Staff & Contributors

John Allison reviews books for Pittsburgh Quarterly.

For 16 years — 10 of which as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer — Chris led Tollgrade Communications Inc. from technology startup to public company to being recognized as one of the Best Small Companies In America by Forbes, Fortune, Business 2.0, Bloomberg Personal Finance and Industry Week. In the year 2000, sales of Tollgrade’s centralized telephone test systems reached $114 million. That year, its value on the NASDAQ exchange also reached $2 billion. For his efforts, Chris was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst and Young, as well as by the Pittsburgh Venture Capital Association. Chris was also named CEO Communicator of The Year by the Public Relations Society of America. Chris has been a columnist for Pittsburgh Quarterly since the magazine’s inception in 2006. His column, “To Boldly Go” deals with the subject of innovation. For his writing, he is a two-​time nominee and one-​time winner of the Golden Quill Award by the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania.

John is a photographer and writer who lives in West View.

David is a self-taught photographer making fine art and freelance photography for the past 25 years. He has been the recipient of grants from the NEA and the Polaroid Corporation. He makes photographs for corporations, healthcare and editorial clients around the world.

Valerie Bacharach is a proud member of Carlow University’s Madwomen in the Attic writing workshops. Her book, Last Glimpse was published by Broadstone Books in August 2024. Her chapbook After/Life will be published by Finishing Line Press. Her poem Birthday Portrait, Son, published by the Ilanot Review, was selected for inclusion in 2023 Best Small Fictions. She has been nominated for three Pushcart Prizes and one Best of the Net.

Jonathan Barnes is a Pittsburgh-based journalist and freelance architecture, engineering and construction writer.

Tess Barry (MA in English, University of Pittsburgh; and MFA in Creative Writing/​Poetry, Carlow University) was shortlisted for the 2015 Manchester Poetry Prize (England/​UK). Twice a finalist for North American Review’s James Hearst Poetry Prize and Aesthetica Magazine’s (England/​UK) Poetry Award, she was also shortlisted for the 2014 Bridport Poetry Prize (England/​UK). Her poems most recently appeared or are forthcoming in Mudfish Vol. 19, Cordite Poetry Review (Australia), The Woven Tale Press Literary and Arts Magazine (UK) and online at the Manchester Writing School’s website. Her most recent prose is available online at North American Review’s blog, where she has been a featured blogger. Barry is a Fellow of the Western Pennsylvania Writing Project and longtime member of Carlow University’s Madwomen in the Attic writing workshops. She teaches English, literature, and creative writing at Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

John Beale is an Associate Teaching Professor Emeritus in the Bellisario College of Communications at Penn State. His photography has been published extensively by major newspapers, magazines, and websites. His work has been recognized with numerous regional and national awards.

Jan Beatty’s new book, Jackknife: New and Selected Poems, will be published by the University of Pittsburgh Press in Spring, 2017. Books include The Switching/​Yard, Red Sugar, Boneshaker, and Mad River, winner of the 1994 Agnes Lynch Starrett Prize, all published by the University of Pittsburgh Press.

Kate Benz has been a professional writer for the past fifteen years with bylines appearing in The Tribune-Review, Pittsburgh Magazine, Table Magazine, Pittsburgh Quarterly, and LOCAL Pittsburgh Magazine. She is also the author of an "Images of America" book on the history of Cranberry Township. When she is not writing, you can find her thoroughly enjoying a co-dependent relationship with her dog or taking long, romantic walks down the makeup aisle.

John lives and works as a freelance illustrator in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His images grace the covers of books published by The Penguin Group, Tor, Harcourt Publishing and Llewellyn Worldwide and a myriad of other publications and periodicals. His work also appears in the fantasy art showcases Spectrum, Fantasy Art Now, Aphrodisia and Erotic Fantasy Art, Now.

Katie Booth's work has appeared in Indiana Review, Mid-American Review, The Fourth River and Vela, and has earned fellowships and residencies from the Edward Albee Foundation, the Blue Mountain Center and the Massachusetts Historical Society. She holds an MFA in nonfiction writing from the University of Pittsburgh and a BA from Hampshire College. She currently teaches writing and journalism at the University of Pittsburgh and is the "Bookmarked" column editor for Vela.

