November 16, 2022 - Pittsburgh City Paper

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PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM

COMMUNITY BELOVED SHOEMAKER

BY JAMIE WIGGAN // JAMIE@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

GABRIEL FONTANA has been hammering, stitching, and buffing shoes for nearly 75 years.

He was 35 and a recent Italian emi grant when he took over his brother-inlaw’s Forbes Avenue shoe repair store in the 1970s. Back then, times were good for the trade he’d honed since boyhood.

“It was a very busy time, and I was packed,” Fontana recalls. “At lunch time, people walked on the streets.”

Fontana was not the only cobbler flourishing under the pre-Internet retail environment in which he got his start in Pittsburgh. He remembers at least nine others plying their trade Downtown in those early days.

But over the years he’s seen all but one of them quietly shutter, and now, having outlasted almost every business on his block, he’s preparing to hang up his tools in December.

Although business has dropped off since the pandemic, Fontana says he’s not being pushed out by market forces and insists there’s still healthy demand for shoe repair services.

“I’m ready to retire,” Fontana says.

“I’m 81.”

Customers say they will miss the man and his services in equal measure. Since he announced his closure, some longtime clients have dropped off bou quets of flowers along with their shoes. Others have stepped inside the store streaming with tears, according to Charles Keith, a shoe shiner who works out of Fontana’s storefront.

“They like him being down here,” says Keith, who began working for Fontana when he was 15 and returned six years ago after an interval of several decades. “He’s become an institution. Everybody else left from down here. He was just about the only one left. And I think people kind of took that for granted for many years.”

Fontana says he will in turn miss his many loyal customers.

“I feel bad because everybody says, ‘There’s nobody left here - where do we go?’ Everybody talks about how they’ll miss me.”

Still, he’s ready for a slower pace and more time tending to his vegetable garden, where each summer he grows a variety of tomatoes, onions, peppers, and beans.

Gabriel Fontana, 81, works on shoes inside his shop, Gabriel’s Shoe Repair, in Downtown Pittsburgh.

"He’s become an institution. Everybody else left from down here. He was just about the only one left."

GABRIEL SHOE REPAIR

known for its olive oil, wine, and citrus fruits. He got his first taste of the shoe maker’s trade at age 6.

“I was going in the morning to school, and in the afternoon I was learning trades,” Fontana recalls. “Then, when we learned, we had a few choices like, shoe maker, tailor, carpenter.”

But the agrarian economy of southern Italy was left in ruins after World War II, so Fontana got out when he could.

ing his uncle and sister to Pittsburgh when he was 28. His brother-in-law, also in the shoe trade, set him up in Gibsonia, where he worked for several years before taking over the family’s Downtown store.

Fontana used to take on apprentices, but he says there’s no longer any interest among younger generations for learn ing a traditional craft, and as such, no natural successor to hand the reins.

“Who knows why?” he says. “It’s a skill and you can make a decent living.”

According to the Bureau of Labor statistics there are less than 5,000 cob blers now employed across the country — about 100 in every state.

Others in the leather and textile trades are feeling the same pinch.

“Gabe’s a professional in his approach to what he does,” says Joseph Orlando, owner of an independent menswear store that employs a tailor. “These guys are artists and people don’t do what they

do anymore. And so, when our tailor retires, which some of them already have, we’re struggling to find out who’s going to do that work.”

Inside Gabriel’s Shoe Repair, tools like a 1940s treadle sewing machine have been stitching leather for as long as Fontana. He says the craft has changed little during his career, but the world around him has altered profoundly.

The ascent of strip malls and foreign manufacturing, coupled with a cultural shift in favor of disposable clothing, has

CO-PRESENTED BY THE PITTSBURGH CULTURAL TRUST

"These guys are artists and people don’t do what they do anymore."

CP PHOTOS: JARED WICKERHAM

Gabriel Fontana, 81, works on shoes inside his shop, Gabriel’s Shoe Repair, in Downtown Pittsburgh.

Orlando says times have been hard for independent retailers across the board since the pandemic.

“We need people running around town supporting businesses,” he says. “Whether it’s a shoe maker, a barber like the guy next door, or a restaurant, that’s kind of disap peared. Hopefully, it’ll come back.”

Fontana’s landlord, Gerald Schiller, is on the hunt for a new tenant and hopes to find someone who can maintain a retail presence there.

“He’s an institution,” Schiller says of Fontana. “He’s been here since 1974, since my father owned the place. He’s kind of become an attraction in himself.”

Whoever next occupies the space,

Fontana says, it won’t be another cobbler. He’s done his best to seek out an inter ested successor, but to no avail.

Keith, who has learned the basics of shoe repairing under Fontana’s tute lage, said he momentarily considered taking over the store but decided against it. Anxious customers have assured him he’ll keep their business if he maintains a presence downtown as a shoe shiner.

“There’s money to be made doing it, but then I have to set up somewhere else and it’s almost like starting over,” Keith says.

Orlando has known Fontana since 1981, when his father, also an Italian emigrant, opened the family business after working through the ranks in retail sales.

Through their complementary trades, they formed a close association that’s endured through the decades. Now, with no one else to which he can confidently refer them, Orlando says his own custom ers will suffer from Fontana’s closure.

