Oak Ridge Today

Oak Ridge resident wins Bojangles’ racing sweepstakes, receives $35,000 cash

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

From left to right are three members of Nancy Witick's family; Ken Reynolds, director of field marketing for Bojangles'; Nancy Witick, center; Clifton Rutledge, Bojangles’ president and CEO; John Gibson, from Streetside Classics; and Bojangles’ mascot “Big Bo.” (Photo courtesy Bojangles')

From left to right are three members of Nancy Witick’s family; Ken Reynolds, director of field marketing for Bojangles’; Nancy Witick; Clifton Rutledge, Bojangles’ president and CEO; John Gibson, from Streetside Classics; and Bojangles’ mascot “Big Bo.” (Photo courtesy Bojangles’)

 

CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Oak Ridge resident Nancy Witick was the grand prize winner of the Bojangles’ Southern 500 “Drivers Start Your Engines” Sweepstakes, and she received $35,000 cash, Bojangles’ Inc. announced Sunday.

Witick also received a weekend race experience at the Bojangles’ Southern 500 that included premium race tickets and a four-day, three-night hotel stay for her and three guests, a press release said.

Bojangles’ is the title sponsor of South Carolina’s only NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.  From July 13 through August 23, Bojangles’ gave race fans a chance to win a retro-classic car or $35,000 cash by entering a unique sweepstakes entry code at www.WinWithBo.com. [Read more…]

AMSE educators receive training at Space Camp

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Kris Light and Renee Kelley in Flight Suits

Kris Light, left, and Renee Kelley in flight suits. (Submitted photo)

 

Kris Light and Renee Kelley, outreach educators at the American Museum of Science and Energy, recently attended Space Camp at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, NASA’s official Visitor Information Center for Marshall Space Flight Center, in Huntsville, Alabama.

The educational program promotes science, technology, engineering, and math, or STEM, while training students and adults with hands-on activities and missions based on teamwork, leadership, and decision-making. Space Camp uses astronaut training techniques to engage trainees in real-world applications of STEM subjects, a press release said.

Light and Kelley were part of the Space Academy for Educators Program, which is designed for teachers who want to advance education in the STEM fields. They experienced astronaut simulators and took a virtual tour into space to save the International Space Station. Trainees also followed lesson plans based on NASA content (which is correlated to the National Science Education Standards) and received content and knowledge to pass on to their students in the classroom. [Read more…]

UT Arboretum Society presents Moonlight Hike on Sept. 26

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

University of Tennessee Arboretum Society Logo

The University of Tennessee Arboretum Society is offering a Moonlight Hike on Saturday, September 26. The hike is scheduled from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the UT Arboretum at 901 South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge.

“Join us as we walk Arboretum trails by the light of the silvery moon,” a press release said.

The hike will begin at the Visitors Center near the parking lot at 7:30 p.m. The 1.5-mile hike will be led by experienced volunteers.

The full moon is Sunday, September 27. The walk was scheduled a day early so that older schoolchildren could participate on a non-school night. [Read more…]

ACSD Crime Prevention offers church safety, security seminar

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Anderson County Sheriff's Department Church and Safety Security Seminar

The Crime Prevention Unit of the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department is presenting a Church Safety and Security Seminar on Saturday, September 19, from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. at LifeHouse Church at 535 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge. This free seminar is open for all churches and denominations.

The Church Safety and Security Seminar is being presented for area houses of worship to assist with emergency planning, a press release said.

“Prior preparation is essential for successful prevention and mitigation of potentially catastrophic events,” the release said. “This seminar will offer valuable information to help prepare.”

An effective plan for keeping congregations safe requires a complete team effort and coordination, the release said. It involves participation of the pastoral staff, ushers, greeters, parking lot attendants, deacons, elders, trustees, medically trained personnel, and many others. Every member of the church team should make plans to attend this seminar. [Read more…]

Attorney to discuss separation of government powers at DAR meeting

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Clinch Bend Chapter of Daughters of the American Revolution will celebrate Constitution Week with a discussion of the separation of government powers at their September 12 meeting.

The guest speaker will be attorney Tim Elrod of Ogle, Elrod, and Baril. Elrod will present “Separation of Powers: The Three Branches of Government and the Effect on Our Lives Today,” a press release said.

The meeting will start at 1 p.m. Saturday, September 12, at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Oak Ridge.

For more information, contact www.tndar.org/~clinchbend or (865) 945-5605.

ORNL project director to discuss world-leading computing at noon Tuesday

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Buddy Bland

Buddy Bland (Photo by ORNL)

Buddy Bland, project director of the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, will discuss world-leading computing and ORNL sciences during a lunchtime meeting Tuesday.

