Oak Ridge Today

Pancake Breakfast fundraiser on Saturday to support local humanitarian programs

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Pictured above is recent community mission work by members of First United Methodist Church. (Submitted photo)

Pictured above is recent community mission work by members of First United Methodist Church. (Submitted photo)

 

The First United Methodist Church Oak Ridge Adult Missions Ministry will sponsor a fundraising Pancake Breakfast at Applebee’s Restaurant on Saturday morning.

The church’s Missions Ministry supports many local humanitarian programs such as ADFAC, TORCH, Family Resource Center at Oak Ridge Schools, Ecumenical Storehouse, Free Medical Clinic, Girls Inc., Agape House, Tabitha’s Table, and Second Harvest “Food For Kids,” a press release said.

The Pancake Breakfast is scheduled from Saturday, December 9, from 8-10 a.m. [Read more…]

Community Band has free Christmas Concert & Sing-along on Sunday

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Christmas Concert 2015 at First Baptist Church in Oak Ridge (Submitted photo)

Christmas Concert 2015 at First Baptist Church in Oak Ridge (Submitted photo)

 

The Oak Ridge Community Band/Wind Ensemble will ring in the Christmas season with a Christmas Concert and Sing-along on Sunday afternoon, December 10.

It’s a free event, and it will begin at 3:30 p.m. Sunday in the sanctuary of the First Baptist Church, which is at 1101 Oak Ridge Turnpike. The performance is open to the public, dress is casual, and there will be refreshments at the conclusion of the program, a press release said.

“This concert is a wonderful opportunity to bring family and friends to relax and enjoy hearing familiar holiday tunes and sing favorite Christmas carols,” the press release said.

Among the numbers on Sunday’s program are two of Leroy Anderson’s most well-known holiday tunes: “A Christmas Festival,” featuring a medley of carols, and the time-honored piece “Sleigh Ride,” in which you can not only hear the bells on the horse pulling the sleigh, but the crack of the whip, the clip-clop of the horse’s hooves, and the horse’s distinctive neigh, the press release said. [Read more…]

Police catch man six minutes after robbery reported at Arby’s

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Tyler Gilmore

Tyler Gilmore

 

The Oak Ridge Police Department said it caught a suspect within six minutes of a robbery being reported at the Arby’s restaurant on South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge on Thursday afternoon.

The strong armed robbery was reported at 2:10 p.m. Thursday at the restaurant, which is at 114 South Illinois Avenue.

“Officers saturated the area and apprehended the suspect within six minutes of the initial call,” the Oak Ridge Police Department said.

“Police learned that the suspect forcibly took a patron’s wallet as he was entering the restaurant,” the ORPD said. “The suspect fled on foot into a nearby neighborhood. Once police captured the suspect, they were able to recover the stolen wallet containing $13.00 in cash. No injuries were reported.” [Read more…]

Clinton crash injures one

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Information from WYSH radio

A single-vehicle crash Thursday evening in Clinton sent one person to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville by Lifestar.

Few details of the crash have been made available, but WYSH reported that Clinton Police Department and Clinton Fire Department units, along with Anderson County EMS personnel, responded to the westbound lanes of Highway 61 near the rock slide area at about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.

The victim, believed to have been the driver of the lone vehicle involved, was flown to UT Medical Center by a Lifestar medical helicopter for treatment of his or her injuries. [Read more…]

Roane State Winter Concert is Saturday at O’Brien Theatre

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Roane State Winter Concert Dec 9 2017

It’s a longstanding tradition at Roane State and a great way to celebrate the holiday season.

The annual Winter Concert featuring all of the college’s music department ensembles will be held at 7 p.m. on Saturday, December 9, in the O’Brien Theatre on the Harriman campus, and everyone is invited, said a press release from Roane State Community College.

“All donations collected at the door will help support the Roane State music programs, including our 2018 summer choir tour to Italy,” music department professor Brenda Luggie said.

“This is one of our main on-campus concerts for the season,” she said.

Featured will be the Celebration Singers, Concert Choir, Jazz Band, Stage Band, and Bluegrass Band. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Chamber’s Christmas Parade is Saturday

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Last year's Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce's annual Christmas Parade was Saturday, Dec. 10, 2016. (File photo by Eli Welton)

Last year’s Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce’s annual Christmas Parade was Saturday, Dec. 10, 2016. (File photo by Eli Welton)

 

More than 100 entries have registered to participate in the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce’s annual Christmas Parade. The parade will take place on Saturday, December 9, beginning at 6 p.m. Line-up for those participating will begin at 4 p.m. at Corporate Center on the corner of Lafayette and Laboratory Roads.

This year’s theme is “A Toyland Christmas: Past 75 Years/Future 75 Years,” and the parade promises to provide spectators with plenty of music, lights, and beautiful floats, a press release said. The parade will be a part of Oak Ridge’s 75th Anniversary Celebration. Sponsor of this year’s parade is The Cowperwood Company.

For those who wish to watch the parade, the route begins at Corporate Center, on the corner of Lafayette and Laboratory Road. From there, the parade will travel down Lafayette to the Oak Ridge Turnpike. It will continue west on the Turnpike to Oak Ridge High School. The judge’s stand will be located in front of the Chamber. [Read more…]

Holiday Express trains coming to Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge

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Holiday Express at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge will feature G-scale model trains and a miniature village decorated for the holidays. Here, a CSX model train passes the train station, ready for the holidays. (Submitted photo)

Holiday Express at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge will feature G-scale model trains and a miniature village decorated for the holidays. Here, a CSX model train passes the train station, ready for the holidays. (Submitted photo)

 

All aboard the Holiday Express at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge!