“Any time we ever had an issue with shoes, either for a customer or for our selves, there’s no doubt we would go to Gabe and every time he would take care of us,” Orlando says. “Recently, we had a guy who bought an expensive belt off of us and it was too big and we couldn’t get another size. So Gabe cut it down, and I was just thinking, once Gabe is gone, I’m gonna lose that sale because we’re not going to have anybody to fix it.” •

Follow news editor Jamie Wiggan on Twitter @JamieWiggan

CP PHOTOS: JARED WICKERHAM

Gabriel Fontana, 81, works on shoes inside his shop, Gabriel’s Shoe Repair, in Downtown Pittsburgh.

“He’s been here since 1974, since my father owned the place. He’s kind of become an attraction in himself.”

This article was originally published by PublicSource, a nonprofit newsroom serving the Pittsburgh region.

NEWS EXECUTIVE DECISION

Voters haven’t chosen a new Allegheny County executive since 2011. Next year’s wide-open contest will shine a light on four formidable issues.

BY CHARLIE WOLFSON // INFO@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

THE AIR YOU BREATHE. The way the government treats incar cerated people. How taxes are assessed. The very borders and links that bind – and divide – the county.

The next Allegheny County executive will have an array of weighty issues on

their plate when they take office just over one year from now. Next year, voters will choose a new course for county govern ment for the first time in 12 years; County Executive Rich Fitzgerald is term-limited, clearing the way for the first wide-open contest for the office since 2011.

EDITORIAL ILLUSTRATION: COURTESY OF PUBLIC

Mayors, governors and presidents have come and gone since Fitzgerald was elected that year.

Issues that weren’t part of the region’s political lexicon in 2011 are now central to many conversations about governance.

“I didn’t think as much about equity early on,” Fitzgerald said of the beginning of his tenure, “which I do now over the last five or six years.”

The region’s political climate has changed drastically since 2011, with a progressive shift emanating from Pittsburgh moving numerous elected offices to the left.

over whether that continues.”

Patrick Campbell, the executive director of the Group Against Smog and Pollution [GASP], said on top of exercis ing those formal powers, he hopes the next executive engages more with com munity groups.

“They should be hearing directly from residents about concerns related to air quality,” Campbell said.

Sara Innamorato, a state lawmaker who told PublicSource she is considering a run for county executive, said “environ mental justice” should be a top priority for the county’s next leader.

Unlike municipal governments that are responsible for local staples like paving, waste management, fire and police, county government focuses on forces that cross the region with no regard for municipal borders: Air quality, public health, criminal justice and human services are under the county’s purview. Its annual operating budget is more than $1 billion, and that figure doesn’t include all of the state and federal dollars that flow through its agencies.

PublicSource asked readers, advo cates and potential candidates what issues they think will define the cam paign in 2023.

PUSH FOR CLEAN AIR

Reader priority: “Environmental quality. Our new economy can’t grow if we again become a poisonous backwater.”

The days of big steel and “Hell with the lid off” Pittsburgh may be long gone, but Allegheny County still has some of the worst air quality in the country.

“I think the county executive race is going to be a huge opportunity to educate the candidates and the public about the county’s role in protecting the environment and protecting public health,” said Ashleigh Deemer, deputy director of PennEnvironment. Noting the county’s record of poor air quality, she said, “The county has some power

“We have an unprecedented amount of money coming from the federal gov ernment,” said Innamorato, a progressive Democrat from Lawrenceville. “It will be important to use those monies to grow the green economy and green manu facturing, and invest in job creators that could take root in our county.”

REFORMING ACJ

Reader priority: “ The next candidate should commit to changing the jail culture that has allowed inhumane conditions to exist for years.”

The Allegheny County Jail has been the subject of relentless negative attention in recent years. The next executive will inherit an understaffed jail and a warden whose removal has become a goal of advocates and the correctional officers’ union.

The executive by statute has a seat on the Jail Oversight Board. Both jail critics and the correctional officers’ union leader concurred that they want the next executive to end Fitzgerald’s practice of sending a proxy to the board’s meetings in his stead.

Tanisha Long, an organizer with the Abolitionist Law Center, said, “The first step, and this is such a low bar, is showing up. We need somebody who shows up and listens to the families. … If we start there, we can start getting somewhere.”

The days of big steel and “Hell with the lid off” Pittsburgh may be long gone, but Allegheny County still has some of the worst air quality in the country.

CP PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM Sara Innamorato

Explore cannabis as a support for what ails you.

Become

Erin McClelland, a county human ser vices contractor who is the only person so far to formally announce a campaign for executive, said she would “be at every jail board meeting, having conversations,” and she would strive for an environment where incarcerated people would suffer “zero harm.”

“We will build a culture where hurting our constituents is not appropriate. It will not be part of who we are anymore,” McClelland said.

Brian Englert, the leader of the correc tional officers’ union said a top concern for future leaders should be bolstering the number of correctional officers, which has been in decline in recent years and has resulted in Englert’s union members working forced overtime frequently.

“People can’t keep working 80 hours per week,” Englert said.

‘CONFLICT OF INTEREST’ WITH PROPERTY TAXES

Reader priority: “Address changes to the property tax assessment system.”

The county is the defendant in a lawsuit alleging that it systematically over charged property taxpayers whose assessments were appealed, which may well lead to government revenues being slashed and mass refunds coming due from school districts and municipalities.

