Oak Ridge Today

DOE to conduct emergency preparedness exercise June 7

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Emergency responders from the U.S. Department of Energy and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Y-12 National Security Complex, and East Tennessee Technology Park, along with federal, state, and local emergency management personnel, will conduct an emergency exercise Wednesday, June 7, a press release said.

“The public may observe emergency responders simulating response activities and performing environmental monitoring or sampling in the area surrounding the Oak Ridge Reservation,” the press release said. “These activities are part of the exercise.”

The exercise will begin at approximately 8 a.m. Wednesday and conclude around 4:30 p.m.

This event is one of a series of emergency exercises conducted regularly by the DOE facilities in Oak Ridge. The exercises test the ability of emergency personnel to respond quickly and effectively to emergency situations and ensure that the public, site employees, and the environment would be protected in the event of an actual emergency at the facilities.

Barker, Crime Task Force director, running for Anderson County sheriff

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Russell Barker, director of Anderson County’s Seventh Judicial Crime Task Force and a candidate for sheriff, is pictured above with supporters during his campaign announcement on April 27, 2017. (Submitted photo)

Russell Barker, director of Anderson County’s Seventh Judicial Crime Task Force and a candidate for sheriff, is pictured above with supporters during his campaign announcement on April 27, 2017. (Submitted photo)

 

Russell Barker, director of Anderson County’s Seventh Judicial Crime Task Force, is running for Anderson County sheriff in the 2018 election.

Barker, who is running as a Republican, announced his candidacy during a campaign event at the Holiday Inn Express in Clinton in April. He was joined at the announcement by his wife Crystal, daughter Ansley, and a standing-room-only crowd, a press release said.

Barker explained why he is running.

“My mother was a nurse at the health department, and I watched her work day and night,” Barker said in the press release. “I saw the impact she made in her community.” At the age of seven, after his father’s passing, Barker said it was Anderson County residents who stepped up and bridged the gap. “It is my turn to give back to a community that has given so much to me,” he said.

Barker said he is a lifelong Anderson County resident who has exemplified a strong commitment of service to his country and community throughout his professional career. [Read more…]

First United Methodist has Vacation Bible School this month

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first-united-methodist-church-of-oak-ridge-jan-2017

First United Methodist Church of Oak Ridge will celebrate recent renovations with an open house on Sunday evening, Jan. 8, 2017. The church is located at the intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike and North Tulane Avenue. (Photo courtesy Jeff Kile)

 

First United Methodist Church of Oak Ridge will be hosting Vacation Bible School “Mighty Fortress” from June 19-22 (Monday-Thursday) from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Children from 4 years old through 5th graders are welcome. FUMC is located at 1350 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

For more information or to volunteer, contact Erin Webb at ewebb@fumcor.org. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge boys summer basketball camps this week, July

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Oak Ridge boys summer basketball camps are this week and again in July.

  • June 6-7—Oak Ridge High School Boys Shooting Camp (Grades K-8th), 5-8 p.m. ($60 pre-registered)
  • July 10-12—ORHS Boys Skills Camp (Grades K-8th), 1-4 p.m. ($85 pre-registered)

To register, contact Aaron Green at hagreen@ortn.edu or go to www.oakridgebasketball.net.

See this form for details: Oak Ridge Basketball Camp 2017.

Children’s Museum hosts Imagination Station Summer Camps

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Young cooks prepare dessert for tasting later at a Children’s Museum summer camp. (Submitted photo)

Young cooks prepare dessert for tasting later at a Children’s Museum summer camp. (Submitted photo)

 

World cultures, model trains, cooking, and gardening, as well as STEAM (science, technology, art, engineering, and math) activities are being offered during Imagination Station Summer Camp beginning June 5 at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge.

With the museum’s unique and enriching environment as a backdrop, camp leaders will provide a blend of educational and interactive play, helping campers learn and grow while having fun in a safe environment. Each camp is created with age-appropriate activities aligned with the child’s developmental stage.

Summer camps, from June 5-July 28, are for children from age 3 through 7th grade, with one bridge camp open to eighth and ninth graders.
Peppy Pepper, the mascot for the museum’s newest exhibit, Kids in Action! Healthy Living, will encourage healthy activities such as growing vegetables and movement during the summer camps.

Register and pay for camps online, at www.childrensmuseumofoakridge.org, by mail or in person, at 461 West Outer Drive, Oak Ridge 37830. Camp fees are fully refundable up until 14 days before the start date. [Read more…]

Letter: Submarine Veterans base commander ‘very disappointed’ with festival this year

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To the Editor:

The Smoky Mountain Submarine Veterans, the Knoxville chapter of the United States Submarine Veterans, has had a booth and performed a Tolling of the Boats Ceremony at the Secret City Festival for the last 11 years. I was very disappointed with the festival this year (Celebrate Our Heroes weekend). It was difficult to deal with the committee in charge of the event; each was helpful but compartmentalized and hard to communicate with as many were volunteers that had day jobs. There were no invitations to planning meetings for participants to get a feel for the event, get emergency information, or face-to-face communication. The parks and recreation people who we normally were able to get help from did not have the information I have found so helpful in the past.

