Oak Ridge Today

Save the Date: UT Arboretum Society Butterfly Festival is July 30

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The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society will present a Butterfly Festival on Saturday, July 30, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the UT Arboretum Auditorium and surrounding grounds in Oak Ridge.

It is co-sponsored by the UT Forest Resources AgResearch and Education Center. The gate will be open at 8:30 a.m. Coffee and donuts will be sold from 9 to 10.

The UT Arboretum is at 901 South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge.

The event, designed for children and adults of all ages, will take place rain or shine, a press release said. [Read more…]

NAACP meeting on Tuesday in Clinton

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The June meeting of the Oak Ridge/Anderson County NAACP will be on Tuesday in Clinton.

The meeting is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 28, at the Green McAdoo Gymnasium next to the Green McAdoo Cultural Center.

Agenda items will include rescheduling the bimonthly state NAACP Meeting in July, the procedure for the fall NAACP election, a Political Action Committee report and upcoming activities, update on Education Committee information with the Oak Ridge High School principal, and a focus on the local and national elections. The NAACP will be collaborating with the local League of Women Voters for a July candidate forum. [Read more…]

Scottish professor visits Children’s Museum for Weinberg research

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Sean Johnston and Alvin Weinberg Papers at Children's Museum

Professor Sean Johnston, a professor of science, technology, and social studies from the Dumfries Campus of the University of Glasgow in Scotland, searched through the papers of Alvin Weinberg, former director of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, as part of a two-year project funded by the British Academy titled “Trusting the Technological Fix.” (Submitted photo)

 

The Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge is well known as a center of play and learning for the young and young at heart. The museum’s lesser-known collections of historic papers recently brought a senior academic historian from Scotland to Oak Ridge for several days of research.

Professor Sean Johnston, a professor of science, technology, and social studies from the Dumfries Campus of the University of Glasgow, searched through the papers of Alvin Weinberg, former director of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, as part of a two-year project funded by the British Academy titled “Trusting the Technological Fix.”

His visit highlights the value of the collections the museum began gathering in the 1970s to tell the cultural and social history of the area for its Regional Appalachian Center.

“Not only was Weinberg the prominent head of the national laboratory (1955-73), and very much a member of the establishment, but he was somebody who was curious and worried about the wider social implications of nuclear technology,” Johnston said. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge nonprofit receives $35,000 federal grant to help fight homelessness

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TORCH Logo

An Oak Ridge nonprofit organization has received a $35,000 federal grant to help fight homelessness, officials said Thursday.

The Emergency Solutions Grant was awarded to the Trinity Outreach Center of Hope, or TORCH, the Tennessee Housing Development Agency, or THDA, said in a press release. TORCH will use the grant to help fight homelessness among high-risk populations in Anderson County and surrounding areas.

The funds will be used to help with administrative services, street outreach, prevention, and rapid rehousing services that will help homeless people and families in the area covered by TORCH, the press release said. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge celebrates July 4 with fireworks at A.K. Bissell Park

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July 4, 2012 Fireworks

The Independence Day fireworks show in Oak Ridge has been scheduled for 10 p.m. Monday, July 4, at A.K. Bissell Park. (File photo by Charles Samuels)

 

Oak Ridge will celebrate July 4 with fireworks at Alvin K. Bissell Park. The fireworks display, which is sponsored by the City of Oak Ridge, will start at 10 p.m. Monday, July 4.

The fireworks will be accompanied by music played live at the park by Merle 96.7 FM. Radio host Jack Ryan will be transmitting live from the park beginning at 6 p.m. and will conclude the live broadcast with a patriotic medley as the fireworks are shot, a press release said. The countdown to the fireworks begins at 9:30 p.m. Listeners can tune their radios to 96.7 Merle FM and enjoy the show.

The Oak Ridge Community Band will perform its annual Fourth of July concert at the A.K. Bissell Park Pavilion beginning at 7:30 p.m.

The best view of the show will be from the east end of Bissell Park, the press release said.

Please note: [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Senior Center hosts Classic Car Cruise In on Saturday

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2016 Cruise-In

The Oak Ridge Senior Center, in partnership with the Fast and Classy Car Club, is hosting the first Classic Car Cruise In and Open House at the Oak Ridge Senior Center. The event will be held on Saturday, June 25, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“Please join us in admiring all the hard work that has been put into restoring these beautiful pieces of history,” a press release said.

Hot dogs and drinks will be available for $1 each while supplies last, the press release said. [Read more…]

Secret City Festival hosts Willow Run Rosies 

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Eight of the 13 Rosie the Riveters are shown here along with Heritage Exhibit participant Tom Walker, Oak Ridge Heritage Room organizer Bobbie Martin, and Interpretive National Park Ranger Veronica Greear. The Rosies are, from left to right, Bette Kenward, Barb Matthews, Vikki Toth, Chris Brown, Patsy Kemner, Kate Weise, Susie Sweeney, and Alison Beatty (down front). (Photo by M. McBride)

Eight of the 13 Rosie the Riveters are shown here along with Heritage Exhibit participant Tom Walker, Oak Ridge Heritage Room organizer Bobbie Martin, and Interpretive National Park Ranger Veronica Greear. The Rosies are, from left to right, Bette Kenward, Barb Matthews, Vikki Toth, Chris Brown, Patsy Kemner, Kate Weise, Susie Sweeney, and Alison Beatty (down front). (Photo by M. McBride)

 

This year’s Secret City Festival hosted 13 members of the “Willow Run Rosies” from the Historic Willow Run bomber plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Wearing Rosie-The-Riveter costumes, these ladies helped re-create the spirit of the many Rosies who powered the American war effort during World War II.

