Oak Ridge Today

National League of Women Voters president to be special guest in Oak Ridge

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Elisabeth MacNamara

Elisabeth MacNamara

Elisabeth MacNamara, president of the League of Women Voters of the United States, will be the special guest of the Oak Ridge League for its 70th Birthday Party on April 29. The celebration will be held at Calhoun’s Event Center, which is at 100 Melton Lake Peninsula in Oak Ridge, starting at 5:30 p.m. April 29.

Wanda Sobieski, Knoxville attorney and suffragette history authority, will be the guest speaker, and 50-year Oak Ridge League members will be honored during the celebration.

MacNamara was elected the 18th president of the U.S. League in 2010 and was re-elected for a third term in 2014. She joined the League in 1983 and has served in leadership roles at all levels—local, state, and national. She is a longtime resident of DeKalb County, a suburb of Atlanta. Professionally, she is an attorney, recently retired as deputy chief assistant district attorney in charge of the office’s juvenile court division in DeKalb County.

MacNamara will present a 70th birthday proclamation from Governor Bill Haslam. [Read more…]

U.S. Cellular, Boys & Girls Clubs partner to improve STEM education, career exploration

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Boys and Girls Clubs of the Clinch Valley Logo

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U.S. Cellular and the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Clinch Valley in Oak Ridge announced a donation of $5,000 for 2016 science, technology, engineering, and math, or STEM, programming.

This contribution will expand efforts to help Oak Ridge students succeed in school and prepare for future careers, a press release said. Together with Boys & Girls Clubs of America, U.S. Cellular is committed to building better communities by championing K-12 educational programs.

This is the second year U.S. Cellular will support academic programming at the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Clinch Valley and nearly 60 additional club locations this year, with an emphasis on promoting literacy, STEM learning, and career exploration and preparation, the press release said. [Read more…]

VP Humphrey’s executive assistant to be guest speaker at AC Democratic Women’s Club on Monday

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John Stewart

John Stewart

John G. Stewart, who served as executive assistant to Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey, will be the guest speaker at the Monday, April 25, meeting of the Anderson County Democratic Women’s Club. The club meets at 6 p.m. at the Clinton Community Center, which is at 101 South Hicks Street in Clinton.

Stewart, who was also a legislative assistant to Vice President Humphrey when he served in the U.S. Senate, will speak on a topic titled “The Privatization Scam: Once Again the People Lose.”

“Stewart has raised concerns about Governor Bill Haslam’s efforts to turn publicly-owned assets in Tennessee, including state parks, prisons, state universities and colleges, and other facilities, over to private management,” a press release said.

Stewart served as vice president of Tennessee Valley Authority for economic and community development and assistant general manager of administration at the Tennessee Valley Authority. Before that, he was staff director of two subcommittees in the U.S. Senate and served as director of communications for the Democratic National Committee. [Read more…]

Tanasi Winds featured at ORCMA coffee concert on Sunday

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ORCMA Tanasi Winds

Tanasi Winds features Dave Greenwood on clarinet, Dana Fox on oboe, RaNaye Dreier on flute, Bill Schwenterly on French horn, and Ardyce Lee on bassoon. (Submitted photo)

 

Tanasi Winds will be featured at an Oak Ridge Civic Music Association coffee concert on Sunday.

The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, April 24, at the First Presbyterian Church of Oak Ridge, which is at 1051 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

The concert is free, and refreshments will be served following the performance, a press release said. [Read more…]

UT to host bullying expert from the UK on April 26

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Dieter Wolke

Dieter Wolke

KNOXVILLE—International bullying expert Dieter Wolke, a professor of developmental psychology and individual differences at the University of Warwick, in Coventry, England, will present “The Long Shadow Thrown by Bullying” at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 26, at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.

Free and open to the public, the lecture is in Room 622 of the  Min H. Kao Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Building, 1520 Middle Drive. Parking is available in the 11th Street parking garage.

The event is hosted by the Department of Child and Family Studies in UT’s College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences.

Wolke will discuss bullying in schools and other settings, what it means for victims, and why it predicts long-term mental health problems. [Read more…]

Art gallery opens at ORUUC on Sunday

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Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church

A new art exhibit space will open to the public on Sunday, April 24, at 5:30 p.m. at Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church. The opening exhibit is a retrospective of Oak Ridge artist Kristina Henderson Holland, who is also a member of ORUUC.

The exhibition and opening reception are organized by ORUUC’s Art Display Team.

Kristina Henderson Holland studied art at New York’s Adelphi University and Fashion Institute of Technology, including studying abroad in London. The ORUUC retrospective exhibit features 20 of her works, including 10 Tennessee landscape paintings. [Read more…]

Breakfast with the Legislators scheduled Monday

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The League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge will host Breakfast with the Legislators on Monday morning, April 25. The breakfast is scheduled from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center, which is at 1401 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Senators Ken Yager and Randy McNally and representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee have been invited to give an up-to-date as the 109th General Assembly comes to a close, a press release said.

