Oak Ridge Today

Emory Valley Center hires new development director

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Janet Wood

Janet Wood

Emory Valley Center, a nonprofit agency serving children and adults with disabilities since 1955, has hired Janet Wood as its new development director.

Experienced within the fields of marketing, community relations, and nonprofit fundraising, Wood most recently served as the public relations and special projects coordinator with Alzheimer’s Tennessee in Knoxville. While there, she was lead coordinator for the Five County Walk held in Oak Ridge and the Foothills Walk held at Maryville College. She also coordinated volunteers in their fundraising efforts for both of these walks and provided support in additional fundraising and public relations endeavors for the organization. Wood also has years of experience in print, broadcast, and media relations, having previously been employed by The Oak Ridger newspaper for 10 years, a press release said.

“We are so excited to have Janet on our team and look forward to all the great work she will do on behalf of the Center,” said Jennifer Enderson, Emory Valley Center president. [Read more…]

Spotlight: Legal Aid Society announces new hire at Oak Ridge office

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Michelle Darsey

Michelle Darsey

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, Tennessee’s largest nonprofit law firm, has welcomed Michelle Darsey to the Oak Ridge office location as receptionist.

Darsey brings more than 10 years of client service and office support experience to her new role. She has served in public interest positions through the AmeriCorps/Volunteers in Service to America, or VISTA, program as a homeless outreach specialist for United Neighborhood Health Services and as a prisoner reentry liaison for the San Diego County District Attorney’s office.

“Michelle is a service-oriented individual who is dedicated to her work and to helping others,” said Janet Mynatt, managing attorney for the Oak Ridge office of Legal Aid Society. “She previously excelled in a legal office setting and we are certain she will do the same with Legal Aid Society. We are happy to welcome her to the firm.” [Read more…]

League of Women Voters has membership celebration Monday

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The League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge has its annual Spring Membership Celebration on Monday, April 7, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the Hearth Room of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church. Reservations are not needed. The church is located at 1500 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge.

The event is open to current and past members, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and anyone interested in learning more about the League, a press release said.

“Good food and interesting people to chat with are promised at the event,” the release said. [Read more…]

Guest column: We all have a role to play in ending child abuse

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CASA Child Abuse Prevention Month

By Naomi Asher 

By the time you finish reading this article, more than 30 cases of child abuse will have been reported to authorities nationwide. By the end of today, that number will swell past 9,000. And four of those children will die at the hands of their abuser. All in a single day.

When we take stock of these sobering statistics during April—National Child Abuse Prevention Month—it’s easy to be overwhelmed and to ask yourself, “What can I possibly do to make a difference?”

The answer is, you can do a lot. Everybody can play a role in preventing child abuse and neglect by becoming advocates for children.

For some of us, that advocacy comes in a formal role. Teachers, child care workers, health care providers and others who come into daily contact with children can be vigilant for signs of abuse and neglect. Their actions to report suspected abuse or to offer extra time and attention to fragile children can do more than make a difference. It can save lives. [Read more…]

Train rides resume in Oak Ridge

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Southern Appalachian Railway Museum

SARM offers spring colors, Easter dinner trains

Southern Appalachia Railway Museum, or SARM, kicks off its 2014 excursion train schedule in Oak Ridge with one-hour Spring Colors trips and an Easter Weekend dinner train for April.

The narrated one-hour Spring Colors train rides will depart at 11 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 5, and Saturday, April 19. Ticket prices are $19 for adults and $15 for children three through 12. Popcorn, refreshments and railroad souvenirs will be available in the train’s commissary car. During the rides, a short narrative will describe the historic Manhattan Project and the historical significance of the railroad that served it. Reservations are suggested and can be made by calling the museum at (865) 241-2140. [Read more…]

CONTACT Care Line has annual flea market Friday, Saturday

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CONTACT Care Line has its annual flea market on Friday and Saturday.

You can bring donations to First Baptist Church in Oak Ridge on from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Thursday, April 3, or from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Friday, April 4.

The flea market is from 6-8 p.m. Friday, April 4 (buy at twice the price), and from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, April 5.

The First Baptist Church is at 1100 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Call the CONTACT office at (865) 312-7450 for earlier pick-up of large items.

Big Ed’s Memorial Golf Tournament this month helps youth, families

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Community Mediation Services Big Ed's Golf Tournament

The 13th Annual Big Ed’s Memorial Golf Tournament on Friday, April 25, continues a long tradition that combines a great day of golf with active commitment to youth and families. The tournament supports Community Mediation Services’ work with youths and families, and it honors the community spirit and caring of “Big Ed” Neusel, founder of Big Ed’s Pizza, and David Neusel, and their belief in giving to others while seeking recognition from no one, a press release said.

