Oak Ridge Today

Thursday lecture to focus on preventing invasion by non-native forest pests

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A Thursday evening lecture in Oak Ridge will focus on preventing the invasion of non-native forest pests.

It’s sponsored by the University of Tennessee Arboretum Society and the UT Forest Resources and Education Center, and it’s their last lecture series of 2014. It’s jointly sponsored by Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning and the Tennessee Nature Conservancy, press releases said.

The talk will be given by Martin Wood, Conservation Coordinator with the Tennessee Nature Conservancy. It’s scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Thursday, November 13, in the City Room of Roane State Community College in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Neighborhood Watch, Police Department have pancake breakfast on Saturday

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Neighborhood Watch Pancake Breakfast

Nick and Pat Imperato are pictured above at a previous Neighborhood Watch pancake breakfast at Applebee’s. (Submitted photo)

 

Join your neighbors at a Community Pancake Breakfast on Saturday hosted by the Oak Ridge Police Department Community Resource Office and the Oak Ridge Neighborhood Watch Program.

The breakfast is scheduled from 8-10 a.m. Saturday, November 15. The breakfast will be held at Applebee’s at 1213 Oak Ridge Turnpike, and tickets are $5. Tickets are available at the door.

The breakfast offers residents an opportunity to meet Officer Brandan Sharp—the Oak Ridge Police Department’s community resource officer, who serves as a liaison to the Oak Ridge Neighborhood Watch Program—and to learn more about the city’s Neighborhood Watch crime prevention program.

[Read more…]

What’s happening in Oak Ridge from Nov. 13-19

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Here is a summary of events happening in Oak Ridge from Thursday, November 13, and continuing through November 19.

This weekly listing of events is compiled by the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau: [Read more…]

Thanks + Giving: UT researcher says gratitude may be a key to happiness

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KNOXVILLE—’Tis the season to be grateful. And, being grateful for what you have may be the key to happiness, according to research by a professor at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.

Jeff Larsen, associate professor of psychology, and Amie McKibban of the University of Southern Indiana investigated whether the maxim “it’s more important to want what you have than to have what you want” is true.

He asked college students if they possessed 52 different material items, such as a car, a stereo, or a bed. They were then asked to rate how much they wanted the items they had and how much they wanted the items they didn’t have. Larsen calculated the extent to which the students wanted what they have and have what they want.

The result? People who want more of what they have tend to be happier. [Read more…]

First pageant for special needs girls on Saturday

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The first Miss Sparkle Princess Pageant for special needs girls will be Saturday at the Grove Theater in Oak Ridge.

Fifteen teenage girls from many area cities are entered in the pageant, which is sponsored by WVLT Local 8 news and many Oak Ridge and Knoxville businesses, a press release said. Erin Barnett, Local 8 news anchor will emcee the pageant, which is expected to become an annual event.

It’s scheduled to start at 3 p.m. Saturday, November 15. The cost to attend the pageant is non-perishable food items that will be donated to Second Harvest Food Bank.

The press release said the pageant was created and is being directed by 17-year-old Abigail Ridenour of Oak Ridge.

Small business workshop on government contracting on Dec. 2

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The Tennessee Small Business Development Center will have a free workshop for small businesses on the basics of government contracting on Tuesday, December 2.

The workshop is being conducted in partnership with the University of Tennessee CIS-PTAC. It’s scheduled from 9 a.m. to noon December 2 at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce at 1400 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge.

To sign up, call (865) 483-2668, email Jutta Bangs at jbangs@tsbdc.org, or visit www.roanestate.edu/tsbdc.

The Tennessee Small Business Development Center at Roane State Community College advises and assists entrepreneurs and small business owners in the area at no cost to them.

UT Arboretum Society has annual dinner tonight

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The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society’s Annual Dinner and Silent Auction will be held at 6 p.m. today (Tuesday, November 11) at the Elks Club in Oak Ridge.

The speaker will be Richard Evans, retired director of the Arboretum’s Forest Resources and AgResearch Education Center for 39 years. He will recap the Arboretum’s history, programs, research, and advancements during the first 50 years.