Chris graduated from the University of Buffalo with a degree in media studies. While photography has been a lifelong pursuit, Chris has also been active in commercial audio recording, music production and film soundtrack composition. Chris lives in Seattle, Wash., with his wife and daughter.

Diana Bucco is vice president of the Buhl Foundation.

Thomas is a freelance writer and communications consultant living in Ben Avon. Born in Bangkok, Thailand, Tom has lived in Boston and Seattle but finds that his roots have grown deep in Pittsburgh. He came to town in 1987 to join the news staff of The Pittsburgh Press, where he worked until it closed in 1992.

Kelly loves telling people's stories. She began her journalism career at the Pitt News, University of Pittsburgh's student newspaper. For several years, she was a general assignment and Sunday feature writer for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. After moving to Virginia, she joined the University of Virginia Medical Center marketing department. For the past several years, she has focused on health writing, including serving as regional editor for the nationally syndicated quarterly magazine, Vim & Vigor. She was lulled back to Western Pennsylvania in 2006 but continues to work for UVA from afar and is excited to be once again reporting on the Pittsburgh region. Kelly lives in Oakmont with her husband and two sons.

Pittsburgh-​based artist and formally-​trained illustrator Ashley Cecil started her career painting traditional portraiture for private clients and creating illustrations for corporations and nonprofit organizations — from Jack Daniels to Oxfam America. While earning her master’s in art business at the Sotheby’s Institute of Art London, Ashley was heavily influenced by the textile arts of William Morris and the vast collections of the Victoria & Albert Museum. Her recent paintings are a marriage of two-​dimensional pattern and three-​dimensional form. Ashley is the current VP of Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators.

Vicky A Clark is an independent curator and writer, involved in contemporary art and issues since the early 1980s in Pittsburgh. Clark worked at the Carnegie Museum of Art from 1981–1996.

Gene has written about sports and politics for 30 years. He was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in distinguished social commentary. With Rob Zellers, he is co-author of the one-man play "The Chief," based on the life of Steelers founder Art Rooney.

Before his death in 2010, John edited daily newspapers for 33 years, his final 27 as editor of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette until 2003. He was president of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Regional Indicators Consortium and former co-chairman and executive committee member of the Riverlife Task Force.

An editorial artist for 30 years, Ted has returned to Cleveland with The Plain Dealer after spending 17 years at two newspapers in Pittsburgh. As an illustrator, he tries to accurately represent the story without being too literal. His work has won many awards, including SND and PRINT. Ted resides with his wife, Kim, and their two Yorkies, Trixie and Pansy, on Cleveland's West Side. When not illustrating, he likes to play basketball and bike.

Gregory Curtis is the founder and Chairman of Greycourt & Co., Inc., a wealth management firm. He is the author of three investment books, including his most recent, Family Capital. He can be reached at gcurtis@greycourt.com. Please note that this post is intended to provide interested persons with an insight on the capital markets and is not intended to promote any manager or firm, nor does it intend to advertise their performance. All opinions expressed are those of Gregory Curtis and do not necessarily represent the views of Greycourt & Co., Inc., the wealth management firm with which he is associated. The information in this report is not intended to address the needs of any particular investor.

Aradhna is the president and CEO of Leadership Pittsburgh Inc., a resource for leadership development. Deeply committed to community building, Aradhna is actively engaged with the academic, public policy, corporate and nonprofit sectors and serves on several local boards. Born and raised in India, Aradhna holds an MBA from Rutgers University and a master's in psychology from Bhopal University.

Dietrich was a native of Pittsburgh, who wrote about Pittsburgh history and its greatest industrial leaders and historic philanthrophists. Bill joined that group shortly before his death in 2011, leaving more than $500 million to a variety of Pittsburgh institutions. He received his undergraduate education at Princeton, and earned a doctorate in political science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1984. He spent his entire business career with Dietrich Industries from 1961 to 2003, eventually serving as president and CEO, and then as non-​executive chairman. He is the author of “In the Shadow of the Rising Sun: The Political Roots of American Economic Decline.”

Barbara is a freelance writer living in Fox Chapel. She is an expert shopper for the best in local products and services.