The next executive will have to address what appears now to be a broken system.

“Blow it up,” suggested Michael Suley, a real estate consultant who led the coun ty’s Office of Property Assessments from 2006 through 2012. (Suley is working with the plaintiff’s lawyers in the suit against the county.)

CP PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM Tanisha Long

"We need somebody who shows up and listens to the families. … If we start there, we can start getting somewhere.”

Suley said the assessment office, whose determinations affect county revenues, must be insulated from the executive branch, whose budget stands to benefit from assessments rising.

“If the county is a taxing body and an assessor, there’s a conflict of interest there,” Suley said.

ONE EXECUTIVE, 130 MUNICIPALITIES

Reader concern: “Merge city and county governments. We don’t need both.”

In 2008, then-County Executive Dan Onorato and Mayor Luke Ravenstahl agreed to push for city-county merger. It went nowhere and since then, proposals to address the region’s famous fragmen tation have been much less ambitious.

Pittsburgh Controller Michael Lamb, who told PublicSource he is considering running to succeed Fitzgerald, said the next county executive will need to be a facilitator between municipalities, many

of which struggle to provide services to shrinking populations.

“We are going to over the next 10 years have serious discussions about how we provide various services to our citizens,” he said. He pointed to the patchwork of hundreds of emergency service providers in the county. “These are things that any reasonable person looks at and realizes, something’s got to be done.”

The county government has no formal power to merge municipalities or their services. Observers agreed that the post is an intermediary between gov ernments, a unique facilitator between municipal governments and a conduit from local leaders to Harrisburg and Washington, D.C.

“The authority of the office is the ability to bring everybody to the table,” Fitzgerald said.

Parties will nominate candidates for the office in primary elections to be held on May 19, 2023.

•

Charlie Wolfson is PublicSource’s local government reporter and a Report for America corps member. He can be reached at charlie@publicsource.org or on Twitter @chwolfson.

CP PHOTO: JARED WICKERHAM Rich Fitzgerald

WELCOME TO PITTSBURGH, SIS

BY TERENEH IDIA // CPCONTRIBUTORS@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

“I

KNOW SOMEONE who is think ing about moving to Pittsburgh, so I want her to meet other Black women,” a friend of mine recently tells me. She pauses before adding, “But maybe not you, Tereneh.”

We both laugh — that was funny. Then I waited for the email or phone

introduction. And waited.

I guess my friend wanted her friend to meet other friends, maybe not this friend specifically. Ouch?

So for my final column for the City Paper, I decided to answer the question: What would I tell a Black woman about Pittsburgh?

Editor’s note: This marks the last column from contributor Tereneh Idia, who has been an invaluable voice at the Pittsburgh City Paper over the past few years. We here at the paper wish her all the best in her future endeavors and thank her for all of her hard work and insight.

First and foremost, I would say Pittsburgh is gorgeous. The valleys, trees, rivers, and hills: beautiful. And like any beautiful city, it looks a little different every day. Mt. Washington gets most of the shine, but the views from the various North Side neighborhoods and loca tions, including Troy Hill, Federal Street, Fineview, and Perry Hilltop, and the way Downtown Pittsburgh commands your eye despite the humbling effect of the surrounding hills, lets you know nothing human-built can compete with Mother Nature’s perfection.

The current mayor, Ed Gainey, is the first Black mayor of the city. As I write this, the first Black women congressperson from Pennsylvania, Summer Lee, was just elected. And a sista from Philadelphia, the honorable Joanna McClinton, will be the first African-American woman Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the second Black person to hold the position. (the first African-American speaker was Pittsburgh’s own K. LeRoy Irvis).

There are amazing Black women and femmes here. They wave a Terrible Towel in support of the Steelers, rock fly-ass church hats, cook amazing dumplings, write poems, teach yoga, present art, dance, invent, create, and do a myriad of wonderful things for family, friends, community, and neighbors. But, more often than not, they won’t be presented as “representative of the region.”

Because the shorthand for Pittsburgh is whiteness: shirtless white men in freezing temperatures at the football stadium. Babushka ladies are mentioned 10,000 times before acknowledging the Black church hat ladies. And, in terms of iconic food, it’s pierogis over dumplings, samosas, and any other stuffed yum miness, though they all have an equally important cultural connection and legacy to Pittsburgh.

Misogynoir is not unique to Pittsburgh, but Pittsburgh does it so very well. It’s like the rusty patina on the old U.S. Steel building depending on where

partly because of the misogynoir spoken and trapped in the valleys. Fresh air, fresh ideas, and new ways of creating commu nity are needed.

All too often the conversations you have with folks who are not Black will be less about what you have to say and more about assuring that person they are not racist. (This may be immediately after you were confused for another Black woman.) There seems to be a dis connect between all the reports point ing out racism and the actual belief that people experience racism every day. I generally regret any conversations I have along these lines and avoid them now as much as possible.

I do not know where the Black Pittsburgh experience begins, but one interesting chapter is one starring Francois. He was an enslaved African man in the 1700s who escaped the French at what was then Fort Duquesne, now Fort Pitt. He tipped off the Virginia troops, in service to the British, that the

LYNN CULLEN LIVE

You probably have already searched “Black women Pittsburgh” on the inter net. I highly recommend you read those articles, especially those written by for mer-Pittsburgher Brentin Mock. Actually, everyone living here, and anyone think ing of moving here, should read those articles too. Most do not, thinking, “I am not a Black woman. It doesn’t apply to me.”