During Breakfast with the Legislators, audience members can ask questions and give opinions. A light continental breakfast is provided at no charge. The public is encouraged to attend. [Read more…]

Two ORHS seniors win Brad Sturm scholarships

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Sean Badurina, Mel Sturm, and Jade Lesher

Sean Badurina and Jade Lesher are winners of the Brad Sturm Memorial Scholarships established by businessman Mel Sturm (center). (Photo courtesy Oak Ridge Schools)

 

Sean Badurina and Jade Lesher, two seniors at Oak Ridge High School, were selected by the Rotary Club of Oak Ridge as recipients of the Brad Sturm Memorial Scholarships for 2016.

Sean, who likes to build machines and take them apart to see how they work, said he plans to attend the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and major in mechanical engineering.

Jade, president of the ORHS drama club with eight years of theater experience and section leader in the marching band, plans to attend UT in Knoxville and major in political science.

To qualify for the scholarships, first established 40 years ago by 92-year-old businessman Mel Sturm, ORHS students this year had to read Larry Arnn’s 2015 book “Churchill’s Trial: Winston Churchill and the Salvation of Free Government.” [Read more…]

Endangered 8 includes Magnet Mills, Oliver Springs railroad depot

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Magnet Mills

Magnet Mills in downtown Clinton (Image courtesy East Tennessee Preservation Alliance)

 

A list of eight endangered historic properties that was announced on Friday includes the Oliver Springs Southern Railroad Depot and Magnet Mills, a former hosiery mill in Clinton.

The East Tennessee Endangered 8 is announced each year by the East Tennessee Preservation Alliance.

Here is more information from an ETPA press release: [Read more…]

Cancer survivors, caregivers to be honored at American Cancer Society Relay For Life

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American Cancer Society Relay for Life Logo

Local cancer survivors and their caregivers will take the celebratory first lap at the annual American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Oak Ridge event on May 20 at Oak Ridge High School Track. The survivors lap will begin at 6 p.m. Anyone who has ever been diagnosed with cancer may participate.

As the survivors walk, other participants will cheer them on in a demonstration of support and celebration. The five-year survival rate for all cancers has risen to 68 percent, and there are an estimated 14.5 million survivors in America, a press release said.

The Relay For Life of Oak Ridge is a community event where teams and individuals set up campsites at a school, park, or fairground, and take turns walking or running around a track or path. Last year, four million people participated in more than 6,000 events worldwide. The money raised supports groundbreaking cancer research, education and risk reduction efforts, and free information and critical services for people with cancer who need them.

If you are a cancer survivor or caregiver and would like to be part of the Relay For Life event, visit relayforlife.org or on Facebook at Relay for Life of Oak Ridge, or call the American Cancer Society at (800) 227-2345.

American Cancer Society Relay for Life is May 20

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American Cancer Society Relay for Life Logo

The American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Oak Ridge will take place on Friday, May 20, at Oak Ridge High School.

Relay for Life is scheduled from 6 to 11 p.m. May 20 at the ORHS Ben Martin Track.

“Join local volunteers and participants from the community and celebrate cancer survivors, remember those lost to the disease, and take action to save more lives from cancer,” a press release said.

The opening ceremony, which includes a special Survivors and Caregivers Lap, will begin at 6 p.m. A Luminaria Ceremony to honor cancer survivors and remember those lost to cancer will take place at 9:30 p.m. The closing ceremony will be at 10:30 p.m.

Visit relayforlife.org to learn more about the event or contact Kim Monroe at (865) 438-5334, Kenneth Herring at kherring@teksystems.com or (865) 310-2664, or Brittany Bostic at brittany.bostic@cancer.org.

Sister City Support Organization selects middle school exchange delegates

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Sister City Support Organization and Oak Ridge Schools

Pictured above are back row, left to right, Myles Hebrard, Brion Fuson, Elijah Gardner, Julie Lee (RMS chaperone), Melissa Fox (JMS chaperone), Jakob Nussbaum, and Sarah Hammons; and front row, left to right, Madeline Davis, Lauryn Rouse, Savanna Rouse, Austin Mayes, Jayden Ellis, and Abby Hausladen. (Submitted photo)

 

The Sister City Support Organization in cooperation with Oak Ridge Schools has selected the delegates for the 2016 middle school exchange with the sister city, Naka-shi Japan. The 10 rising eighth-graders representing both Jefferson and Robertsville middle schools will be accompanied by two teacher/chaperones and Myles Hebrard, supervisor of special education of Oak Ridge Schools.

This is the 25th anniversary of the middle school exchange and the occasion will be celebrated in Naka-shi on July 5, 2016. Representatives from the Oak Ridge Schools, SCSO, Girl Scouts, and the City of Oak Ridge will travel to Naka with the student group in recognition of this milestone.

The SCSO and Oak Ridge schools will host a reciprocal celebration when the Naka students visit Oak Ridge in August.

The 2016 middle school delegates in cooperation with Time to Shine Car Wash are raising funds to help defray their travel expenses. Until the end of April, for any car wash patron using the SCSO code (8984) and purchasing the $20 special, Time to Shine contributes $10 to the students.

Jerralyn Luckmann is a contributor to Oak Ridge Today.