The Rosies were part of a 20-person group from Michigan.

The Willow Run Rosies chatted with festival visitors in the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Room on Saturday during the city’s two-day festival. Each year, the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association sponsors a heritage room during the festival, featuring exhibits on the history of the super-secret Manhattan Project and its “Secret City” of Oak Ridge.

Tens of thousands of “Rosies” came here during World War II, as part of President Roosevelt’s massive effort to build an atomic bomb in time to end the war. [Read more…]

ASPCA supports lifesaving transport for animals in 13 counties, including from Oak Ridge

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Go North Animal Transport

Note: This story was updated at 11:17 a.m.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or ASPCA, has awarded a grant of $47,250 to the East Tennessee-based GoNorth Animal Transport Collaborative, an alliance of 13 animal shelters, for transportation to northern shelters with ample space and high adoption demand, a press release said. The grant will be used to reimburse shelters for pre-transport veterinary care that is required by the destination shelters.

“Affordable, easily-accessible spay/neuter programs are the solution to ending pet overpopulation,” said GoNorth project coordinator Carmen Trammell. “However, it will take ‘time on task’ to do enough spaying and neutering to dramatically reduce the birth rate. In the meantime, northern transport saves the lives of shelter animals in oversupply.”

Counties participating in the GoNorth project include Anderson, Blount, Bradley, Campbell, Claiborne, Cocke, Hamblen, Hamilton, Jefferson, Loudon, Monroe, Sevier, and Union. The primary destinations are the Michigan, Toledo, and Wisconsin Humane Societies.

Currently, the Oak Ridge Animal Shelter is the only shelter participating in Anderson County. A complete list can be found here.

[Read more…]

Palestinian Christian to speak at three area churches

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Amal Nassar at her family’s farm in the West Bank. (Submitted photo)

Amal Nassar at her family’s farm in the West Bank. (Submitted photo)

 

By Carolyn Krause

Amal Nassar, a Palestinian Christian who lives with her family on their 100-acre farm amid Israeli settlements in the West Bank, will speak in three area churches June 26 and June 28.

She will talk about her family’s dedication to making peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

On Sunday, June 26, she will speak in Oak Ridge at 9:45 a.m. in the fellowship hall at First United Methodist Church at 1350 Oak Ridge Turnpike. Then, at 11:15 a.m., she will speak in the fellowship hall at First Presbyterian Church at 1051 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

On June 28, she will speak at 6:30 p.m. in the parish hall at the Episcopal Church of the Ascension at 800 South Northshore Drive in Knoxville. The public is invited to attend any of Nassar’s church presentations. [Read more…]

Green McAdoo hosting monthly Jazz on the Hill in Clinton this summer

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Green-McAdoo-Cultural-Center

The Green McAdoo Cultural Organization in Clinton will be hosting a Jazz on the Hill concert series on the first Saturday of each month this summer. The monthly concert series starts Saturday, July 2.

The free event is open to the public, and you are welcome to bring your families, blankets, and lawn chairs, a press release said.

Performance times will be 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Here are the groups scheduled to perform: [Read more…]

Summer menu starts at Unitarian Universalist Church free community meal on Friday

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The “it’s too hot for soup” summer-style menu will start at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church Stone Soup free community meal on Friday, June 24. The homemade meal will include ham sandwiches, smashed potato salad, brownies, and fresh fruit.

ORUUC is located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge. Dine-in or take-out will be available from 5 to 6 p.m. Friday. An assortment of nonperishable family friendly groceries will be available for free to anyone in need.

“For some, attending is as much about the friendly atmosphere as it is about the meal. Everyone is welcome,” coordinator Jinx Watson said. The Stone Soup free community meal is offered on the final Friday of each month. [Read more…]

Boys & Girls Club has fundraising Reverse Raffle on July 30

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RAFFLE FLIER FB BOOST

The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Clinch Valley will hold its annual Reverse Raffle on Saturday, July 30. The fundraiser will start at 6:30 p.m. July 30, and it will be hosted and catered by the Oak Ridge Country Club, which is completing renovations to its pool, outdoor bar, and entertainment area, a press release said.

“We are so excited to have the Raffle at the Country Club this year,” said Jennifer Pettyjohn, Boys & Girls Club chief executive officer. “It is just the perfect venue for this fun and casual event, with the best views in Oak Ridge!”

This year’s jackpot is again $10,000, the press release said. Numbers will be drawn during the evening on July 30, and the last number on the board will win.

For $100, the Reverse Raffle evening will include one entry into the raffle drawing, and admission for two to the live gaming, dinner, drinks, and live music event, the press release said. To keep the fun going, artists TRUK will be playing live on the new patio, and consolation prizes will be randomly awarded to losing raffle numbers by guest emcees. Not available on July 30? No problem. You do not have to be present to win, the press release said. [Read more…]