Oak Ridge Today

City explains how to request use of athletic facilities in 2017

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Organizations are invited to request use of athletics facilities by the end of January for the time period of March 1, 2017, to October 31, 2017.

Please be aware that your request is not a reservation until it has been reviewed and approved. Organizations or groups with delinquent paperwork or fees will not be considered in the reservation process. Only requests for the stated period of time will be considered. Facilities will be block-booked ahead of time for expected city and school use.

The City of Oak Ridge is asking that all facility requests be submitted by 5 p.m. January 31, 2017. Requests received by this date will be given priority over later requests, but please understand that city and school use of facilities will have priority throughout the year. [Read more…]

ORHS Brass Quintet at Band Concert this Thursday

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Santa with the Oak Ridge High School Brass Quintet: Michael Bytell-Lancer—trumpet, Logan Swain—trombone, Ty Dahl—trumpet, Travis Pitz—horn, and Issair Franquez—tuba. (Photo credit: Atom Ray Photography, Angela Carr, photographer; used with permission)

 

The Oak Ridge High School Brass Quintet welcomed Santa to Jackson Square on Saturday, and the Brass Quintet will be just one of the student groups to be enjoyed at the ORHS Band Concert this Thursday.

“Band directors Spence Milligan and Mike Spirko—along with the JazzKats, Concert Band, Symphonic Band, and Combined Bands—invite you to come and enjoy an evening performance with a little jazz, a little jingle—and a lot of jolly!” organizers said in a press release. “The always popular annual rendition of ‘Sleigh Ride,’ by Leroy Anderson, performed by the Combined Bands will surely make your season bright!” [Read more…]

ORAU Diversity Council hosts 2016 Veterans Appreciation Day

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Eddie Mannis (pictured above) served as the keynote speaker for a Veterans Appreciation Day event on Nov. 10, 2016. He is the founder of HonorAir Knoxville and highlighted the impact the organization has had on veterans and the East Tennessee community. (Photo by ORAU)

 

On Thursday, November 10, the ORAU Diversity Council hosted 2016 Veterans Appreciation Day at the ORAU Pollard Auditorium in Oak Ridge to acknowledge the great sacrifices and contributions of our service men, women, and their families.

Here are two photos by ORAU. [Read more…]

Linden Elementary, Midway Middle win $1,000 for environmental programs

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“Voice of the Vols” Bob Kesling, director of broadcasting/play-by-play for the Vol Network, and Etta Clark, vice president of global public affairs and policy at Eastman, present the 2016 Good Sports Always Recycle winners at Linden Elementary School with their award. (Submitted photo)

 

Linden Elementary School in Oak Ridge and Midway Middle School in Ten Mile were recognized at the University of Tennessee homecoming game as two of the statewide winners of the Good Sports Always Recycle, or GSAR, program’s school challenge. Seven other schools were also recognized. All nine were awarded $1,000 each for their programs.

The award sponsors were Eastman Chemical Company, Food City, Waste Connections of Tennessee, and the University of Tennessee, a press release said.

The other GSAR School Challenge winners were Abintra Montessori School in Nashville, Cleveland High School in Cleveland, Emmett Elementary School in Bristol, Fayette Academy in Somerville, John Adams Elementary School in Kingsport, Newport Grammar School in Newport, and Union Elementary STEM and Demonstration School in Gallatin.

New Hope Christian Academy in Memphis was awarded $1,500 for the GSAR Sustainability Steward Award, and Libertas School of Memphis was awarded $1,500 for the Best New Program. [Read more…]

ORHS Orchestra presents tribute to Trans-Siberian Orchestra on Dec. 15

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Oak Ridge High School Orchestra will present its third annual tribute to Trans-Siberian Orchestra on Thursday, December 15. The concert is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. December 15 at Oak Ridge High School Performing Arts Center.

The public is invited to attend this high-energy concert, which will also include several traditional holiday favorites, organizers said.

Tickets are $3 at the door.

For more information, visit www.orhsorchestra.org.

Gooch seeks second term as mayor

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Warren Gooch (2016 file photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch is seeking a second two-year term as mayor. Gooch has written a letter to the rest of the seven-member Oak Ridge City Council outlining why he is seeking re-election.

The Oak Ridge City Council is expected to appoint a mayor and mayor pro tem during its next meeting on December 12.

Four City Council members expressed an interest in serving as mayor two years ago, but so far this year, Gooch is the only one who has asked to be appointed.

The Oak Ridge City Council appoints two of its members as mayor and mayor pro tem at a regular meeting after each municipal election—they’re held every two years—and after all newly elected members have been duly qualified, according to the Oak Ridge City Charter. There was a municipal election on November 8 this year. [Read more…]

Underage drinking town hall meeting held at Ritz Theatre

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CLINTON—At the Ritz Theatre in Clinton on Wednesday night, the Anderson County Underage Drinking Task Force held a well-attended Town Hall meeting to discuss underage drinking. A panel of experts was assembled to discuss the issue and answer questions raised by members of the audience.

