Around The County

The Oil City Arts Council’s 25th annual First Night celebration, themed “Silver Bells,” will take place Dec. 31 from 5:30 to 10:45 p.m. across Oil…

The Ninth Annual Nature Art Showcase and Sale will take place on February 7-8 at the Barrow-Civic Theatre in Franklin, featuring artwork inspired by northwestern…

Pennsylvania Western University will hold its fall commencement on Saturday at the Clarion campus, celebrating graduates from the College of Education, Arts and Humanities; the…

The Allegheny RiverStone Center for the Arts (ARCA) in Foxburg is hosting a series of diverse concerts at Lincoln Hall over the coming weekends. Highlights…

Justin Gray, a northwest Pennsylvania-based singer/songwriter and a solo acoustic artist, will perform at the Billy’s has Karma series from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday…

The Clarion community came together Saturday night for a festive Light Up Night celebration, highlighted by the arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus. The evening…

Don Young of Reno, now 90, is a vibrant and active member of his community. A lifelong resident of Reno, he grew up enjoying local…

Henry Phillip Lencer Sr. of Leeper will celebrate his 90th birthday on Dec. 8. Born in Hallton to Croatian immigrants, he grew up as one…

The Venango Chorus will present “The Carols of Christmas” concert this Sunday at 7 p.m. at Good Hope Lutheran Church in Oil City. The free…

Franklin’s Old-Fashioned Christmas celebration returns this Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., offering festive fun for families in the downtown area. Children can register…

The Valley Grove School Board reelected Brandon Winger as president and Cindy Swendsen as vice president during its reorganization meeting. Melanie Anderson and Todd Carson…

The Seneca school board held a brief reorganization meeting where Tom Neely was unanimously reelected as president, marking his 13th non-consecutive year in the role….

Drake Well Museum and Park is offering three paid internships for Summer 2025, open to post-secondary students in fields such as history, museum studies, education,…

Pipe Dreams will perform at the Billy’s has Karma series from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Billy’s in Oil City. Pipe Dreams is a…

The Cranberry Small Business Association is hosting Cranberry Township’s first Light Up Night tonight at the municipal building, with festivities from 6-9 p.m. The event…

Four local churches in Venango County—East Grove, Center Community, Seneca Sonrise, and Galloway Global Methodist—are hosting a toy drive to support families in North Carolina…

PennWest Clarion celebrated its 30th annual Student Senate Equity Awards and Dinner on November 19, honoring individuals and groups for their contributions to advancing equity…

Seven local entrepreneurs graduated from the nine-week Small Business Jump Start (SBJS) program, which teaches goal setting, business development, and financial literacy, while providing $2,500…

The Rocky Grove Volunteer Fire Department hosted the 34th annual Friends for Food Distribution, organized by Community Services of Venango County, where gratitude and community…

The Brookville Civic Club is offering free parking in downtown Brookville from Nov. 23 to Jan. 2 to make the holidays more convenient for shoppers…

Community Services of Venango County held its 34th annual Friends for Food distribution at the Rocky Grove Volunteer Fire Department, despite chilly rain. With 1,100…

The annual Friends for Food campaign, a collaboration between Community Services of Venango County and *The Derrick/The News-Herald*, has raised an additional $2,750, bringing this…

The Franklin school board approved several initiatives at its recent meeting, including the return of Central Elementary School’s Gettysburg field trip for fifth-graders, marking its…

At the Valley Grove School Board’s monthly meeting, the board hired Anna Hargenrader as a part-time district-wide receptionist, approved several supplemental contracts for sports coaching…

The Wyllis Street Band, consisting of Stephen Woods, Marc Rickard, Andy Young and Tom McLaughlin, will perform at the Billy’s has Karma series from 7…

The annual *In the Nick of Time* campaign, honoring the memory of Nick Sanford, a Cranberry Area High School student who passed away in 2003,…

Baked Goods from Heaven, a popular bakery in Oil City, will relocate from Seneca Street to the historic former Famoore’s restaurant at 18 East First…

Tionesta’s annual Christmas in the Village event brought festive cheer on Saturday, featuring the Sisters of the Northern Forest, who swapped their Halloween witch costumes…

Shirley McFetridge Zilhaver of Polk, born Nov. 17, 1934, celebrates her 90th birthday as a beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who values family and community….

The Miss Sligo Christmas Pageant, hosted by Balanced Buddha Gives Back, took place Sunday at the Sligo Area Recreation Center with 28 girls aged 1-13…

The Venango County Makerspace will hold its grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony from 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday on the fifth floor of 100…

Franklin’s annual holiday festivities kicked off today with the arrival of a 35-foot spruce Christmas tree, donated by the McGee family, via the “Christmas Tree…

The Dloniak Barber Shop, a long-standing fixture in Oil City for about 70 years, has relocated from 108 Center Street to its new home at…

The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) is warning SNAP benefit recipients of a scam involving fraudulent text messages claiming that an individual’s EBT card…

Frances “Erla” Craig-Ferringer celebrates her 100th birthday today, marking a century rich in family, resilience, and cherished memories. Born on November 14, 1924, in Murrinsville,…

Katherine “Katie” Beggs and Kye Winslow were crowned Rocky Grove High School’s homecoming queen and king before the school’s dance Saturday. The theme was “A…

The Brandon Rae Band, featuring Rae Hanna, Brandon Shick and Bobby Timko, will perform at the Billy’s has Karma series from 7 to 9 p.m….

The Oil City Arts Council will host a “Meet Me for a Luau at Tiki on the Creek,” event from 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday…

PennWest Clarion commemorates Veterans Day as ROTC members, above from left, Capt. Saddner Andre, Cadet Kline, Cadet Wright-Wicks and SFC Cartagena-Vazquez hoist the American flag…

Isabella Peterson, a Franklin High School senior and soldier in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, was the featured speaker at Sandycreek Elementary’s Veterans Day assembly….

Rich Palm, a Navy veteran from Cranberry Township, recently took part in an Honor Flight from Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C., with about 150 other veterans….