Category: Events || By Staff Reports

Critically acclaimed author John Hoerr will deliver the seventh-annual Founders' Day Address this Sunday at McKeesport Heritage Center.

The event begins at 2 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.

A native of McKeesport who chronicled the decline of the American steel industry in his landmark 1988 book, And the Wolf Finally Came, Hoerr will talk about his upbringing in the city and sign copies of his new novel, Monongahela Dusk.

The novel --- Hoerr's first --- is set in McKeesport against the backdrop of the struggles of steelworkers to win union recognition in the 1930s and '40s. (See the Almanac's review, Aug. 24.)

A 1948 graduate of McKeesport High School and a Penn State alumnus, Hoerr is a former writer and editor for Business Week and producer at WQED-TV who covered labor issues for four decades.

His other non-fiction books include 1997's We Can't Eat Prestige, which describes the 1970s effort by a group of mostly female employees to organize the staff of Harvard University; and 2005's Harry, Tom, and Father Rice, an account of the sometimes scurrilous efforts to expel suspected Communists from the union representing Westinghouse Electric employees in the 1950s.

McKeesport Heritage Center is located at 1832 Arboretum Drive in Renziehausen Park, one block from Eden Park Boulevard. Call (412) 678-1832.

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Library Programs Slated: Parents and grandparents can get free advice next week on how to teach their children about handling money.

The talk, set for 6:45 p.m. Oct. 22, is one of a series of free weeknight programs slated this fall at Carnegie Library of McKeesport.

A financial adviser from Edward Jones Investments will present the program, called "Raising a Smart Money Child."

Other upcoming programs at the library include:

• Bidwell Training Center, 6:45 p.m. Nov. 5: Educators from Bidwell Training Center, located on Pittsburgh's North Side, will discuss their career-building programs for young adults, including training for fields such as chemical lab technician, medical claims processor, culinary arts, horticulture technology (landscaping, florists and greenhouses), office technology, pharmacy technician and medical coding.


• Songs of Steel and Industry, 7 p.m. Nov. 18: Artist and performer Paula Purnell will present a multi-media presentation about the songs, drawings and paintings documenting American workers in the steel, coal and railroad industries.


• History of Kennywood, 6:45 p.m. Dec. 3: Andy Quinn, historian and director of community relations at Kennywood, will tell the story of West Mifflin's world-famous amusement park.

All programs are free and will be held at the main library, 1502 Library Ave. in the city, except for the Nov. 18 talk, which will be held at McKeesport Heritage Center.

For more information, visit the library's website or call (412) 672-0625.

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Richey Memorial Nov. 21: McKeesport Heritage Center will wrap up its year-long celebration of the life of pioneering aviatrix Helen Richey with a graveside memorial service.

The service will be held at McKeesport and Versailles Cemetery at 1:30 p.m. Nov. 21, which would have been Richey's 100th birthday. (In event of inclement weather, events will be moved to the cemetery's mausoleum.)

Volunteers will be stationed at the cemetery's entrances to provide directions to the Richey family plot.

Richey was the first female commercial airline pilot and flew transport missions during World War II. A city native, she was the daughter of former McKeesport School Superintendent Dr. Joseph Richey, and her flying skills were praised by other pilots, including Amelia Earhart.

After being forced out of her job by pressure from male pilots, Richey died in 1947 in New York City, an apparent suicide.

The memorial service is open to the public. (A luncheon to follow is by invitation only.) Call (412) 678-1832.

Disclaimer: The editor of Tube City Almanac is a director of McKeesport Heritage Center. Opinions expressed in the Almanac are those of individual authors and not those of any organizations of which those authors are a part. No influence is exerted on Tube City Almanac by outside organizations.