Oak Ridge Today

Unitarian Universalists consider new site in east Oak Ridge

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Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church Site

Members of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church voted 131-2 to try to buy this 4.6-acre site in front of the Joe L. Evins Federal Building for a new church. (Photo courtesy of Jake B. Morrill)

They’ve agreed to sell their current church to make way for a new shopping center, and on Sunday, members of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church voted overwhelmingly to try to move to the east end of town.

The congregation voted 131-2 to buy a 4.6-acre site in front of the Joe L. Evins Federal Building, home of the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office. The plot is beside Summit Medical on Laboratory Road.

But they haven’t closed on the deal yet, the church’s minister, Rev. Jake B. Morrill, said Monday morning. In a press release Monday afternoon, members of the Church’s Relocation Steering Committee said the due diligence process is not complete, and a closing date hasn’t been set.

Assuming the deal is completed, the next step would be to design a building. The church said it is working with an architect “to begin a congregation-wide process to design a new church using a sustainable, green design for the new facility and preservation of as much of the existing park-like setting of the parcel as possible.”

Church members expect to be in their new home by Thanksgiving 2014.

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Fire starts with cooking oil, ends with baking flour

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A fire that started in a pan of hot oil in a West Outer Drive home Thursday and spread to an artificial plant on top of kitchen cabinets ended when a neighbor dumped baking flour on the plant, extinguishing the flames, a fire report said.

A West Outer Drive man told firefighters he had been heating oil to cook frozen chicken nuggets earlier in the day and left the oil unattended, an Oak Ridge Fire Department report said. When the man returned to the stove, the oil was on fire.

The man picked up the pot and headed for the front door but decided the fire in the pan was too large, the report said. So, he placed the pan in the sink and turned on the water.

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Renovations affect access to ORPD records section

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Starting Monday, the public will not be able to access the records section at the Oak Ridge Police Department from the north side of the Municipal Building.

Anyone who needs to access the Records Section or needs assistance from the Police Department should enter the building on the south side, at the west doorway, Oak Ridge Police Chief James T. Akagi said in a press release Friday.

“Once you enter the doorway, you will be greeted by an officer who will assist you with your inquiries for records or service,” the press release said.

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Jo Anne Perrell Giles

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Jo Anne Perrell Giles

Jo Anne Perrell Giles

Jo Anne Perrell Giles, age 80, passed away peacefully at NHC Health Care Center in Oak Ridge on Jan. 3. She is now at peace in the presence of her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, along with family and friends who have gone before her.

She was born Sept. 9, 1932, to Joseph and Isabell Haynes Perrell. Mrs. Giles has been a resident of Oak Ridge for 45 years and worked as a volunteer for many years as a Pink Lady. She was a member of Calvary Baptist Church of Oak Ridge.

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Joseph Randall Dunbar

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Joseph Randall Dunbar, most beloved son of Kenneth J. and Kathy (Sweitzer) Dunbar, went with peace and grace in the arms of Jesus on Jan. 2.

Joseph is survived by his most loving sister and best friend, Sarah (Michael) Harper of Richmond, Va. Mike was always more like a brother to Joseph. He is also survived by his devoted niece, Ashley Harper of Richmond, Va., whom he cherished dearly; five aunts he loved dearly and one in particular in Oak Ridge who loved to spend her spare time with Joseph; four uncles; and first, second, and third cousins too numerous to mention.

Our family is one of the closest there could ever hope to be.

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Auto parts manufacturer SL Tennessee expanding in Clinton

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SL Tennessee, a company that manufactures automotive parts in Clinton, is expanding their operations, the Anderson County Economic Development Association announced Friday.

The company will lease a 65,000-square-foot building owned by the Hollingsworth Companies in the Eagle Bend Industrial Park. The building will be used primarily for warehousing and distribution and will house about 25 employees, a press release said.

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School board to consider superintendent search, interim superintendent

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During a Monday meeting, the Oak Ridge Board of Education could ask former school superintendent Robert J. Smallridge to serve as interim superintendent.

Tom Bailey, the most recent superintendent, retired at the end of the year, and the school board has not hired a replacement.

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New Year’s resolution seminar on health, wellness at Anderson Chamber

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Anna Dark

Anna Dark

A Jan. 16 seminar at the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce will feature a fitness director who will discuss ways to keep health and wellness resolutions in the new year.

“Every year, millions of Americans make the New Year’s resolutions: increase physical activity, lose weight, eat better, etc.,” a press release said. “Unfortunately, after a few months of the new year, many of those Americans find themselves back into the old habits, and the New Year’s resolutions are done.”

During the seminar, Take Charge Fitness Director Anna Dark will “map out” how people can keep their resolutions and meet their wellness goals, the release said.

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Woman charged with aggravated kidnapping

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An Oak Ridge woman has been charged with aggravated kidnapping after she allegedly closed a door on a Clinton woman attempting to leave a North Jefferson Circle home during a “verbal disturbance” last week, and struck the woman around the neck and face, authorities said.

Brittany L. Hagen, 25, reportedly went to the North Jefferson Circle home at about 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 28, and contacted a resident about the child they had together, according to an affidavit filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court. The man allegedly told Hagen she needed to leave, but she did not, the affidavit said.

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Judge recommends against dismissing Y-12 protester charges, says weapons work not a war crime

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Transform Now Plowshares

The three anti-nuclear weapons activists pictured above allegedly cut through fences and vandalized a high-security building at the Y-12 National Security Complex in July and now face federal charges of property destruction, property depredation, and injuring national defense premises. From left to right the three are Michael R. Walli, Megan Rice, and Greg Boertje-Obed. (Submitted photo)

The charges against three protesters accused of breaking into the Y-12 National Security in July should not be dismissed, a federal judge recommended Wednesday.

U.S. Magistrate Judge C. Clifford Shirley Jr. said the three anti-nuclear weapons activists—Greg Boertje-Obed, Megan Rice, and Michael Walli—have argued that the charges must be dismissed because the production, processing, and storage of nuclear weapons at Y-12 is illegal under United States and international law.

The defendants also contend that the production and continuing threat of the use of nuclear weapons is a war crime and violates international law, Shirley said in a 20-page report and recommendation filed in U.S. District Court in Knoxville on Wednesday.

“The defendants assert that their nonviolent actions to expose and disarm symbolically nuclear weapons were legal, reasonable, and justified,” Shirley said. “Thus, they conclude that laws designed to protect property, such as the statutes charges in the instant case, cannot be applied in such a way that they abrogate the federal and international laws of war.”

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DOE manager discusses Oak Ridge Reservation at Jan. 10 meeting

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Larry Kelly

Larry Kelly

Larry Kelly, manager of the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office, will be the featured speaker on Thursday, Jan. 10, at a joint meeting of two local nonprofit organizations. His speech is titled “Managing resources on the Oak Ridge Reservation in a changing environment.”

The talk is sponsored by Advocates for the Oak Ridge Reservation and the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association. It starts at 7 p.m. Jan. 10 at the Midtown Community Center Wildcat Den, and it is open to the public.

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WYSH: Clinton zoo needs Christmas trees for critters

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Information from WYSH Radio

The Little Ponderosa Zoo and Rescue in Clinton will accept live Christmas trees for animals.

The deer, goats, camels, donkeys, and emus (among others) love the greens, and the porcupines eat the trunk. And tigers love to play with the trees.

The nonprofit Little Ponderosa Zoo is are open for winter hours Saturday and Sunday from 10-4 p.m., but workers are available to accept trees any day this week if you call (865) 457-5536. Trees will be accepted any time up to Jan. 15. Live wreaths and garland will be accepted, but brush will not be.

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