But of course, it does. Every justice and injustice creates ripples and reflec tions in the water it is a mirror to the soul of the city. The reflection looking back from the Ohio, Monongahela, and Allegheny rivers are Black women and femmes working towards justice.

There’s no “Black neighborhood,” but there are several places throughout the region where Black folks live and gather. There are restaurants and food trucks to take you on global culinary journeys (though the spice level is generally a bit lower than other places I have been), and you can go from Lagos to Laos, from Kingston to Kenya via a plate of food.

you look you can see the corrosion, while others only see the midnight steel gray. Pittsburgh continually ranks as one of, if not the worst, places to live in America as a Black woman. This includes fundamen tal issues like quality of life, and studies have found that Black folks in Pittsburgh do not live as long as those in other cities. Which, given that we live in America, is really saying something.

In saying this, I must say again how amazing the Black women and femmes are here how they are the core of joy I find in this city.

Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood was filmed here and people often confuse the “Land of Make-Believe” with Pittsburgh. So, you’ll have the surreal experience of being treated like crap at an event or restaurant, or at someone’s home as you walk by their “No Place For Hate” or “No Hate in Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” sign.

A handshake here contains both praise for and doubt of your ability. I sometimes think the poor air quality is

French would soon abandon the fort, and it would be advantageous to the British to make a move, which they did. And so, here we all are, but you won’t find any statue for Francois.

Yes, we are here at this confluence of water, time, and place. We are here in Diondega, the Seneca Eastern Door of the Haudenosaunee. We are here where the Lanepe, Delaware, and Monongahela peoples, and mound builders, called home for thousands of years. I do not know who the first Black person was in Pittsburgh, but if you are the most recent Black woman to come to Pittsburgh, I hope you love, laugh, and enjoy it as much as you can, and help others to do the same.

Welcome to Pittsburgh, sis.

I wanted to thank the team at the City Paper, all of my former editors, and a big shout out to Alex Gordon, RIP. Thank you to everyone in Pittsburgh who read even one word of what I have written over the past four years.

•

“The reflection looking back from the Ohio, Monongahela, and Allegheny rivers are Black women and femmes working towards justice.”

ART MOTHERS AND SONS

BY KAHMEELA ADAMS-FRIEDSON INFO@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

HEARING GEORGE FLOYD, a Black Minnesota man who, in 2020, was killed while in police custody, call out for his “Mama” during his last moments struck a nerve for Emmai Alaquiva. The Emmy Award-winning film director, photog rapher, and composer says that feeling “would not dissolve” until he “moved in a direction of creating something that meant something.”

OPTICVOICES:

MAMA’S BOYS

Continues through Jan. 29, 2023.

August Wilson African American Cultural Center. 980 Liberty Ave., Downtown. Free. awaacc.org

The “something” is OPTICVOICES: Mama’s Boys , an interactive, multime dia exhibit that addresses the trauma of mothers who have lost their sons to systemic violence, and aims to highlight their legacies and cement them in history. Now on view at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center through Jan.

29, 2023, the exhibition includes 10 por traits of mothers who have lost their sons to such violence, including Gwen Carr, Mama of Eric Garner, and Valerie Castile, Mama of Philando Castile. There is also a special tribute to the late Mamie TillMobley, Mama of Emmett Till.

The show was made possible through AWAACC’s B.U.I.L.D. Residency program designed for Pittsburgh-based emerging artists of color, and to create a “platform for diverse artists and organizations that have historically received unequal access to funding and resources for the develop ment of new work.”

Alaquiva says he started working on the show in the summer of 2020, which

“proved to be a season of emotional and political turmoil around the world.”

For a parent, losing a child is the biggest heartbreak one could imagine. To lose a child to senseless, racially motivated violence is possibly worse. There have been countless tragedies of this nature for decades. What happens to the families once the news cycle is over? What is life like for the mothers left behind?

“ OPTICVOICES: Mama’s Boys is a platform through which the stories of mothers, families, and communities who have suffered at the hands of sys temic violence can be told,” says AWAACC president and CEO Janis Burley Wilson in a press release.

Among the mothers is Michelle Kenney, Mama of Antwon Rose II, whose death hits devastatingly close to Pittsburgh. The 17-year-old was fatally shot in East Pittsburgh on June 19, 2018, and led to protests throughout the city. The local connection continues with Mama Latonya Green and her son Leon Ford, a Pittsburgh resident who was para lyzed after being shot multiple times by a police officer.

When you open the door to the exhibit, you see double yellow lines on the floor running to the back wall. These lines put you right in the place where both the horrors as well as the outcries took place — the streets. Along the walls are

Photos displayed at OPTICVOICES: Mama’s Boys

(BELOW) PHOTO: EMMAI ALAQUIVA Emmai Alaquiva consults with Sybrina Fulton during a photoshoot for OPTICVOICES: Mama’s Boys

captivating photographs of the pro tests from the past two years that surround the deaths of the young men. Seeing people with bullhorns, holding signs that call for change, and taking a knee will put you right back into that moment in time. One rather striking photo is of a young Black boy, maybe 5 years old, holding a sign that reads “I Am A Human Being.”

describe their journey of healing in their own words.