Melissa is a freelance photographer who has contributed to National Geographic over the past 18 years. She was a staff photographer for the Pittsburgh Press and the Louisville Courier-Journal and Times newspapers. While in Louisville, Farlow was an integral part of the team that won a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of school desegregation. She lives in Sewickley.

Tom Flannery was the managing partner of the Pittsburgh office of Boyden Executive search.

Sherrie Flick is author of the novel Reconsidering Happiness. She lives on Pittsburgh’s South Side Slopes where she gardens, cooks, bakes, and writes. She teaches in Chatham University’s MFA and Food Studies programs, serves as series editor for At Table, the food writing book list at University of Nebraska Press, and is co-​founder of Into the Furnace, a writer-​in-​residence program in Braddock, Pa.

Jeffery is Pittsburgh Today's senior editor, a Pittsburgh-based freelance writer and frequent contributor to Pittsburgh Quarterly. In his past life, he was a reporter and editor for newspapers large and small, only one of which is still in business. His magazine and newspaper reporting has won numerous awards.

Julia Fraser is a Pittsburgh Today staff writer and research specialist.

Brandon Fury graduated with a BA in poetry from the University of Pittsburgh and is currently a candidate in the MFA program at Carlow University. His work has been featured or is forthcoming in Pittsburgh’s City Paper’s online feature Chapter and Verse; Runaway Hotel Vol. 2; The After Happy Hour Review and the Pittsburgh Poetry Review.

Sean is a staff writer for The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. After three years working for a daily newspaper in rural Missouri, and 12 working for papers in Chicago, he moved home with his family 2 1/2 years ago. He continues to write for newspapers, including the Chicago Tribune and New York Times. He and his wife, Dr. Joey Kallem, a local emergency veterinarian, have two sons.

Steve Hecht is a freelance writer. He worked at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as a sports writer and copy editor for 30 years. Previously, he was employed by newspapers in Dayton,Ohio, and State College, Pa. He was also editor of Steel City Sports, a weekly that was published in the early 1970s.

A journalistic innovator, Heuck has been writing about Pittsburgh for 37 years, as an investigative reporter and business editor at The Pittsburgh Press and Post-Gazette and as the founder of Pittsburgh Quarterly. His newspaper projects ranged from living on the streets disguised as a homeless man to penning the only comprehensive profile in the latter years of polio pioneer Dr. Jonas Salk to creating a statistical means of judging regional progress that has led to similar projects across the country. Heuck's work has won numerous national, state and local writing awards. His work has been cited in the landmark media law case "Food Lion vs. ABC news."

James has been creating informational news graphics since 1994. He has won many awards, including the Society of Professional Journalists Best Graphic Designer in Ohio, the first place Associated Press of Ohio award for informational graphics, and Society for News Design Best of Newspaper Design for information graphics/ breaking news.

Stuart Hoffman is chief financial economist of PNC Financial Services Group.

Tom Imerito is president of Science Communications, a Pittsburgh technology communications consultancy.

Stacy was born in California and graduated from the University of New Mexico where he studied fine art and history. In addition to his illustrations for the Pittsburgh Post-​Gazette, his work has appeared in the Boston Globe, the Chicago Tribune, MSNBC​.com, The New York Times and in two award-​winning picture books for Harcourt Publishing. He’s received awards from American Illustration, The New York Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts, Sigma Delta Chi and Print magazine, among others.

Lori Jakiela is the author of seven books, most recently the memoir “They Write Your Name on a Grain of Rice: On Cancer, Love, and Living Even So” (Atticus Books). She lives in Trafford, the last stop in Pittsburgh’s Electric Valley. Her author website is https://lorijakiela.net.

Jim has been working independently as a freelance photographer for 29 years. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a master of fine arts degree. He considers himself a generalist and takes photos for corporate, editorial and nonprofit clients. He lives in Franklin Park.

Nick Keppler is a Pittsburgh-​based freelance writer whose work has appeared in The Village Voice, Nerve, Vice, and Slate. When he’s not on his laptop, he’s probably kayaking on one of the city’s rivers with a Led Zeppelin track blaring through his earbuds.

Maxwell King has published poetry in a dozen literary periodicals around the country, and is the author of two biographies: The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers and American Workman: The Life and Art of John Kane. He lives in Ligonier with his wife Peggy--and with Bingley the bernedoodle, successor to Finn and Cora.