The evening will begin with at 6 p.m. with a social hour (cash bar) and silent auction followed by a buffet dinner at 7 p.m. A brief a brief business meeting will take place, followed by Evans’ presentation.

Silent actions items include fine crafts, gifts certificates, signed books, art, wine and accessories, hard tools, and much, much more, a press release said. “Arrive early for the best bidding and to chat with other Arboretum supporters!” [Read more…]

Children’s Museum Gala has Celtic theme

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Good Thymes Band

Good Thymes Band

 

Guests will dance jigs and reels to fiddlers’ tunes as they enjoy “A Celtic Holiday” at the annual Gala hosted by the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge. The Gala, celebrating the culture and cuisine of Scotland and Ireland, will be held from 6-11 p.m. Friday, December 5, at the museum, which is at 461 West Outer Drive in Oak Ridge.

The Good Thymes Ceilidh Band, playing traditional Scottish music, will entertain after dinner with fiery Scottish tunes, as well as aires and waltzes. Guests will learn jigs and reels as the band plays with fiddles, guitar, penny whistle, bodhran, mandolin, and hammered dulcimer. The band formed in 2008 when several members of the Knoxville Scottish Music Club got together.

The Knoxville Pipe and Drums, wearing the ancient Mackenzie Tartan, will also entertain during the lively Celtic evening. The group has been together since the early 1990s, when three pipers began playing bagpipes together, adding a number of pipers and drummers over the years.

Becky Hook will perform Celtic music on the harp during dinner, a traditional Scottish feast prepared by Chef Mark Ferguson of The Scottish Cottage in Asheville, North Carolina. The Oak Ridge High School Chorus and an ORHS String Quartet will also entertain during the Gala. [Read more…]

Sewer rehab work continues week of Nov. 10

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More rehabilitation work of the city’s sewer collection pipes is scheduled to continue this week, starting Monday, November 10.

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…]

Science fiction authors, publishers panel at DoubleTree on Tuesday

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Tennessee Valley Interstellar Workshop Logo

There will be a panel of science fiction authors and publishers at the DoubleTree Hotel in Oak Ridge on Tuesday night.

The panel will follow the Third Tennessee Valley Interstellar Workshop being held from Sunday to Tuesday this week in conjunction with the release of the movie “Interstellar.”

“See, hear, and meet Sarah Hoyt and Dan Hoyt, Tony Daniel, Toni Weisskopf, Les Johnson, and Paul Gilster,” a press release said.

The panel is free and open to the public. Books will be available for sale, and there will be a book-signing.

Guided gratitude mediation offered Saturday morning

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Linda D. Doyle

Linda D. Doyle

A guided meditation of gratitude will be hosted by the Mental Health Ministry of Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church on Saturday, November 8. The meditation, which will be led by licensed clinical social worker and CONTACT volunteer Linda Doyle, will begin at 10:30 a.m. in the church fellowship hall.

The church is located at 131 West Gettysburg Avenue in Oak Ridge. The event is free and open to the public, and child care will be provided.

Doyle said in notes about the meditation that it is a type appropriate for all faiths and for the coming holiday season.

“The theme will be gratitude, keeping in mind the upcoming celebration of our country’s national holiday in November,” Doyle said in a press release. [Read more…]

Recycle electronics, other items; shred documents on Saturday

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You can recycle certain electronics and other items and shred documents during a recycling event on Oak Ridge Turnpike on Saturday.

The recycling program is sponsored by Keep Anderson County Beautiful. It is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, November 8, at the Potter’s Clearance Center next to Willow Ridge Garden Center.

It’s part of the national America Recycles Day, sponsored by Keep America Beautiful.

During the local event, Scott Recycling of Knoxville will collect old computers and peripherals, cell phones, rechargeable and button batteries, compact fluorescent light bulbs (no tubes), used books (not text books), and eyeglasses. For televisions, there is a charge of $20/TV and $1 per CRT computer monitor because of current expenses associated with recycling CRT screens. No TV cabinetry will be accepted. Scott Recycling from Knoxville will be recycling the electronics. [Read more…]