News Archives - Page 38 of 989

Updated: ORHS on lockdown after shooting threat

Posted at 11:15 am December 6, 2021
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

*Oak Ridge High School was on lockdown late Monday morning, Dec. 6, 2021, after administrators were made aware of a shooting threat posted on social media.*

This story was last updated at 2:45 p.m.

Oak Ridge High School was on lockdown late Monday morning after administrators were made aware of a shooting threat posted on social media.

“ORHS is on a level 3 lockdown due to a shooting threat on social media,” City of Oak Ridge spokesperson Lauren Gray said. “The Oak Ridge Police Department is currently on scene investigating. Level 3 lockdown is a call for increased security when a situation inside or outside the building may have an impact on school. Students return to classrooms. All outside doors and classroom doors are locked and no one is permitted to enter or exit the building.

“We will release more information as it becomes available.”

[Read more…]

First Presbyterian offers free meals, groceries on Dec. 9

Posted at 11:09 pm December 4, 2021
By Carolyn H Krause Leave a Comment

First Presbyterian Church will provide a free meal and bag of groceries to food-insecure guests who drive by the church between 5:30 and 6 p.m. on Thursday, December 9.

The church’s monthly “Welcome Table” community meal program plans to supply each guest with a meal consisting of a soup, chips, fruit, and brownies. In addition, a bag of groceries will be delivered to each car.

Guests should drive through the church parking lot to the sanctuary building (1051 Oak Ridge Turnpike) at the intersection of the Turnpike and Lafayette Drive to collect the foods donated by church members or paid for by the congregation’s hunger fund. Church volunteers wearing masks will deliver the hot meal and groceries to guests in their cars.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

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Memory, hope mark Tuesday church event

Posted at 11:07 pm December 4, 2021
By Carolyn H Krause Leave a Comment

Lighting candles at a previous Service of Memory and Hope at First Presbyterian Church in Oak Ridge. (Submitted photo)

A Service of Memory and Hope will be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, December 14, in the sanctuary of First Presbyterian Church at 1051 Oak Ridge Turnpike. The public is invited. Face coverings will be required.

The service will feature music by local composer and pianist John Purifoy, Steve Boyce (vocal), and Anna Thomas (flute). They will present “Psalms of Comfort” using Purifoy’s musical arrangements of select Psalms for the occasion, a press release said.

Emily Anderson, pastor of New Providence Presbyterian Church in Maryville, will share a brief meditation. [Read more…]

Register now for winter-spring 2022 ORICL courses

Posted at 9:52 pm December 4, 2021
By Carolyn H Krause Leave a Comment

An ORICL course during the winter-spring term will explore Zentangle, a fun, easy-to-learn, relaxing method of drawing beautiful images with structured patterns. As a meditational art form, every Zentangle stroke is mindful rather than mindless (like doodling). (Submitted photo)

Would you like to learn about fascinating characters in Oak Ridge history and in the Old West, as well as hear the voices of those who shaped the Golden Age of Radio? Are you familiar with the story about the Oak Ridge Wildcats football team that won the national championship in 1958?

Would you like to learn the best ways to research your family’s history and identify potential ancestors? Do you know all sides of the gun issue in our country? Do you wish to hear from a former Oak Ridge mayor and his wife how to run a local political campaign?

These and other interesting topics will be addressed in courses that will be taught during the winter-spring term of the Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning (ORICL), a press release said. Most of the smorgasbord of 65 courses will be presented in person but a few will be online via Zoom or as hybrid classes (in person and online). ORICL’s in-person and hybrid classes will be held mostly in the Coffey-McNally building on Roane State Community College’s Oak Ridge Branch Campus at 701 Briarcliff Avenue.

The fall catalog is posted on ORICL’s www.roanestate.edu/oricl website. The registration form and calendar are also posted there, the press release said. Online registration opened Tuesday, December 7. Paper registrations can be brought to the office or mailed by December 14. The office will be closed from December 15 to January 3. [Read more…]

Indoor Winter Farmers’ Market opens Saturday

Posted at 9:01 am December 4, 2021
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

*Farmer Tracy Monday of Enlightenment Acres is pictured at Winter Farmers Market in Oak Ridge in 2018. (Submitted photo)*

More than 30 farmers, bakers, and artisan crafters are moving indoors Saturday, December 4, for the sixth season of the Winter Farmers’ Market, which will be open Saturdays through March from 9 a.m. to noon.

The market is located in the gym at St. Mary’s School at 323 Vermont Avenue in Oak Ridge. Customers may shop in person or choose curbside pickup or home delivery through the Market-To-Go program.

“The Winter Farmers’ Market brings local food and local folks together in a unique and fun way, with great food, live music, cooking demonstrations, free kids’ activities, artisan crafts, and more, indoors all winter,” said Rebecca Williams, director of Grow Oak Ridge, the local nonprofit that produces the market.

