the almanac D E C E M B E R 10, 2023
SOUTH HILLS COMMUNITY NEWS
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SOUTH FAYETTE BUZZING ABOUT SMARTFLOWER PAGE A3
PHOTOS: ELEANOR BAILEY/THE ALMANAC
Coming to town
Santa Claus listens to the Wish Lists of siblings Brayden and Harper Hopkins of Bethel Park during Light-Up Night.
PETERS TOWNSHIP BEATS COCALICO IN STATE SEMIFINALS PAGE B1
Santa Claus pays a visit to Bethel Park
By Eleanor Bailey Almanac Sports Editor ebailey@thealmanac.net
Harper Hopkins has gone Christmas shopping with her mother long enough to know that there are many Mall Santas, but only one legitimate jolly old elf from the North Pole. Not only does he make an around-theworld trip on a single night in Braxton O’Brien, 2, gets a boost from his grandmother, Christina Williams, as he places his letter to Santa in the mailbox placed in the Bethel Park Community Room during the municipality’s annual light-up event.
December, he also makes a special journey to Bethel Park once a year. On Dec. 6, Santa Claus made a guest appearance at the community center to help the municipality usher in the holiday season and light its Christmas tree. “He’s the real one,” Harper whispered into the ear of her SEE SANTA PAGE A2
LOCAL BUSINESSES ARE STRIVING TO ACCOMMODATE CANINES PAGE B3 What’s happening, B3 Real estate transactions, A6 Julian Wells, 3, eyes the ornaments on the Christmas tree while awaiting a visit with Santa Claus during Bethel Park Light-up Night festivities.
Classifieds, B4-6
Food critic says food system is ‘broken’ By Brad Hundt Staff writer
bhundt@observer-reporter.com
Town Hall South speaker series will end with this season
UPPER ST. CLAIR – Ruth Reichl has written about food for The New York Times and Los Angeles Times, has edited such luminaries as Walter Cronkite, AnBy Brad Hundt the magazine Gourmet, and thony Bourdain, F. Lee Bailey and David Staff writer fervently believes our food McCullough to Upper St. Clair over its long bhundt@observer-reporter.com system is broken. history. To fortify her argument, UPPER ST. CLAIR – After more than “We know many of you are disappointshe says the food we eat caus50 years, the curtain is coming down on ed,” board Chair Janette Simmons Clees health problems, with 60% the Town Hall South speaker series. ments told a Town Hall South audience of Americans suffering from Citing declining ticket sales and inTuesday before introducing food critic chronic, food-related diseases; creased marketing and speaker fees, the Ruth Reichl. “But it was contemplated by animals have grown bigger and Town Hall South board has announced the board over a long period of time.” fatter; independent farmers are the 2023-24 season will be the last for the barely scraping by, and we pay SEE SERIES PAGE A2 subscription series, which has brought less for our food than we once did. Reichl pointed out at Upper St. Clair High School Tuesday ing and thinking about food, together on the impact the that once food took up 31% of Reichl told the audience at COVID-19 pandemic was a family’s budget, now it’s just the high school that the doc- having on restaurants, but 13% – less than any other naumentary is something she decided to expand its focus. tion on the planet. has been working toward “all “Americans take food for She further explained that my life.” granted,” Reichl explained. America needs to “look be“These people all gave me yond industrial food,” and The 75 year-old was at the high hope,” she said. school as part of the Town Hall change agricultural policies In addition to her stints at that have been in place since South speaker series. the New York and Los Ange- the Cold War era when, she To support independent les newspapers and at Gour- said, the U.S. emphasized food producers and evangemet, Reichl has written one producing cheap food in lize for food outside what she food-based novel with anoth- abundance in competition characterizes as an industrial er on the way next year, sever- with the Soviet Union. She system, Reichl is at front-andal cookbooks and two mem- said this emphasis on lowcenter in a new documentary, oirs. She also co-produced the cost food has even trans“Food and Country.” It has Ruth Reichl PBS-TV series, “Gourmet’s been playing on the festival formed something as simple circuit this year and looks at faced by ranchers, farmers, Diary of a Foodie.” Reichl as wheat. America’s food production, chefs and restaurant owners. said she originally thought exploring the challenges Despite a long resume writ- about pulling a documentary SEE FOOD PAGE A2
TRISTA THURSTON/OBSERVER-REPORTER
For 68 years, NORAD has tracked Santa and his sleigh as Old St. Nick and his reindeer traverse the globe, delivering toys to boys and girls on Christmas Eve. Until takeoff Dec. 24, NORAD is offering a variety of music, games and educational resources online at www. noradsanta.org.
Let the reindeer games begin
NORAD launches Santa Tracker By Katherine Mansfield Staff writer
mansfield@observer-reporter.com
While Santa’s elves are hard at work finishing toys for the good girls and boys, Rudolph and the gang are carb-loading and Mr. Claus
is preparing for his annual flight around the world. And last week, a group of men and women whose daily work does not often make headlines launched a special holiday-related mission. SEE TRACKER PAGE A6