Panelists included Russell Barker, director of the Seventh Judicial Crime Task Force; Kim Guinn, director of Project AWARE; Gary Terry, assistant principal, athletic director, and mentor at Anderson County High School; and Jack and Mary Lou Winkler, parents in partnership with MADD.

“Underage drinking is not a minor problem; it’s a major one,” Barker said. “Almost every case I’ve ever investigated as a police officer has had alcohol or drugs involved.” [Read more…]

Proposed DOE waste disposal site to be discussed at Lunch with the League on Tuesday

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Ellen Smith

Ellen Smith

The U.S. Department of Energy’s proposal for a new disposal site for waste from ongoing cleanups, and some concerns that have been raised regarding the DOE proposal, will be the subject of Ellen Smith’s presentation at Lunch with the League on Tuesday.

Lunch with the League is scheduled to start at 11:45 a.m. Tuesday, December 6, in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, which is located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Smith is on the staff of Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Environmental Sciences Division. She is a member of the Oak Ridge City Council, where she serves are mayor pro tem. [Read more…]

Roane State emergency services students gather donations to help firefighters

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Students Ruben Sotomayor, left, and Cameron Driskill gather supplies at Roane State’s Knox County Center for Health Sciences that will assist emergency responders working the Sevier County wildfires. (Photo by Roane State)

Students Ruben Sotomayor, left, and Cameron Driskill gather supplies at Roane State’s Knox County Center for Health Sciences that will assist emergency responders working the Sevier County wildfires. (Photo by Roane State)

 

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

KNOXVILLE—A student at Roane State’s Knox County Center for Health Sciences collected donations for exhausted firefighters who have been combatting the inferno that has devastated Gatlinburg and the surrounding region.

Ruben Sotomayor, 29, of Caryville launched his effort Tuesday morning after seeing news reports of the widespread destruction.

“I felt I needed to do something,” he said. “They (firefighters) are exhausted. They need something to eat and drink.”

Sotomayor quickly received Roane State’s approval to set up a collection site at the college’s Knox County campus, 132 Hayfield Road. The campus is a hub for the college’s emergency medical services programs and courses. [Read more…]

Photos: New Winter Farmers Market in Oak Ridge

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The new Winter Farmers Market in Oak Ridge opened in the gym at St. Mary’s School on Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016. The Farmers Market is open Saturdays 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at St. Mary’s from December through February. (Photo by Julio Culiat)

 

The new Winter Farmers Market in Oak Ridge opened in the gym at St. Mary’s School on Saturday, December 3. The Farmers Market is open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., December through February.

The new Winter Farmers Market, by Grow Oak Ridge LLC, features items from hand-roasted coffee to hydroponically raised tilapia. It brings more than 40 local food and artisan vendors indoors for the first time ever in the Secret City, organizers said.

The St. Mary’s School gym is at 323 Vermont Avenue in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Hearing scheduled for OS man charged in two store robberies

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Wallace Wade Tidwell

Wallace Wade Tidwell

 

A hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday for an Oliver Springs man charged in two store robberies in Clinton.

The first robbery was reported at the Clinton BP on North Charles Seivers Boulevard on June 13, 2015, and the second was reported at Rocky Top Market in Clinton on July 19, 2016.

Wallace Wade Tidwell III, 38, of Kingston Avenue in Oliver Springs, is charged with aggravated robbery in the first case, and robbery in the second. A hearing for him has been set for 1 p.m. Wednesday, December 7, in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton.

In the first case, the robbery reported at Clinton BP in June 2015, Tidwell allegedly came out of the bathroom, approached a store clerk behind the counter, and demanded money from the cash register—after telling the clerk he “had a bad day,” according to an affidavit filed in General Sessions Court. [Read more…]

First guilty plea in cocaine conspiracies leads to 10-year prison sentence

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Marvel Lynette Carpenter

Marvel Lynette Carpenter

 

The first defendant to plead guilty in one of two alleged conspiracies involving close to three dozen defendants and 300 grams or more of cocaine has received a 10-year prison sentence, according to court records.

Marvel Lynette Carpenter, 45, of Oak Ridge, pleaded guilty to 10 drug-related charges in Anderson County Criminal Court on Friday, November 18.

Carpenter had been indicted May 3 in an alleged 24-person conspiracy. There was also an alleged 11-person conspiracy. A roundup of the cocaine conspiracy suspects started Thursday, May 5, as several law enforcement agencies swept through Oak Ridge and possibly other communities in what authorities described as a complex, multi-county criminal investigation. Authorities said parts of the investigation were unprecedented.

Carpenter had been charged with conspiring to manufacture, distribute, and sell 300 grams or more of cocaine—and conspiring to possess with the intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell 300 grams or more of cocaine. Those were Class A felony charges. [Read more…]