The Oak Ridge Country Club provides a beautiful and challenging venue for the Big Ed’s Memorial Tournament. Early registration is Wednesday, April 16. Registration forms are available by calling (865) 483-6888 or e-mailing info@cms-tn.org. Registration online is also available through the website at www.peacefulresolution.org. [Read more…]

Kix Brooks to headline Secret City Festival in June

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Kix Brooks with Mic

Country artist Kix Brooks performs at the Great Eastern Exposition in West Springfield, Mass., on Sept. 27. (Submitted photos)

Kix Brooks—one-half of the bestselling country duo Brooks and Dunn—will headline the Saturday night concert at the Secret City Festival in June.

The concert starts at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 14. Country-rock band Phoenix Drive will open.

“Kix Brooks enjoyed early career success as a songwriter before teaming up with Ronnie Dunn to form the highest-selling duo in the history of country music,” a press release said. “During their 20-year run together, Brooks and Dunn sold more than 30 million records, won more than 75 major industry awards, and celebrated 23 No. 1 hits.”

Brooks is now hosting the long-running syndicated radio program, American Country Countdown, where every week he counts country music’s Top 30 songs. Brooks has received many awards for his broadcasting abilities—including CMA National Broadcast Personality of the Year Award in 2009, 2011, and 2013—making him the first person to ever win a CMA Award in both the artist and broadcast categories. [Read more…]

Habitat for Humanity volunteers install three roofs in March

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Habitat Volunteers on Lake City Roof

Student volunteers for Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County help install a roof in Lake City. (Submitted photos)

Two families and the Holiday Bureau have new roofs this month, thanks to volunteers from two different colleges and local men that routinely volunteer for Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County, a press release said.

The first week of March, a group of students from the Milwaukee School of Engineering came to Oak Ridge as part of Habitat for Humanity’s Collegiate Challenge program. The students were housed at First Baptist Church of Oak Ridge. First Baptist shared their facilities for four weeks in a row with four different groups.

The Holiday Bureau has a bicycle storage shed, measuring 16 feet x 78 feet, that had a very old and leaky roof. Now, the shed has a new roof, and it only took the students four days, the press release said. Tim Marcum, HFHAC’s chief operating officer, coordinated this project in an effort to help another nonprofit. [Read more…]

CONTACT Care Line: Master the art of active listening

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CONTACT Care Line has training sessions on listening starting Friday, April 4.

The Art of Active Listening Training classes are on Friday afternoons from 2-4 p.m. April 4-May 23. There is no class on Good Friday, April 18. Classes will be held in the Parlor at Kern Memorial United Methodist Church at 451 E. Tennessee Ave. in Oak Ridge. The cost is $50 for the general public and $25 for students.

The Art of Active Listening teaches effective listening skills that everyone can use in their daily lives with family, friends, and co-workers. It enables participants to develop empathetic, non-judgmental listening techniques. This training offers important ways to assist with many of the problems people face and how we can respond in a healthy, heartfelt, and helpful way, a press release said. Practice sessions in a supportive, nonjudgmental atmosphere help participants begin to use their new skills and gain confidence as they discover the value of constructive, caring listening, and responding. [Read more…]

Annual Sportsman’s Showcase to feature call-maker Preston Pittman

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May 3 event in Oneida to serve as fundraiser for CASA of the Tennessee Heartland

ONEIDA—Hunters and anglers are invited to the Boys and Girls Club of Scott County for good food, good fellowship, and support of a great cause as CASA of the Tennessee Heartland hosts its second annual Scott Sportsman Showcase on May 3.

The event, slated to begin at 5 p.m., will be highlighted by Preston Pittman as the featured speaker.

The 60-year-old Pittman is called by many the world’s best turkey caller, and he has the trophies to back it up. Winning his first turkey calling championship at the age of 16, Pittman has gone on to become a seven-time national champion turkey caller, a nine-time National Champ of Champs, and has been crowned the U.S. Gobbling Champion, Grand National Gobbling Champion, and Grand National Champ of Champs. He is the only person to hold five different world titles. [Read more…]

Ulster Project serves up a ‘Taste of Ireland’

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Peace Sculpture Northern Ireland

Peace sculpture on the ancient city wall of Derry/Londonderry, Northern Ireland. (Photo by T. Burns)

The Ulster Project of East Tennessee will host “Taste of Ireland”—a “sense-sational” celebration—on Saturday, April 5, from 6 to 10 p.m. in the Family Life Center at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Oak Ridge. Co-sponsored by the Knoxville and Oak Ridge chapters, the event will feature traditional Irish food and drink, live music, dance, and a silent auction.

Special musical guests, the local Irish/folk band, Shamrock Road, will entertain. Enjoy a buffet of traditional Irish favorite dishes and dessert between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. Visit any of the four traditional Irish watering holes for something to accompany your meal or to quench your thirst from dancing a jig.

A “Taste of Ireland” is the perfect way to welcome spring and support the efforts to grow and sustain the peace process in Northern Ireland. The evening of food and entertainment costs $25 for adults and $20 for students (under 21) and seniors (65+). Tickets are available in Oak Ridge at Realty Center, 201 S. Tulane Ave.; at The Ferrell Shop in Historic Jackson Square; or through e-mail at ulstereasttenn@gmail.com. Tickets will also be available at the door. [Read more…]