“We have two ways to shop again this year: in-person and online through Market-To-Go.”

The market offers an abundance of locally grown cool season produce like kale, spinach, lettuce, and gourmet mushrooms, and even some winter strawberries and tomatoes, a press release said. It also carries free-range eggs, pasture-raised meats, tilapia, local honey, artisan breads, pastries, unique handmade bath and body products, and handmade gifts from local artisans.

[Read more…]

Gov. Lee pardons Anderson County resident

Posted at 4:55 pm December 3, 2021
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

An Anderson County man was among those pardoned by Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Thursday.

Lee announced executive clemency decisions for 17 offenders “who have demonstrated a successful path to rehabilitation and established a new process for individuals seeking clemency for drug-free school zone convictions.” The power of executive clemency includes exonerations, pardons, and commutations, or a reduction in a person’s sentence.

Brandon Benson was the Anderson County man who was pardoned.

A copy of the pardon posted online said Benson was convicted of aggravated assault in Shelby County in January 2005 and sentenced to three years of probation. The conviction and other misdemeanor convictions were the result of behaviors related to substance abuse, the pardon said.

Lee said executive clemency was justified in the case because Benson has “turned his life around since 2012 and is committed to his recovery, his family, and his community.” Benson earned his bachelor’s degree in religion from Liberty University in 2019, and he mentors other people with substance abuse issues as a drug and alcohol counselor at HOPE of East Tennessee.

[Read more…]

Kern Methodist has Holiday Bake Sale on Saturday

Posted at 4:23 pm December 3, 2021
By Linda Maddox Leave a Comment

All proceeds go to support local and global missions having a focus on women, youth, and children. (Submitted image)

Kern Methodist Church in Oak Ridge will have a Holiday Bake Sale from 2-4 p.m. Saturday, December 4.

The sale is from 2-4 p.m. Saturday in the Family Life Center at the church on 451 East Tennessee Avenue. It will include cakes, cookies, candy, breads, jams, and pecans, according to a submitted image. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Christmas Tree Lighting this evening

Posted at 1:46 pm December 2, 2021
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

oak-ridge-christmas-tree-lighting-a-dec-2-2016 — *A previous Oak Ridge Christmas tree lighting in 2016 in Alvin K. Bissell Park. (File photo by City of Oak Ridge)*

The City of Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department will have its annual Community Christmas Tree Lighting on Thursday, December 2, starting at 6:30 p.m. at the Pavilion in A.K. Bissell Park. The tree, a Norway Spruce, was presented by the Oak Ridge Woman’s Club to the city and has become part of a growing community tradition, a press release said.

The event will kick off at the outdoor A.K. Bissell Park Pavilion with seasonal music and the Park Board Awards ceremony. There will also be light refreshments provided by Y-12 Federal Credit Union and the Park Board, the press release said.

Following the program, participants will proceed to the Secret City Commemorative Walk on the east side of the Oak Ridge Public Library parking area for a brief ceremony ending with the tree lighting.

[Read more…]

Man charged with vehicular homicide after fatal hit-and-run

Posted at 10:22 pm November 29, 2021
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Dannon Ray Cole, 50, Clinton, has been found, arrested, and charged with aggravated vehicular homicide after he allegedly hit a 39-year-old man, Jordan Pitts, riding a motorized bicycle on Clinch Avenue (Clinton Highway) early Saturday, November 20, and then fled. (Photo courtesy Clinton Police Department)

A 50-year-old Clinton man has been found, arrested, and charged with aggravated vehicular homicide after he allegedly hit a 39-year-old man riding a motorized bicycle on Clinch Avenue early Saturday, November 20, and then fled.

No one witnessed the fatal hit-and-run crash between the pickup truck allegedly driven by Dannon Ray Cole, 50, and the motorized bicycle carrying Jordan Pitts, 39, and the Clinton Police Department did not immediately have a suspect vehicle. The 3:30 a.m. crash near Portwood Road, a short drive from downtown Clinton on Clinton Highway, killed Pitts.

The person who called 911 found Pitts in the road, the CPD said. Pitts died later.

But when investigators responded, they found evidence at the crash site that helped them identify the hit-and-run vehicle, according to Anderson County court records. The evidence included vehicle parts: a portion of a front grill and red markings including the letter “G” and half of the letter “M”.

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Dannon Ray Cole, 50, Clinton, has been found, arrested, and charged with aggravated vehicular homicide after he allegedly hit a 39-year-old man, Jordan Pitts, riding a motorized bicycle on Clinch Avenue (Clinton Highway) early Saturday, November 20, and then fled. (Photo courtesy Clinton Police Department)

Note: This story was updated at 9:20 a.m. Nov. 30.

The person who called 911 found Pitts in the road, the CPD said. Pitts died later.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

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Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!