A miniature village with 10 garden-scale model trains and thousands of lights will open at the Children’s Museum on Friday, December 8. The Holiday Express features a 2,500-square-foot G-scale railroad display inside the Children’s Museum gymnasium, with the 10 trains running consecutively. The display will be open through January 1.

Designed by landscaper and train enthusiast Mark Fuhrman, the display includes rivers, waterfalls, and more than 100 scale model buildings decorated for the holidays. The trains include logging trains, freight trains, and passenger trains. Many buildings in the village Fuhrman created are scale model replicas of East Tennessee structures, most depicting the architecture during logging days in the Smoky Mountains. [Read more…]

Senior Center to host holiday reception Friday

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The Oak Ridge Senior Center’s annual Holiday Reception will be Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in the Oak Ridge Civic Center gymnasium. Pictured above is a picture from last year's Holiday Reception. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge Senior Center’s annual Holiday Reception will be Friday, Dec. 8, 2017, in the Oak Ridge Civic Center gymnasium. Pictured above is a picture from last year’s Holiday Reception. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

 

The Oak Ridge Senior Center will host a Holiday Reception for area senior citizens on Friday, December 8, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event will be held in the gymnasium of the Civic Center, located at 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Local seniors are invited for a light lunch of sandwiches, chips, and cookies, as well as holiday music and fellowship, a press release said. The senior center’s guitar group will be playing live Christmas music. Bingo will be offered, and door prizes given away. Goodie bags will also be given out while supplies last. [Read more…]

Grace Lutheran has guided gratitude meditation on Saturday

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Linda Doyle

Linda Doyle

 

The Grace Lutheran Mental Health Ministry will host a guided gratitude meditation program on Saturday.

The meditation will be led by retired licensed clinical social worker and CONTACT volunteer Linda Doyle in the church fellowship hall.

The program is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. Saturday, December 9, at Grace Lutheran, which is at 131 West Gettysburg Avenue behind Woodland Elementary School in Oak Ridge.

The presentation is free and open to the community, and child care will be provided, a press release said.

It said the guided meditation will be ecumenical in nature and appropriate for people of all faiths. [Read more…]

New fund seeks to make Oak Ridge a premier living, working community

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A new Oak Ridge fund seeks to make Oak Ridge the premier living and working community in Tennessee, a press release said.

The Oak Ridge Fund for Achieving Community Excellence, or ORFACE, is a newly established affiliate fund of East Tennessee Foundation, the press release said.

“ORFACE will help shape Oak Ridge’s future by reinforcing our established role in science, enriching the programs and tradition of excellence in our public school system, and stimulating economic development, and by including all our citizens in contributing to and benefiting from this community,” the release said. “It is intended to inspire us to imagine creative, distinctive, and ambitious community projects and to motivate our entities and organizations to collaborate on achieving those projects.

“We begin with a modest endowment and will make our first grants as Oak Ridge is celebrating its 75th anniversary. We will continue to build our endowment by ongoing gifts and from bequests by those who want to build excellence in Oak Ridge beyond their lifetimes.” [Read more…]

Health care to be discussed at Lunch with League on Tuesday

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Walter Davis

Walter Davis

The speaker for Lunch with the League on Tuesday, December 5, will be Walter Davis, who will discuss health care issues, a press release said. The meeting will be held from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, which is located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Davis has served as executive director of the Tennessee Health Care Campaign in Nashville for the past 4.5 years. He previously served as executive director for the National Organizers Alliance in Washington, D.C. He is a graduate of the University of Louisville (Kentucky Southern College) and served in Colombia in the Peace Corps. He was recognized in February 2017 as the Community Shares’ Danny Mayfield Champion of Change for life achievement in social justice, the press release said.

The mission of THCC, a 28-year-old advocate organization, is to work for affordable, accessible health care for all Tennesseans, the release said. [Read more…]

Winter Farmers Market opens for second season Saturday, bringing local foods indoors

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With greenhouses and hoop houses, local farmers are able to grow everything from kale to red, ripe tomatoes all winter long, and they will be for sale at the Winter Farmers Market in Oak Ridge, starting Dec. 2, 2017. (Photo courtesy Grow Oak Ridge LLC)

With greenhouses and hoop houses, local farmers are able to grow everything from kale to red, ripe tomatoes all winter long, and they will be for sale at the Winter Farmers Market in Oak Ridge, starting Dec. 2, 2017. (Photo courtesy Grow Oak Ridge LLC)

 

The Winter Farmers Market by Grow Oak Ridge LLC opens for its second season on Saturday, offering fresh, locally grown farm products indoors all winter to Oak Ridge. The market will open Saturday, December 2. It will be open the following Saturdays through February, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., in the gym at St. Mary’s School, which is at 323 Vermont Avenue in Oak Ridge. It is closed December 23 and December 30.

“You’ll see an even bigger selection of selection of locally grown produce this year, including red, ripe tomatoes,” said Rebecca Williams, market director. “Our growers are really stretching the season with their greenhouses and hoop houses. We have tremendous variety at the Winter Farmers Market this season.

“Plus, we’re really excited to be able to offer the regional ‘Fresh Savings Program’ this year,” Williams said. The program doubles a shopper’s SNAP (food stamp) benefits, up to $20 for fruits and vegetables.

On opening day, customers can enter a free drawing for 20 Market Dollars. The drawing is at noon, and you can also enter at www.GrowOakRidge.org. [Read more…]