Oak Ridge Today

Children’s Museum hosts Wonderful Wednesdays

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Knoxville Opera will bring entertaining and popular selections from 20th century Broadway musicals and opera classics to the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge on Wonderful Wednesday, from 11 a.m.-noon June 17.

The museum will host special Wonderful Wednesday guests from 11 a.m.-noon Wednesdays during Imagination Station Summer Camp through July 31. Summer campers at the museum each week will participate, and the programs are free to the public with admission.

Other Wonderful Wednesdays are: [Read more…]

Reminder: Secret City Festival this weekend

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Secret City Festival Water Slide

Photo courtesy Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau 

 

Note: This story was last updated at 12:20 p.m.

Reminder: The Secret City Festival is this weekend. The festival kicks off with an opening ceremony at 11:30 a.m. Friday, and it continues through Saturday evening.

The Secret City Festival celebrates family fun, great entertainment, and arts and crafts, and it commemorates the incredible history that makes this town unique, organizers said.

“Join us as we honor the men and women who built this community and helped end the greatest war mankind has ever known,” they said.

The award-winning, two-day event includes the following and more: [Read more…]

Emory Valley Center has fundraising pancake breakfast on Saturday

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

2014 EVC Pancake Fundraiser and Randy McNally

Tennessee Senator Randy McNally, right, serves members of the Oak Ridge Fire Department at the Emory Valley Center pancake breakfast fundraiser in 2014. (Submitted photo)

 

A fundraising breakfast at Applebee’s restaurant in Oak Ridge on Saturday will support Emory Valley Center’s Capital Campaign.

It’s an “All You Can Eat Pancake Breakfast,” and it’s scheduled from 8-10 a.m. Saturday, June 13. Applebee’s will be providing the breakfast food items and staff members to cook the pancakes and sausage, a press release said.

“Please make plans to attend,” the release said.

Tickets are $5 for children and adults, and they may be purchased at Emory Valley Center, 715 Emory Valley Road, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday and at the door Saturday morning. [Read more…]

Friends of Library to sponsor local authors at Secret City Festival

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Friends of the Oak Ridge Public Library will sponsor local writers and authors at the Secret City Festival this weekend.

The Secret City Festival is Friday, June 12, and Saturday, June 13.

The authors will be in Room C of the Oak Ridge Civic Center (next door to the Oak Ridge Historical Preservation Association) autographing and selling their books at the following times: [Read more…]

Methodist, AARP offer safe driving program for seniors

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

To help senior drivers hone their safety skills, Methodist Medical Center is sponsoring the AARP Driver Safety Program to be held on June 15 and 16 from 1 to 5 p.m. each day in the Cheyenne Ambulatory Center’s conference room, located at 944 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

The eight-hour classroom refresher course is designed to help drivers 50 years and older to improve their skills. Most auto insurance carriers are required to offer discounts for drivers who complete this accredited course.

The course explains the age-related changes that occur in vision, hearing, and reaction time and provides useful driving safety tips for handling these changes. Certified AARP instructor Jack Cowen will be presenting this course through a combination of group discussion and video activities.

Class size is limited and registration is required. The fee for the course is $15 for AARP members and $20 for non-AARP members. For more information or to register, call (865) 483-1615. If leaving a message, be sure to include name, address, date of birth, driver’s license number, and AARP membership number if applicable.

Children’s Museum summer camps offer science, art, adventures

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Summer Camp Puppet Fun

A photo of summer camp puppet fun at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge in 2014. (Submitted photo)

 

Imagination Station Summer Camp kicks off at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge Monday, June 8, inviting children to a wizard school, Jedi training, CSI adventures, painting and photography classes, cooking, and garden fun. Campers will have opportunities to learn about trains with model railroaders, to create with clay, to build with Minecraft Legos, and to explore cultures around the world.

The summer camps, through July 31, offer activities for children ages 3-5 in preschool classes and for children entering grades 1 through 7. Clay camps with professional clay artist Sherrie Carris will be offered throughout the summer for children ranging in age from 4-13.

Camps for the week of June 8-12 are: [Read more…]

ADFAC: Dine and Donate returns Monday, June 8

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Eli Mauk-Olson at Buddy's bar-b-q

Just in time for a summer picnic, treat for dad, or office party, Buddy’s Bar-B-Q in Oak Ridge and Buddy’s ORNL Café are participating in the June 8 Dine and Donate event. Eli Mauk-Olson, a recent graduate of Robertsville Middle School, appears ready to celebrate the end of the school year! (Submitted photo)

 

School is out, and Father’s Day is around the corner: These are just two of many reasons to celebrate with a Dine and Donate meal!

On Monday, June 8, six local restaurants will donate a portion of their sales to support Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties, or ADFAC. Launched in October 2013, Dine and Donate is a yearlong event, with different restaurants participating on the second Monday of each month.