Alaquiva says his “truthful intention” with OPTICVOICES: Mama’s Boys is to “hug the very core of a mother’s heart through the cathartic vessel of art.”

Quotes from the Mamas, displayed on a wall, are particularly thoughtprovoking. One Mama points out that

“It’s important to note that the purpose of this exhibit is to understand the relationship between these mothers and their sons,” Alaquiva says. “I want this exhibit to focus on healing and love, and not romanticize the sons’ killings.”

The personal belongings of the young men are displayed with care. A favorite basketball jersey, a video game control ler, a high school diploma — all to remind you of the lives they lived and the dreams they held. As an added bonus to the experience, visitors can discover aug mented reality by holding their phone cameras up to select pieces to reveal additional imagery.

The exhibition and an accompanying short film ask “What does healing look like?” The film allows these women to

part of her healing process was “to uplift the community so that they can under stand what unity is.” In the portraits of the Mamas, despite the heavy grief they each carry, Alaquiva captured a light that shines from each of them. It’s apparent in the portrait of Lezley McSpadden, as she proudly holds an artist’s rendering of her son Mike Brown.

Also featured is Wanda CooperJones, Mama of Ahmaud Arbery; Sybrina Fulton, Mama of Trayvon Martin; Allison Jean, Mama of Botham Jean; Rev. Wanda Johnson, Mama of Oscar Grant; and Samaria Rice, Mama of Tamir Rice.

In their respective journeys for healing, these mothers have picked up tools along the way. One could imagine that strength is one of those tools. •

PHOTO: EMMAI ALAQUIVA

Emmai Alaquiva looks at photos for OPTICVOICES: Mama’s Boys

“I want this exhibit to focus on healing and love, and not romanticize the sons’ killings.”

BY LYNN CULLEN

BY AMANDA WALTZ // AWALTZ@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

THE HOLIDAYS ARE HERE AGAIN, with them, the pressure of putting together the perfect family meals. Rather than fight the crowds at local markets or rush between dressing the turkey and prepping sides, relax with these preor der options sure to satisfy a wide range of tastes and dietary needs.

NOV.,

BY OWEN GABBEY // OGABBEY

BY JORDANA ROSENFELD JORDANA@PGHCITYPAPER.COM

DIRECTOR

EDWARD BERGER'S adap tation of Erich Maria Remarque's 1929 book, which was also made into a 1930 film, is an exercise in the miserable. A World War I story told from the per spective of the Imperial German Army, the film gives sympathy to those just fol lowing orders, bludgeons us with the hell of war, and … that’s about it.

PHOTO: REINER BAJO

All Quiet on the Western Front

SEVEN DAYS IN PITTSBURGH

TUE., NOV. 22

THU., NOV. 17

THEATER • IRL • MIDLAND

Sure, Rudolph is for the children, but Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center will ensure in its latest production that the beloved reindeer is also performed by the children. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Jr. adapts the classic 1964 Rankin/Bass holiday special for the stage, bringing to life the adventures of Rudoph and his friends Hermey the Elf, Yukon Cornelius, and the denizens of the Island of Misfit Toys. See it all performed by young actors from grades 7-9, under the direction of Rosh Raines and choreographer Krista Shovlin. 7:30 p.m. Continues through Dec. 18-25. 1 Lincoln Park, Midland. $22-27. lincolnparkarts.org

FRI., NOV. 18

ART • IRL • DOWNTOWN

SPACE Gallery’s newest exhibition, #notwhite collective 2016-2022, looks at the past six years through the lens of 13 women artists. Comprised of immigrants and descendants of immigrants, #notwhite collective’s website describes itself as a non-hierarchal group with the mission to “Excavate Histories, Expose Realities, and

Exorcise Oppression.” The exhibition will feature multimedia work that explores immigrant perspectives and self-identity from people such as founding member Madame Dolores, Amber Epps, and Veronica Corpuz. Continues through Jan. 2023. 812 Liberty Ave., Downtown. Free. trustarts.org

EVENT • IRL • DOWNTOWN

The Pittsburgh Pet Expo is back at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, and will feature a long list of activities. Check out the grooming competitions, trick dog shows, reptile exhibits, adoption opportunities, and much more. The event will also have the latest pet products and services showcased by hundreds of exhibitors. Attendees are encouraged to bring their pets. 5-9 p.m. Continues through Sun., Nov. 20. 1000 Fort Duquesne Blvd., Downtown. $6-12. pghpetexpo.com

MARKET

• IRL • LAWRENCEVILLE

Start your holiday shopping early at Contemporary Craft. The gallery’s CRAFTED Holiday Shopping Event promises new and holiday merchandise, including an exclusive selection of mugs and drinkware from 30 national artists. The 2022 CRAFTED will also serve as the launch for an exclusive line of Penn/Fairmount drinkware created by the

artists at Pittsburgh Glass Center, and available only at Contemporary Craft. Shoppers can also enjoy light snacks and refreshments, including a signature cocktail and mocktail. 5:30-8 p.m. 5645 Butler St., Lawrenceville. $15. contemporarycraft.org

SAT., NOV. 19

DRAG • IRL • NORTH SIDE

Gather around an old Pittsburgh tradition when Voodoo Brewing Co. presents Drag in the Light. Presented in conjunction with Pittsburgh’s annual Light Up Night, the event will feature a dance party with DJ Nick@Nite, a drag pop-up performance, and a view of the big Downtown fireworks display from the patio. Be prepared for fabulous entertainment from drag queens Vivian Spice, Aurora, Glitter Devil, and Sienna. Food and beverages will be available for purchase all night. 5 p.m. 337 North Shore Drive, North Side. Free. facebook.com/voodoopittsburgh

LIT • IRL • BLOOMFIELD

White Whale Bookstore will host author Sara R. Burnett during a launch for her new poetry collection, Seed Celestial. Burnett will read alongside Pittsburgh writers Daniel M.

