First person Archives

A person with long dark hair and glasses sits on a bench outdoors, wearing a denim jacket. An industrial structure and a bridge are visible in the background under a cloudy sky.

Six weeks in the Amazon’s headwaters helped me to love post-industrial Pittsburgh

First-person essay by Dalia MaeroffFebruary 6, 2026

Seeing illegal gold mines despoil remote Ecuadorian forests helped me to understand what happened to Pittsburgh — and to appreciate what we still have.

Person with curly hair wearing a blue shirt brushing a brick wall in a room with yellow walls and a window in the background.

First person

I renovated my Pittsburgh home with grief in my toolbelt and three generations of family ties

by First-person essay by Jordan Stovka January 23, 2026

A woman standing in front of a wall with a flag painted on it.

Community storytelling

My allegiance to the truth

by First-person essay by Kalilah Stein January 16, 2026

A woman in a teal hat and patterned coat stands on a snowy hill overlooking a river, bridge, and cityscape at dusk.

First person

I couldn’t forget the terrain, the nature, the rivers — but it’s the kindness that kept me in Pittsburgh

by First-person essay by Sarah Samms Velázquez January 9, 2026January 11, 2026

Person with glasses and colorful shirt uses scissors to cut mustard-yellow fabric in a fabric store surrounded by bolts of cloth and sewing supplies.

First person

Tariff bills are making business all-but impossible for my Morningside store

by First-person essay by Erin Love January 2, 2026January 2, 2026

An older woman wearing sunglasses walks outside on a snowy street with a cane and a harnessed guide dog.

First person

I haven’t seen the world through my eyes since a snowy day in 1969

by First-person essay by Sally Hobart Alexander December 26, 2025December 28, 2025

A man wearing glasses and a winter coat looks at a dog outdoors in a snowy area, with tree branches reflected or overlaid on the image.

First person

I survived, learned that what I needed didn’t exist — and set out to create it

by First-person essay by Jeremy Carter December 5, 2025December 7, 2025

Two women stand side by side outdoors on a concrete platform, with a colorful mural and buildings visible in the background.

Community storytelling

How a boomer and a millennial started with flowers and ended up in Las Vegas

First-person essay by Carla Arnold & Tricia Patsilevas as told to Jamie WigganNovember 21, 2025November 22, 2025

A woman with long dark hair looks pensively out of a window, with reflections and soft natural light visible on the glass.

First person

I was ‘the other’ until I found my people: neurodivergent millennials

by First-person essay by Shannon Parris November 18, 2025

Three older adults sit around a table reading documents and taking notes in a well-lit room with artwork, books and plants.

First person

A writers club for older adults soothed my grief as we’ve ‘ranted, raved and wrangled’ with aging

by First-person essay by Mary Schinhofen November 7, 2025November 9, 2025

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