I'm the recipe developer, stylist, photographer and crazy dog lady behind With The Grains. I believe there's magic in baking bread, whipping cream and setting the table a little differently each time. I believe true health begins in the soil, is nurtured organically and should arrive at our tables with great care. Whether you're vegan, gluten-free or eat meat, you'll find a recipe here for you, so I hope you will join me in this conversation.

Sandra is the literary editor of Pittsburgh Quarterly. Before entering magazine work, she was employed as an architectural historian for the Los Angeles Conservancy and a photographic historian for the Smithsonian Institution. She reads and writes at her home in Point Breeze.

David Liebmann is an educator who has birded throughout the country.

Adam was a retired Pittsburgh WTAE news anchor/reporter who, after some 40 years of broadcasting, launched a freelance writing career. Mostly, he wrote about historic or military aviation events. When not writing, he enjoyed fishing, photographing or bird watching.

David Macpherson is a recently retired physician living in Upper Burrell, Pennsylvania.

Seamus is a regular contributor to many publications including Court TV's Crime Library, Penthouse, Reader's Digest, Stuff magazine, Spin and The Forward. He has won a number of journalism awards and is currently working on a comic novel set in Pennsylvania's coal country. He lives in the woods of northeastern Pennsylvania with his wife, Kren, and four children, Miriam, Yona, Seneca and Liam.

Pittsburgh Quarterly’s creative director from 2008 through 2017, Jennifer came to Pittsburgh from another steel town — Bethlehem, Pa. She attended Carnegie Mellon University for graphic design, fell in love with the city, graduated and stayed. She also performs across the country, singing and traveling with the Pittsburgh-​based Boilermaker Jazz Band. Jennifer lives in Deutschtown on the North Side with her husband and daughter.

Tim drew political cartoons for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for nearly 30 years. His work appeared in national newspapers, newsmagazines and on network television. He also paints and has drawn comic strips, written and illustrated a column and feature stories, and written one-act plays. And, he plays in a blues-zydeco band: piano and, uh... accordion.

Terry Miller is director of the University of Pittsburgh Institute of Politics and the Elsie Hillman Civic Forum. Miller has served as a consultant on special initiatives to The Pittsburgh Foundation, Allegheny County Department of Human Services and the Power of 32 Regional Visioning Initiative, and has also served as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work and Graduate School of Public and International Affairs. Prior to her tenure at the Institute of Politics, Miller was founder and first executive director of POWER, the Pennsylvania Organization for Women in Early Recovery. Miller has presented at national and local conferences on issues of race, gender and public policy, community organizing, addictions counseling, and gender-specific programming and meets regularly with international dignitaries on issues of social inclusion, governance and fiscal policy, workforce development, health and human services, and justice and social responsibility.

Matthew John Milligan is a freelance writer living in Aspinwall.

A lawyer, law professor and public commentator, Mistick has spent much of his professional life in and around government and served as Executive Secretary to Mayor Sophie Masloff. A passionate home cook, he takes special pride in finding those off-the-beaten-path eateries that are at the heart of our region's character. Just about any weekend, you can find Joe at home, puttering with an old Alfa Romeo Spider and cooking in his wood-fired oven.

James is a retired professor of computer science and dean of the West Coast campus of Carnegie Mellon University. He is a CMU graduate who received a Ph.D. in computer science from MIT. He taught at the University of California at Berkeley, worked at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, and is a founder of MAYA Design Group.

Ben Moyer writes about nature, outdoors and conservation issues from his home in western Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands.

Bob is president of United Way of Allegheny County. Throughout his career, Bob’s passion for positive change and focus on advocacy for people with disabilities and youth have led to new policy approaches based on best practices. He has been director of policy initiatives at Pitt’s Office of Child Development, executive director of the Governor’s Commission for Children and Families and director of human services for Allegheny County.

Christine H. O'Toole Based in Pittsburgh, Chris contributes to newspapers and magazines around the country. She's written two travel guidebooks to Pennsylvania and reported from twelve countries. Next up: Cambodia.