Shapiro, author of (This is Not A) Mixtape for the End of the World, and Jan Beatty, author of the 2021 memoir American Bastard Burnett, who also wrote Mother Tongue in 2019, frequently examines mother-daughter relationships and Cuban immigrant perspectives in her work. In Seed Celestial, Burnett widens the lens to explore Greek mythological mothers like Demeter, showing that to “fear and love where we are from and where we are going are enduring human traits.” 7-8 p.m. 4754 Liberty Ave., Bloomfield. Free. Registration required. whitewhalebookstore.com/events

SUN., NOV. 20

MUSIC • IRL • EAST LIBERTY

Anyone who had music class in elementary school most likely had a try at the recorder, that plastic, flute-like instrument that, in a child’s hands, sounded more annoying than pleasurable. Chatham Baroque has set out to prove that, in the hands of a master musician, the recorder can sound lovely. The Virtuoso Recorder promises a program of “sparkling concertos and sonatas from the Italian Baroque,” and includes work by Sammartini, Scarlatti and Vivaldi. It’s all

PHOTO: MATTHEW MURPHY AND EVEN ZIMMERMAN FOR MURPHYMADE ^ Les Misérable at the Byham Theater

led by guest artist and recorder player Judith Linsenberg. See it in the Hicks Memorial Chapel at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. 2:30 p.m. 616 North Highland Ave., East Liberty. $20-40. chathambaroque.org

MON., NOV. 21

DRAG • IRL • LAWRENCEVILLE

Get lucky in Lawrenceville when New Amsterdam presents another round of Drag Bingo. Hosted by local drag queens Luna Skye and Indi Skies, the event will also feature special guest Calipso. Seating starts at 6 p.m., so you’ve got time to load up on New Amsterdam’s menu of finger foods and sample a selection of 20 drafts. Buy tickets online or at the door, Either way, you’re guaranteed four games of bingo. 6 p.m. 4421 Butler St., Lawrenceville. $20. facebook.com/ssproductionspgh

TUE., NOV. 22

LIT • VIRTUAL

City of Asylum welcomes two-time Pulitzer Prize-nominated author Russell Banks to discuss his new book The Magic Kingdom.

The expansive story follows the recounted life story of Harley Mann across more than 50 years. Set in Florida’s muggy, pre-Disney World swamps, Mann’s family joins a community of Shakers, a religious sect led by the mysterious Elder John. What follows is a strange journey described by publisher Penguin Random House as “meditating on youth, Florida’s everchanging landscape, and the search for an American utopia.” Check out the book that Margaret Atwood called “eerily timely.” 7-8:30 p.m. Free. Registration required. cityofasylum.org/events

THEATER • IRL • DOWNTOWN

The Benedum Center presents one of the world’s most popular musicals, Les Misérables.

From producer Cameron Mackintosh, the Tony Award-winning musical transports audiences to 19th-century France to focus on unrequited love, broken dreams, passion, sacrifice, redemption, and freedom. Presented as part of PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh, the show will feature hit songs like “I Dreamed a Dream,” “One Day More,” and “Master of the House,” as well as incredible, periodspecific costuming and sets. 7:30 p.m. Continues through Sun., Nov. 27. 237 Seventh St., Downtown. $35-155. trustarts.org

MUSIC • IRL • DOWNTOWN

The international performance group Soweto Gospel Choir will grace Pittsburgh with its uplifting sound at the Byham Theater. Since 2002, the choir has traveled to countries throughout the world in an effort to highlight the power of African gospel music. It has since won multiple awards, including three Grammys, and performed for a long list of celebrities and global leaders, including as invited guests for the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former South African president and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela. 7:30 p.m. 101 Sixth St., Downtown. $30-40. trustarts.org

WED., NOV. 23

ART • IRL • LAWRENCEVILLE

The Christine Frechard Gallery presents A COLLABORATION, an art show featuring work by Mark Muse and Annette Gloomis. The two artists met several years ago and discovered that they have similar aesthetics. Even though Gloomis is primarily a painter and Muse a photographer, both love local landscapes and are concerned with climate change. They decided to collaborate on this exhibit, which heavily features wild areas in West Virginia. Continues through Dec. 10. 5126 Butler St., Lawrenceville. Free. christinefrechardgallery.com

PHOTO:COURTESY OF CONTEMPORARY CRAFT

^ CRAFTED Holiday Shopping Event at Contemporary Craft

NAME CHANGE

IN The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: No. GD-22-10409, In re petition of Crystal Santana parent and legal guardian of Xzavier Cartagena for change of name to Xzavier Santana. To all persons interested: Notice is hereby given that an order of said Court au thorized the filing of said petition and fixed the 15th day of December 2022, at 9:30 a.m., as the time and the Mo tions Room, City-County Building, Pittsburgh, PA, as the place for a hearing, when and where all persons may show cause, if any they have, why said name should not be changed as prayed for.

