Oak Ridge Today

Meet and greet for Marshall, a school board candidate, tonight

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Paige Marshall

Paige Marshall

Oak Ridge resident and community volunteer Dottie Thompson will host a “meet and greet” tonight for Paige (White) Marshall, a candidate for the Oak Ridge Board of Education.

The meet and greet is from 7-8:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 14, at Thompson’s home at 25 Windhaven Lane in Oak Ridge.

“I’m so appreciative of Dottie for hosting this event,” Marshall said. “I’ve known her family for 30 years, and her support and endorsement mean the world to me. This type of gathering provides a great opportunity to meet folks face to face and better hear and understand the viewpoints of our citizens.”

Visit www.facebook.com/PaigeMarshallORBOE for more information about Marshall.

Y-12 to hold emergency management exercise Wednesday

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New Hope Center

New Hope Center

New Hope Center to be closed to public until noon

Emergency response personnel from the State of Tennessee and the Y-12 National Security Complex—along with other federal, state and local emergency management personnel—will conduct an emergency management exercise on Wednesday, October 15, at Y-12’s New Hope Center.

Because of the activities associated with the exercise, New Hope Center, located on Scarboro Road, will be closed to the public from 8 a.m. to noon the day of the exercise, and so will East Portal Road from Scarboro Road up to and including Portal 13.

The exercise should be completed by late morning or early afternoon, a press release said. [Read more…]

Tea Party meeting this evening to feature Frank, Wells

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Terry Frank

Terry Frank

The Anderson County Tea Party meeting this evening will feature Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank and Aaron Wells, a candidate for Oak Ridge Board of Education.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. today (Tuesday, October 14) at the Red Cross building on Oak Ridge Turnpike.


Aaron Wells

Aaron Wells

Other agenda items will include a presentation by the “Yes on 1” group, member reports from the latest Oak Ridge City Council meeting, and a book raffle of “Rules for Radicals” by Saul Alinski. The Red Cross building is located at 908 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge.

This meeting is open to the public and will last until approximately 8 p.m., a press release said.

Strong to severe storms, flooding possible today

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Strong to Severe Storms

 

Strong to severe storms and flooding are possible across the region as a band of showers and storms slowly moves east across the area, forecasters said.

A flood advisory is in effect in Oak Ridge and Clinton, among other areas, through 11:15 a.m., and a flood watch is in effect from noon to 11 p.m.

The National Weather Service in Morristown has also issued a wind advisory that applies to Oak Ridge and Clinton, among other areas. It’s in effect through 8 p.m.

The NWS said heavy rainfall of one to two inches can be expected across much of the area, and rainfall of up to three inches is possible in a few locations. The rain and storms are expected today over the southern Appalachians and eastern Tennessee Valley as a strong storm moves east from the Mississippi Valley, slowly pushing a cold front across the area. [Read more…]

Lady Wildcats win District 3 Championship, play for regional title Tuesday

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Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats Volleyball District Champions

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats volleyball team won the District 3-AAA championship on Wednesday night at Central High School and will play for a regional title at Bearden High School on Tuesday. (Submitted photo)

 

Submitted by Coach Carmen Foster

The Oak Ridge High School Lady Wildcats volleyball team went into the District 3-AAA volleyball tournament undefeated.

The Lady Wildcats faced the winner of Powell and Central for their first match last week. Powell overcame a scrappy Central team to advance into the District Round.

The Lady Wildcats beat Powell in straight sets: 25-9, 25-15, and 25-13. They were led by a wonderful serving game led by senior captain Rachel Card and freshmen Reagan Dickens with nine and 10 service aces, respectively. Sophomore Alex Sherles had the most kills of the evening with 10. Sophomore Beth Wyatt, who is currently replacing the injured Emily Lawless in the setter position, added 32 assists. [Read more…]

Sewer rehab work continues week of Oct. 13

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More rehabilitation work of the city’s sewer collection pipes is scheduled to continue this week, starting Monday, October 13.

The work is being done by Hurst Excavating and Morgan Contracting under contract with the City of Oak Ridge. It includes rehabilitating sewer collection pipes within city easements in yards and in roadways, a press release said. [Read more…]

Unitarian Universalists celebrate new church with week of free music, craft fair

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The Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church is celebrating the opening of their new church with a week of music and an annual craft fair.

The new church is at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike, on the north side of the Joe L. Evins Federal Building.

The week of music includes a performance by the Y’uns on Friday, October 17. Also beginning on October 17 and continuing on Saturday, October 18, the ORUUC will have its annual craft fair, a press release said.

