off the bluff

Public Domain Photo
A vintage postcard illustration depicts Forbes Field in its heyday. The stadium operated in Oakland for 61 years, from 1909 to 1970.

Forbes Field Brought Baseball to Oakland

words: Seth Culp-Ressler It’s June 30, 1909, and more than 30,000 crazed fans are packed into the seats and bleachers...

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A Rebel With a Cause

words: Lauren Zawatski photos: Lauren Zawatski & Dominic DiSilvio Though he has a little less full, curly hair on his...

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Honoring Family Heritage on Atwood Street

words: Nina Saluga photos: Lauren Zawatski Writers know that one objective of storytelling is to make the strange familiar. Ron...

Mohcine Eljoufri is the owner of Beta Bites, a Moroccan restaurant in Oakland. His food combines American staples with Moraccan flavors.

Moraccan Pursues the American Dream in Oakland

words: Leonardo Sanchez photos: Lauren Zawatski As soon as you enter Beta Bites, you can tell that is not a...

Suzanne Johnston is a genealogist and library assistant at the Carnegie Library in Oakland. Johnston has always been fascinated with stories.

Uncovering Family Stories in Oakland

words: McCall Behringer photos: Lauren Zawatski When Suzanne Johnston was growing up, she loved listening to her grandparents tell stories...

Imam Abdul Wajid gives a presentation to a group of visitors at a March 19, 2017 open house at Oakland’s Islamic Center of Pittsburgh.

Imam Abdul Wajid is Accepting of All

words: Carolyn Conte photos: Lauren Zawatski After a hike up Bigelow Boulevard’s hill in the neighborhood of Oakland, near the...

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Keep Looking Up

words: Nicole Slater photos: Lauren Zawatski On some days, when you look up at the Cathedral of Learning, you might...

Frenchi chats with customer and University of Pittsburgh student Paul Williams. Frenchi is famous among Pitt’s student body.

Frenchi’s Deli & Market Serves More Than Just Food

words: Sara Saltiel photos: Sara Saltiel Standing on an elevated platform behind a cash register, Frenchi greets every customer like...

Phil Coyne stands in front of the remaining traces of Forbes Field in Oakland, a portion of the stadium’s outfield wall.

Eighty Years and Still Going Strong

words: Sam Noel photos: Sam Noel After 80 years — yes, 80 — of ushering for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Phil...

Volunteer Divya Patel, a pharmacy student at the University of Pittsburgh, hands bags of fresh produce to local patron Wayne Young.

Community Human Services Provides Food for All

words: McCall Behringer photos: McCall Behringer Boxes are stacked five high and, as volunteers start to unpack, the smell of...