NAME CHANGE

IN The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: No. GD-22-13512, In re petition of Gabrielle Marie VerHill parent and legal guardian of Josiah Patrick Martin for change of name to Josiah Patrick VerHill. To all persons interested: Notice is hereby given that an order of said Court au thorized the filing of said petition and fixed the 14th day of December 2022, at 9:30 a.m., as the time and the Mo tions Room, City-County Building, Pittsburgh, PA, as the place for a hear ing, when and where all persons may show cause, if any they have, why said name should not be changed as prayed for.

NAME CHANGE

IN The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: No. GD-22-008817

In re petition of Bahkya Thang for change of name to Roding Lian. To all persons interested: Notice is hereby given that an order of said Court authorized the filing of said petition and fixed the 16th day of December, 2022, at 9:30 a.m., as the time and the Motions Room, City-County Building, Pittsburgh, PA, as the place for a hearing, when and where all per sons may show cause, if any they have, why said name should not be changed as prayed for. P. William Bercik, Esquire, Attorney for petitioner. Address: 210 Grant Street, Suite 200, Pittsburgh, PA 15219 Phone: (412)471-2587

SERVICES

AT&T TV - The Best of Live & On-Demand On All Your Favorite Screens. CHOICE Package, $84.99/mo for 12months. Stream on 20 de vices at once in your home. HBO Max FREE for 1 yr (w/ CHOICE Package or higher.) Call for more details today! (some restrictions apply) Call IVS 1-877-350-1003

NAME CHANGE

IN The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: No. GD-22-6439,

In re petition of Marina Anthony parents and legal guardian of Yelyzaveta Antonenko and Alyssa Rose Antonenko for change of name to Elizabeth Anthony and Alyssa Rose Anthony. To all persons interested: Notice is hereby given that an order of said Court authorized the filing of said petition and fixed the 12th day of Decem ber 2022, at 9:30 a.m., as the time and the Motions Room, City-County Building, Pittsburgh, PA, as the place for a hearing, when and where all per sons may show cause, if any they have, why said name should not be changed as prayed for.

MISCELLANEOUS

Guaranteed Life Insurance! (Ages 50 to 80). No medical exam. Affordable premiums never increase. Benefits never decrease. Policy will only be cancelled for non-payment. HOURS: M-F 9a-10p & Sat 11a-2p EST 1-888-386-0113 (Void NY) (AAN CAN)

NAME CHANGE

IN The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania: No. GD-22-12673, In re petition of Kevin Rao parent and legal guardian of Cassius Stephen Carrozza for change of name to Cassius Stephen Rao. To all persons interested: Notice is hereby given that an order of said Court authorized the filing of said petition and fixed the 22nd day of November 2022, at 9:30 a.m., as the time and the Motions Room, City-County Building, Pittsburgh, PA, as the place for a hearing, when and where all per sons may show cause, if any they have, why said name should not be changed as prayed for

PERSONALS

LOOKING FOR GOOD WOMAN TO MARRY

BETWEEN AGE OF 30 T0 85. I am over 50 yr old, seeking nice lady bet 30 to 85 with view to mar riage. Only sincere persons, pls email bio w/ recent photo: peterhappinesx box1@gmail.com

PUBLIC AUCTION

Extra Space Storage will hold a public auction to sell the con tents of leased spaces to satisfy Extra Space’s lien at 110 Kisow Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15205 on December 6th, 2022 at 11:15 am. Robert Calderon 351, Barry Borden 423. The auction will be listed and advertised on www.storagetreasures.com. Purchases must be made with cash only and paid at the above referenced facility in order to complete the transaction.

Extra Space Storage may refuse any bid and may rescind any purchase up until the winning bidder takes possession of the personal property.

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that Articles of Incorpo ration were filed with the Department of State of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on the 18th day of March 2022 with respect to a proposed nonprofit cor poration, Pennsylvania Healthcare Benefit Solu tions Program which has been incorporated under the Nonprofit Corporation Law 1988.

A brief Summary of the purpose or purposes for which said corporation is organized is: PHBSP’s mission is to provide counseling, education, and advocacy services for Pennsylvania resi dents to enable them to access high-quality, affordable healthcare.

MUSIC FESTIVAL OR WORLD CUP?

ACROSS

1. RPM part 4. “That’s the best you can do?” 7. With 59-Across, “Is this where all the bands are going to play?” (“No it’s the first part of the World Cup”) 12. They have it 14. “Yo, Nero” 15. The Terminator protagonist Kyle 16. Divided, like a pie chart 18. Running currently 19. “Is this first day’s lineup?” (“No, it’s the A-Team in the World Cup”)

Four-time World Cup-winning nat. 22. Broadcasting legend Howard 23. Ghost’s Wu-Tang co-hort 24. Snakes in the Nile

“What do we have here?”

