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block party
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Donora holding Party in the Street
The third annual event will take place Saturday on McKean Avenue.
By MICHAEL RICHTER mrichter@yourmvi.com
Jeff Helsel / Mon Valley Independent Last year’s block party drew a large crowd to Donora.
Summer is quickly coming to its conclusion, but Donora’s Party in the Street promises a final taste of the season. The Donora Smog Commemorative Committee will hold the borough’s third annual end-of-summer community celebration from 2 to 10 p.m. Saturday on McKean Avenue from Fifth to Seventh Street.
The all-ages borough event will feature food vendors, alcohol, live music, arts and crafts, a petting zoo and pony rides.
Last year, the neighborhood celebration was called the End of Summer Block Party. It drew at least 800 people, according to Smog Commemorative Committee President and Donora Mayor Don Pavelko.
“I wasn’t really happy with the turnout from the first year,” Pavelko said. “And last year, it was exemplary. We’re hoping to better that this year.”
The Smog Commemorative Committee is using social media to publicize the event. Committee Vice President April Wisyanski and DeAnne Pavelko, fellow committee member and wife of the mayor, have posted about the Party in the Street on a Donora community Facebook page. The Smog Commemorative Committee was established in 2008 to memorialize the 60th anniversary of the Donora Smog. Since its inception, the committee has put on numerous events in the borough.
Artistree, which calls itself “Pittsburgh’s most diverse dance band,” will return this year. The band performs a wide variety of genres, including rock, R&B, pop and country. Pavelko referred to Artistree as “one of the best groups out of Pittsburgh.”
“They played last year, and it was amazing,” he said. “They’re a very good band.” Pavelko noted that all residents of the Mon Valley and other out-of-towners are welcome to attend Party in the Street.
“This end-of-summer bash is another event we’re putting on for the public,” Pavelko said. “And it’s not just for Donora people, it’s for the whole Mon Valley and whoever else (wants to attend).” He hopes the summer party will bring people together within the community.
“It’s a good time to meet your neighbor, friends, people from out of town and people from town you don’t know,” Pavelko said. “And it’s very entertaining.”