“Whether celebrating the fathers in our lives or simply beating the heat, dining out at least one of Monday’s Dine and Donate restaurants is a fantastic way to enjoy the season,” said ADFAC Board Member Cande Seay, who also chairs the Dine and Donate committee.

The restaurants participating on Monday are: [Read more…]

UT Arboretum Society to present wetlands program on June 16

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will present a program on wetlands on Tuesday, June 16. This is both a walking and hands-on teaching event, a press release said.

The program is titled “Construction Techniques and the Value of Little Bitty Wetlands.” It’s scheduled from 6-8 p.m. June 16.

The talk will focus on the benefits of small wetlands and how to construct them, the press release said.

Participants will meet at the UT Arboretum parking lot at 901 S. Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge and walk about a quarter mile to the Valley Road Wetlands from the UT Arboretum parking lot. [Read more…]

Car, truck, motorcycle show on Saturday to benefit Emory Valley Center

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Calvary Baptist Church and Emory Valley Center Car Show

Submitted photo

 

Calvary Baptist Church will have its first Car, Truck, and Motorcycle Show on Saturday, and the proceeds will be donated to support Emory Valley Center’s Capital Campaign.

The show is scheduled from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, June 6. Calvary Baptist Church is located at 163  North Jefferson Circle in Oak Ridge.

The show is free and open to the public, and it will include fun for the entire family, a press release said. A bounce house, crafts, and activities for children will be part of the day’s event in addition to the show and include local food vendors.

“Everyone is welcome and encouraged to come out and enjoy the variety of cars, trucks, and motorcycles featured in the show,” the press release said. “You can also help choose the winning entries by making a donation to your favorite vehicle. First-, second-, and third-place prizes will be awarded based on which vehicles generate the most ‘votes’ by the highest donations.” [Read more…]

North Ridge Trail maintenance scheduled for Saturday, June 6

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Ray and Jo Ann Garrett appointed trail stewards

New North Ridge Trail Stewards Ray and JoAnn Garrett have announced that the annual North Ridge Trail/National Trails Day maintenance event will focus on the west portion of the trail, west of Illinois Avenue.

Volunteers should meet at the Garretts’ home at 101 Windham (just off West Outer Drive) at 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 6, a press release said.

Oak Ridge leaders JoAnn and Ray Garrett, who are longtime members of Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning, agreed last month to co-steward the North Ridge Trail.

“They are filling the big shoes of out-going Trail Steward Susan Donnelly, who is stepping down due to increased work and life commitments,” the TCWP press release said. [Read more…]

Photos, results: Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

2015 Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival Entrance

Photo by D. Ray Smith

 

The second annual Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival on Friday and Saturday included dragon boat races, music, vendors, food trucks, a youth area for kids, Drummers’ Parade, and Lanterns on the Lake ceremony. Here are pictures by D. Ray Smith and Rob Welton.

The Dragon Boat Festival raises money for local charities. As many as 32 dragon boat teams had registered this year. Each team has 20 paddlers and a drummer to ensure that the paddlers are propelling the boat in synchrony.

This year, the festival started on Friday evening with the Dragon Boat Beer Garden Bash at Melton Lake Park followed by a full day of boat racing on Saturday.

The festival is organized and sponsored by the three Rotary clubs of Oak Ridge.

Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson and Fire Chief Darryl Kerley estimated that the new event on Friday had about 1,500 participants, and there were approximately 4,000 who attended throughout the day on Saturday.

The winners this year were:

  • Gold—Parkway Cardiology-Paddle Attack, from the Health and Wellness Division, with a time of 01:07.301;
  • Silver—Charlotte Dragon Boat Association-Charlotte Fury (the defending champions), from the Crazy about Dragon Boats Division, with a time of 01:08.278; and
  • Bronze—Glenwood Elementary School-Glenwood Gliders, from the Education Division, with a time of 01:08.759.

See the results of this year’s races here: 2015 Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Race Results. [Read more…]

Drug Awareness Day at Oak Ridge Pool on Saturday, June 6

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Drug Awareness Day at the Oak Ridge Pool

The Third Annual Drug Awareness Day is at the Oak Ridge Municipal Pool on Saturday, June 6.

It’s hosted by the Oak Ridge Chapter of the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks. The pool is located at 172 Providence Road, near Oak Ridge High School.

Drug Awareness demonstrations will be held from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. June 6 inside the pool area. Hundreds of prizes will be given away to those participating in a drug awareness activity, a press release said. Some of the prizes include T-shirts, coloring books, and Frisbees.

This event is a partnership with Anderson County Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Oak Ridge City Recreation and Parks Department, Roane County Anti-Drug Coalition, and the Tennessee Meth and Pharmaceutical Task Force. [Read more…]