The music events started Saturday, October 11, and end Sunday, October 19. The community is invited to attend, and all music events are free, the press release said. [Read more…]

Dine and Donate, an ADFAC fundraiser, returns Monday

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ADFAC Dine and Donate at Salsarita's

Will and Leo Mauk-Olson help deliver supplies to Salsarita’s in Oak Ridge. Salsarita’s is a first-time Dine and Donate participant and one of five local restaurants participating year-round. (Submitted photo)

Dine and Donate, a fundraiser for ADFAC, begins its second year of food and fellowship on Monday, October 13.

On Dine and Donate Mondays (the second Monday of each month), seven to eight local restaurants donate a significant portion of their daily sales to ADFAC (Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties).

“Dine and Donate is a great way for local residents to try new restaurants or visit their favorites,” said ADFAC Board Member Cande Seay, who also chairs the Dine and Donate committee. “Last year, hundreds of local families and over a dozen restaurants came together to raise thousands of dollars to support ADFAC’s mission.”

Restaurants participating on Monday, October 13, are Hoskins and Riverview Grill in Clinton, and Mediterranean Delight, The Other One, Papa Murphy’s, Razzleberry’s, and Salsarita’s in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Guest column: Progress PAC helps broaden conversation of community issues

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By Progress PAC

We are very proud that the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce has entrusted us to serve as the members of Progress PAC, the multi-candidate political action committee created by the Chamber and focused on our upcoming school board and city council elections. Though we are appointed by the Chamber’s Board of Directors, we operate independently from that same board.

Some people in the community have questions about how Progress PAC will operate, who we might support, and how endorsements might be made. Some have criticized the timing of Progress PAC’s establishment, and we acknowledge it could have been better. However, our primary goal is to have a positive impact in this election cycle.

Now that Progress PAC has been created, we are largely autonomous. The Chamber’s Board may not approve or disapprove of any endorsement decisions we may make; the Chamber’s Board cannot approve or disapprove of contributions that Progress PAC either receives or distributes. The Chamber contributes no funds to PAC operations; we are supported by donations made directly to the PAC and we must report those to the appropriate election commissions. [Read more…]

Habitat for Humanity celebrates special day with mortgage burning

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Sherrea Seiber

Sherrea Seiber

Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County will celebrate World Habitat Day with a special mortgage burning ceremony on Sunday morning at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Oak Ridge.

The ceremony will feature Sherrea Seiber, who has paid her mortgage in full after 20 years, a press release said.

World Habitat Day was Monday, October 6. The Sunday morning ceremony starts at 11 a.m. at St. Stephen’s at 212 North Tulane Avenue.

The press release said Seiber applied for a house in 1993. At that time, she had two children living at home. [Read more…]

Wildcats cross country: Great result in only second race

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Boys Varsity at McCallie Invitational

The Oak Ridge Wildcats boys varsity team is pictured above in September at the McCallie Invitational in Chattanooga. (File photos/Photos by Nichole Zawiswa)

 

CARY, N.C.—The Great American Cross Country Festival is the largest and most competitive cross country meet in the Southeast. This year’s event included US #2 LaSalle, Rhode Island, as well as most of the top 15 teams in the Southeastern United States. The top event is the Race of Champions, and the meet includes several other varsity and junior varsity events.

The Oak Ridge girls were in the Seeded Invitational, while the boys got a last-minute invitation to the top-level Race of Champions. The Cross Country festival was in Cary, North Carolina, this past weekend.

The Wildcats’ best result of the day came in the ROC, where the boys finished 11th of 21 really competitive teams. LaSalle won with 132 points. Daniel Boone (Tennessee) was third with 144 and Brentwood (Tennessee) fifth with 216. Oak Ridge scored 291. The Wildcats set a school record for fastest team average on a 5K course at 16:18.

“Great result for us in only our second race of the season,” Oak Ridge cross country coach Allen Etheridge said. “Most of these teams have run between five to eight races this season and are race sharp already. That’s going to take us a few more races, which is fine. We ran well today and lined up well with our Tennessee competition.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge fire chief selected to serve on state commission

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Darryl Kerley

Darryl Kerley

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam has announced the appointment of Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley to the Commission on Firefighting Personnel Standards and Education as a representative of the Tennessee Fire Chief’s Association, the Tennessee Fire Safety Inspectors Association, and the Tennessee Fireman’s Association.

The appointment is effective immediately and runs through July 31, 2020, a press release said.

Kerley has more than 37 years’ experience in fire and emergency services, serving in various capacities for several East Tennessee agencies, including fire chief for the Seymour Volunteer Fire Department, rescue technician and diver for the Knoxville Rescue Squad, and fire chief for the U.S Department of Energy at the K-25 Gaseous Diffusion plant in Oak Ridge.

In a letter to Kerley, Haslam stated: “I consider it very important to ensure that Tennessee’s boards and commissions are filled with the most dedicated and qualified citizens. I believe your participation is certain to leave a positive impact on this board and the work it does.” [Read more…]