Marino, a freelance golf writer, has covered the game around the world. His work has appeared in Sports Illustrated, Golf Digest and Golf Magazine, among other publications, and he is the author of “Oakmont, 100 Years,” the history of the storied club. He was a journalism adjunct instructor at Pitt, and was a sports writer and the golf writer at the Pittsburgh Post-​Gazette.

Barry is an award-winning biographer, film historian, Russian translator and contributor to The New Yorker and Vanity Fair. Among his books are Audrey Hepburn and Song of Haiti, the story of Dr. Larry and Gwen Mellon and their Albert Schweitzer Hospital.

Evan Pattak is a Pittsburgh freelance writer and publicist. His work appears regularly in TEQ, Pennsylvania Manufacturer, Pop City and Pittsburgh Quarterly Magazine.

Jennifer Papale Rignani is a marketing professional and a freelance writer living in south Pittsburgh with her husband and three daughters.

Charles Rosenblum is a journalist, critic, and scholar who specializes in the built environment and visual arts. His work has appeared in Architectural Record, Preservation, Architect’s Newspaper, Public Art Review, and the Frank Lloyd Wright Quarterly. Charles has taught history and theory of art and architecture at Carnegie Mellon University since 1998.

Renee is a freelance photojournalist based in the South Side. She covers a wide range of features and sports subjects for local and national media. Her documentary work includes an embedded state-side project on National Guard training exercises in Georgia and California, coverage of relief volunteers in the region devastated by Hurricane Katrina and an intimate look at life in Afghanistan.

Thomas D. Saunders is president and CEO of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, a nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving the region’s exceptional places.

George creates humorous and conceptual illustrations for a wide variety of clients.He is also a contract artist and writer with American Greetings, designing cards for their alternative humor lines. George's work has garnered a number of awards, and has been recognized by the NY Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts, Print's Regional Design Annuals, and the Addys. He is co-founder of the Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators, which has grown to be the fourth largest group in the United States.

Ben Schmitt graduated from Peabody High School in 1988 and Michigan State University in 1992 with a bachelor's degree in journalism. He worked as a reporter at the Concord Monitor, Savannah Morning News, American Lawyer Media and the Detroit Free Press and won a national Emmy award in 2008 for two video stories about pit bulls. He also helped report on the downfall of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, which earned the Free Press a Pulitzer Prize in 2009. He is now a staff writer for the Tribune-Review.

Mark D. Schwartz was raised in Pittsburgh and since 1986 has lived in Bryn Mawr, Pa. His diverse 40-year law practice has included a host of cases covered in the public media. The majority of his present cases involve representing plaintiffs in civil rights matters.

Paul Scripko started life in the Mon Valley south of Pittsburgh and after attending McKeepsort's Serra High School, Pitt, and grad school at Harvard, he's had a career on Wall Street and in high tech, both of which allowed him to enjoy many of the world's great cities. Viewing Pittsburgh from a distance resulted in his ongoing commentary about Pittsburgh and western Pennsylvania. He discovered that a bit of distance does indeed provide a better perspective. His goal is to prod Pittsburghers to recognize issues that need addressing, while embracing the region's world-class strengths and opportunities.

Jeff is an award-winning independent filmmaker and writer who specializes in defining the cultural significance of American people, places, things and events.

Fred Shaw is a Visiting Lecturer in Writing at the University of Pittsburgh.

Graham is a collector, critic, curator, consultant and writer who has lived in Pittsburgh for nearly 20 years. After studying law at the University of Cambridge and reading for the English Bar, he was distracted by the lure of art and has been so ever since.

Stuart Sheppard is an award-winning critic, essayist, novelist, and poet who writes “The Hamlet Machine” column for Pittsburgh Quarterly. Follow him: @HamletsMachine.

Keerthi is majoring in photography at Sir JJ Institute of Applied Art, India's oldest art and design school, at Bombay. Her parents are peripatetic which took her to Haiti last summer. She was a delegate at the Global Young Leaders Conference in Washington, D.C. in 2002 and graduated to represent India at the Global Young Leaders Summit at Vienna in 2004.

