes. “He was a beloved child whose courageous spirit continues to inspire the community.” The tribute was initiated by Berry, but when council learned that the existing benches in the park couldn’t support a plaque, Cenci and Oakes decided to personally fund a new one and affixed
UPPER ST. CLAIR Educator named Regional Esports lead PAGE A2 What’s happening, B3
a plaque to honor Fabus in a place he frequented. “This park meant so much to him,” Oakes said. Fabus was diagnosed with DIPG (Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma), an inoperable brain tumor, at the age of 8. Despite the diagnosis, he remained joyful and full of life, especially when interacting with local police officers. Many of them embraced him as an honorary member of their departments. A special day in his honor was held where Joey was sworn in as an officer and performed some “official” duties. Though he passed away nearly 10 years ago, his lega- The Fabus family, David, Olivia, Josh, Cynthia and Clarissa, admire the bench dedcy lives on through the Joey icated in Joey’s name after an unveiling ceremony held Oct. 20 at Pine Tree Park in Fabus Childhood Cancer Bethel Park. Joey was David and Cynthia’s 8-year-old son, who died of an inoperable SEE BENCH PAGE A2 brain tumor on Jan. 21, 2015.
BETHEL PARK Library receives $25K donation PAGE A3
SPORTS Bethel Park finishes runner-up in WPIAL team tennis PAGE B1 Classifieds, B5,B6