I liked the idea of a separate weekend for veterans, but it seemed to have the effect of diluting the festival and participation was diminished. The food vendors had small or no lines. One of the speakers was Ed Harrell, a survivor of the USS Indianapolis sinking in World War II. Rather than speak to bleachers full of people facing the building and the many people strolling by on the main walkway through the festival, he was on the opposite side of the stage with a limited audience. There were no bleachers as there have been every other year. I have heard Ed speak in the past; this was a loss for those who may have heard him in a denser population of festival attendees.

The festival had fences everywhere dividing it into many individual venues rather than an open festival style setup that encourages a mingling social interface that feeds a festival atmosphere. Like a shopping center that entices people in to see many stores and stroll the halls, a festival is a community function, not a single endpoint of interest. [Read more…]

First Methodist Church to host June PFLAG meeting

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“Come, Learn about Knox Pride” will be the topic at the next PFLAG meeting to be held on Monday, June 5, in the Fellowship Hall of First United Methodist Church. Social time will begin at 6:45 p.m., followed by the meeting from 7 to 8 p.m., a press release said. The church is located at 1350 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge. “Please use the Vienna Road entrance,” the press release said.

The group will share stories of Pride Fests, and prepare for the Knox Pride celebration on June 17. Materials will be available for those who want to display their artistic side and make posters or decorations for the East Tennessee PFLAG booth sponsored by the regional PFLAG groups, the press release said. Everyone is welcome to attend, the release said.

The PFLAG mission is to provide opportunities for dialogue about sexual orientation, gender identities, and to create a society that is healthy and respectful of human diversity, the press release said. [Read more…]

Hobby appointed principal of Woodland Elementary

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Donald “D.T.” Hobby has been appointed principal of Woodland Elementary School in Oak Ridge, starting July 1.

Hobby has a bachelor’s degree from Tennessee Technological University in wildlife and fisheries science, a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction, and an educational specialist in educational administration and supervision, both from Lincoln Memorial University.

He has been employed with Oak Ridge Schools since August 2008, serving as both a teacher and administrator at Secret City Academy and most recently as assistant principal at Robertsville Middle School.

Before he started working at Oak Ridge Schools, Hobby was a science teacher in Knox County Schools from 2004-2008.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

This press release was submitted by Holly Cross.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department asks for help locating runaway juvenile

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Brandon Justin Holeton

Brandon Justin Holeton

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department is asking for the public’s help in locating a runaway juvenile.

Brandan Justin Holeton, 14, ran away from his home in the Powell community and has not returned, the Sheriff’s Department said in a Facebook post on Friday.

Brandan Justin Holeton is described as:

  • White male
  • Age: 14
  • 5’9″
  • 145 pounds
  • Brown hair
  • Brown eyes

Anyone having information as to the whereabouts of Brandan Holeton is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Communications Center at (865) 457-2414.

Caryville man dies in crash near Norris

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A Caryville man died and an Andersonville woman was injured in a two-vehicle crash on Reservoir Road just outside Norris on Thursday, authorities said.

The head-on crash was reported at about 7 p.m. Thursday.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol, which investigated the crash, said a 2003 Nissan Frontier was being driven north on Reservoir Road by Heidi Kuehl, 40, of Andersonville, when it crossed the center line.

A southbound 1995 Toyota Camry driven by Anthony Peterson, 47, of Caryville, “took corrective action” to miss Kuehl’s vehicle, the THP said. [Read more…]

North Ridge Trail the focus of National Trails Day on Saturday

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Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning Logo

Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning Logo

 

North Ridge Trail Stewards will have a celebration/workday effort scheduled for Saturday, June 3. That day is National Trails Day, which was established by the American Hiking Society.

The North Ridge Trail was built many years ago by Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning, and is currently stewarded by Ray and Jo Ann Garrett, a press release said.

The event, which is open to the public, will feature an invasive plant removal session on North Ridge Trail accesses. Participants are asked to meet at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge at 9 a.m. and to wear sturdy shoes and bring bug spray, sunscreen, water, and a hoe, mattock, or lopper if available.

A pizza lunch will be provided around noon. For more information about this event call Sandra K. Goss, TCWP Executive Director, at (865) 583-3967 or write sandra@sandrakgoss.com.

Business leaders support new life for Friendship Bell

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Pictured above are Alan Tatum, left, and Ken Rueter. (Photo by UCOR)

Pictured above are Alan Tatum, left, and Ken Rueter. (Photo by UCOR)

 

Submitted

When Ken Rueter and Alan Tatum met beside the iconic Friendship Bell in Bissell Park recently, they took a moment to reflect on the importance of preserving what the Bell symbolizes to the Oak Ridge community.

Tatum, an accelerator systems and stable isotopes group leader at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, is co-chair of the International Friendship Bell Advisory Committee along with Pat Postma. Rueter is President and Project Manager of URS | CH2M Oak Ridge LLC, or UCOR, cleanup contractor for the East Tennessee Technology Park and other sites on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Reservation. Both men serve on the Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Advisory Board.

The occasion of their May meeting was UCOR’s donation of $15,000 toward an effort to construct a new peace pavilion for the 8,300-pound bronze bell. Cast in Japan in 1993, the bell was dedicated at its current location in 1996 as a 50th anniversary landmark for the creation of the City of Oak Ridge, home to nuclear production facilities that helped end World War II. The bell symbolizes the bonds of peace and friendship that have been forged by Oak Ridge and Japan in the decades since the war ended. [Read more…]