Fuse, as metals 28. ___ Artois (Belgian beer) 31. Colorful deep-water fish 33. “Is this when the festival ends?” (“No, it’s a little extra period in the World Cup”)

No longer carrying 35. Pasta topping named after an Italian city 36. He’s a bad guy (duh) 39. Actor who played Sid Weinberg in Cobra Kai 40. The Autobiography of Alice B. ___ (Gertrude Stein work) 41. Country singer Tubb 42. Beethoven’s 3rd 44. Like an overly affectionate grandma

FOR RENT

FOR RENT

FOR RENT

ARLINGTON

Rent: $1025 - $1945 Bedrooms: 0 - 3 515 South Aiken Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15232 412.682.7000 mozartrents.com

Features:

• Studios to 3 bedroom apartments

• No Security Deposit

• Pet friendly

• All utilities included in rent

• Off-street parking in lot (subject to availability)

• PITT, CMU, UPMC Area

• On-site laundry

• Two passenger elevators and one freight elevator

• Intercom entrance

• Air conditioning

• Hardwood floors

• Fully equipped kitchens

MORROWFIELD

Rent: $880 - $1470

Bedrooms: 0 - 2 2715 Murray Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217 412.682.7000 mozartrents.com

Features:

• Studios, 1 and 2 bedroom apartments

• No Security Deposit

• Pet friendly (furnished apart ments are NOT pet friendly)

• Heat (in most cases), water, cooking gas, hot water, sewage and trash included in rent

• Off-street parking in ga rage (subject to availability)

• PITT-CMU-UPMC Area

• On-site laundry

• Two passenger elevators

• Intercom entrance

• Air conditioning

• Hardwood floors or carpet

• Fully equipped kitchens

GEORGIAN

Rent: $1095 - $1365 Bedrooms: 0 - 1 5437 Ellsworth Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15232 412.682.7000 mozartrents.com

Features: • Accepts Electronic Payments • Nonsmoking Building • PITT-CMU-UPMC Area • Package Room • Intercom Entrance • On-Site Laundry Facility

FOR RENT WENDOVER

Rent: $885 - $1650

Bedrooms: 0 - 2 5562 Hobart St Pittsburgh, PA 15217 412.682.7000 mozartrents.com

Features:

• Studios to 2 bedroom apartments

• Nonsmoking building

• PITT-CMU-UPMC Area

• Two elevators • Intercom • On-site laundry • Off-street parking for a monthly fee (subject to availability) • Air conditioning

Hardwood floors • Fully equipped kitchens • Cat and Dog friendly

PUBLIC AUCTION

com/?network=1 Public notice is hereby given that property placed in storage by the following persons at the following locations will be sold via public sale to satisfy Guardian Storage liens for

rent and other charges. Bidding for property of persons renting space at the following locations will be held online at www.selfstorageauction.com ending on November 22, 2022 at 10:00 am, and day to day thereafter until sold at which time a high bidder will be determined. 7452 McKnight Rd, Pittsburgh, PA 15237: Unit #510 Carolyn Jones 750 South Millvale Avenue, Pittsburgh PA 15213: Unit #5210 Sherri Adair 1002 E. Waterfront Dr. Munhall, PA 15120: Unit #2118 Ahmed Anthony, Unit #3606 Shirley Morrison, Unit #3745 Courtland Kenley Unit #3929 Cameron Thompson 1599 Washington Pike, Bridgeville, PA 15017: Unit #3215 Robert Cowburn, Unit #53404 Leslie Marcello, Unit #6113 Samantha Moran, Unit #52308 Jerry Pratt, Unit #52705 Shawn Bridges

1300 Lebanon Church Rd, Pittsburgh, PA 15236: Unit #41201 Brandon Robinson, Unit #42418 Brandon Robinson, Unit #41324 Miriam Maletta

2839 Liberty Ave Pittsburgh, PA 15222: Unit #3003 Marcel Walker, Unit #1025 Corey Christian, Unit #1033 Corey Christian, Unit #5203 Larry Bittner, Unit #5504 Donna Zacharias, Unit #6601 Christopher Malloy, Unit #5124 Billie Vaughn, Unit #4605 Ayonna Lyman, Unit #1043William Burns, Unit #6404 James Weaver, Unit #3205 Taemon Posey, Unit #5201 Herman Price, Unit #6603 Larue Davis, Unit #2906 Phylicia Cook, Unit #4219 James Wilson

14200 Route 30, North Huntingdon, PA 15642: Unit #3421 Deborah Gibson

4711 William Penn Highway, Monroeville, PA 15146: Unit # 12111 Kathleen Mulligan, Unit #22104 Martin Mark, Unit #12707 Sally Frick, Unit #23507 Michele Hunter, Unit #22311 Taylor Talarico 401 Coraopolis Rd, Coraopolis PA 15108: Unit #12833 Brittany Hartwell, Unit #13308 Gabriel Moran Almendares, Unit #13007 Joy Marble 1028 Ridge Road, Tarentum, Pa 15084: Unit #32301 Mariah Jones

901 Brinton Road, Pittsburgh, Pa 15221: Unit #9310 Denise Woodson, Unit #3124 Roger Ervin, Unit #7305 Amanda Saunders, Unit #8410 Marcus Moyer, Unit #8205 Carl Harrison

1067 Milford Drive, Bethel Park, PA 15102: Unit #21823 Claire Mays, Unit #21713 Claire Mays

Purchases must be made with cash and paid at the location at the above referenced facility to complete the transaction. Guardian Stor age has the right to refuse any bid and may rescind any purchase up until the winning bidder takes possession of the personal property.