Philip Terman’s recent books This Blossoming Everything (Saddle Road Press, 2024) and The Whole Mishpocha: New and Selected Jewish Poems (Ben Yehuda Press, 2024), and, as co-translator, Tango Beneath a Narrow Ceiling: The Selected poems of Riad Saleh Hussein (Bitter Oleander, 2021). His poems and essays appear in many journals and anthologies, such as Poetry Magazine, The Kenyon Review, Poetry International, The Sun, The Bloomsbury Anthology of Contemporary Jewish Poetry, and Extraordinary Rendition: American Writers on Palestine. He co-directed the James Wright Poetry Festival in 2023, directs The Bridge Literary Arts Center, a regional writer’s organization in western, PA, and is co- curator the Jewish Poetry Reading Series, sponsored by the Jewish Community Center of Buffalo. Terman conducts poetry workshops and coaches writing hither and yon. https://philipterman.my.canva.site

Sherri an illustrator and portrait artist working in Pittsburgh. She graduated from Syracuse University’s Visual Communications program with a BFA in Illustration and worked as an Art Director at several major advertising agencies before starting her freelance business in 1990. Since then, her clients have included the Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium, The Children’s Institute, Benedum Center, Parker/​Hunter, Westinghouse, Wholeys and numerous private patrons. Her work has been accepted into the New York Society of Illustrators Annual and has been included in several gallery and museum shows in Pittsburgh and Syracuse. She is a member of the Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators and the Pittsburgh Watercolor Society.

Dennis Unkovic’s latest book, “The Fragility of China: Breaking Points of an Invincible Regime,” was published by Encounter Books in July and is available at retailers and Amazon.

Marylynn Uricchio is the former film critic and SEEN/society editor for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. She now writes fiction in addition to articles about architecture and design.

David Wallace is an artist and musician living in Pittsburgh. His work has been shown in galleries and museums around the county and he's designed for independent filmmakers, psychedelic rock bands, experimental theater companies and puppet festivals. His illustration work was featured in the Communication Arts Illustration Annual and his collage work has been published in Masters: Collage by Lark Books and Exhibition 36 by North Light Books. As guitarist and contributing visual artist with performance troupe Squonk Opera, he tours across the U.S. and internationally.

Deborah Weisberg is an award-winning writer based in Pittsburgh.

Thomas L. Wentling Jr. is a Financial Advisor with UBS Financial Services Inc., a subsidiary of UBS AG, Member FINRA/​SIPC, 5600 Walnut St., Pittsburgh, PA 15232. The information contained in this article is not a solicitation to purchase or sell investments. Any information presented is general in nature and not intended to provide individually tailored investment advice. The strategies and/​or investments referenced may not be suitable for all investors as the appropriateness of a particular investment or strategy will depend on an investor’s individual circumstances and objectives. Investing involves risks and there is always the potential of losing money when you invest. The views expressed herein are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the view of UBS Financial Services Inc. Yield is the income return on an investment. This refers to the interest or dividends received from a security and are usually expressed annually as a percentage based on the investment’s cost, its current market value or its face value. Diversification does not guarantee a profit or protect against a loss in a declining financial market. As a firm providing wealth management services to clients, we offer both investment advisory and brokerage services. These services are separate and distinct, differ in material ways and are governed by different laws and separate contracts. For more information on the distinctions between our brokerage and investment advisory services, please speak with your Financial Advisor or visit our website at ubs​.com/​w​o​r​k​i​n​g​w​i​t​h​u​s.

Elizabeth is a freelance writer and lifetime Pittsburgher who resides in the North Hills. She has worked in adult literacy, at a financial investment firm, as a kindergarten teacher's aide, as a debt collector, and even as an entrepreneur. Her BA in English from the University of Dayton and her MBA from Duquesne University provide her with the unusual combination of being able to "cook the books" and also write a concise, grammatically-correct statement denying all wrongdoing. She is a winner of the 2020 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Bad Writing Contest. She finds humor in the everyday and can be reached at elizabethawiethorn@gmail.com.

Dan has been a graphic designer and illustrator for 40 years and lives in Pittsburgh’s Mexican War streets with his wife Leslie. His work has been reproduced for clients throughout the U.S. and Canada including magazine cartoons for Omni, Penthouse and Saturday Review. For the past 25 years, he and his brothers have produced original T-​shirt designs for stores and mail-​order catalogs.