The meeting on Tuesday, September 8, is open to the public.

“Today, the Titan supercomputer at ORNL is one of the world’s fastest and most productive tools for science at every scale,” a press release said. “From the composition of nucleons from quarks, to nanomaterials, to chemistry and biology, to transportation, to fission and fusion reactors, to astrophysics, modeling, and simulation using high-performance computers has transformed the way we do science and engineering. This presentation will cover a brief history of computing at ORNL, where we are going in the future, and the impact that computing has on our local community, the nation, and the world.” [Read more…]

First Community School seminar focuses on early Oak Ridge history

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

D. Ray Smith

D. Ray Smith

The first of the three Community School evening seminars focusing on management of legacy wastes from Oak Ridge will feature local historian D. Ray Smith. The seminar will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, September 15, at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

In his presentation, “Stories from the Secret City,” Smith will give an overview of early Oak Ridge history including how the East Tennessee location was selected and the predictions the “Prophet of Oak Ridge.” In material provided about the presentation, Smith said that many Ed Westcott historical images will form the backdrop for the stories of the history of Oak Ridge during the Manhattan Project. A primary focus will be the Y-12 National Security Complex, which produced the uranium for the first atomic bomb, with some Oak Ridge National Laboratory history included as well.

He said he will touch on the Cold War Era and today’s Oak Ridge missions, and time permitting, give an update on the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. A concluding activity of the first seminar will be an Oak Ridge mapping exercise, led by Community School staff. [Read more…]

Immigration in U.S. to be discussed at Lunch with League 

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

De Ann Pendry

De Ann Pendry

A University of Tennessee lecturer and adjunct assistant professor will discuss immigration in the United States during a lecture on Tuesday, September 15.

De Ann Pendry is a senior lecturer and adjunct assistant professor in anthropology at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.

Immigration has been an issue in the 2016 presidential campaign, and it is relevant to the local, state, and national League of Women Voters, a press release said.

Pendry will be the guest speaker at Lunch with the League at noon, Tuesday, September 15, in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike. [Read more…]

Taste of Anderson County on Sept. 19 helps United Way, Free Medical Clinic

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Taste of Oak Ridge 2013

The Taste of Oak Ridge, which has become the Taste of Anderson County, is pictured above in 2013. (File photo)

 

The Taste of Anderson County on September 19 will feature food and music and help two local organizations: United Way of Anderson County and the Free Medical Clinic.

The Taste of Anderson County, which has been expanded from the previous Taste of Oak Ridge, will be at Jackson Square starting at 4 p.m. Saturday, September 19.

“Flavors from some of the area’s favorite restaurants and the sounds of local musicians will fill the newly renovated parking lot at Jackson Square,” a press release said. “This year will be bigger and better than ever with vendors from all over the county. More importantly, this event brings a substantial amount of support for two local causes: United Way of Anderson County, and the Free Medical Clinic. Both of these nonprofits are working hard this year to make a big impact in the community. But they can’t do it without the community there to support them.”

The entertainment lineup includes comedian and magician Danny Whitson as the master of ceremonies. Whitson is a professional entertainer from Oak Ridge who specializes in magic and comedy. He has been performing for 15 years, the press release said. [Read more…]

Two artists featured in Children’s Museum exhibit

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Artists Marta Goebel-Pietrasz and Pat Clapsaddle will exhibit their art works in a show titled “Five Corners” Sept. 5 through Oct. 1 at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge. The opening reception will be from 2-4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, in Imagination Gallery at the museum, 461 W. Outer Dr., Oak Ridge.

The “Five Corners” refer to five groups of works the artists will be exhibiting. In four corners of the gallery, Goebel-Pietrasz will exhibit mixed media works on paper as one group and three groups of photographs of cats, flora and mountains.

Clapsaddle’s painted clay creations will include platters, bowls, vases, cups, mugs and servers, all telling a story in visual form with themes related to people, places, animals and fish. They will represent the fifth corner, in five showcases in the gallery’s center. Many of her designs are from her own photographs, and she uses reference materials to paint animals and birds on her clay pieces. [Read more…]

Cartoonist Charlie Daniel to talk Sept. 3 at Roane State

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Charlie Daniel

Charlie Daniel, editorial cartoonist at Knoxville newspapers for 57 years, will speak Thursday, September 3, at 3 p.m. in the Goff Health Sciences and Technology Building of Roane State Community College, Oak Ridge campus, off Briarcliff Avenue and Laboratory Road.

His talk will open the second RSCC-Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning intergenerational lecture series and ORICL fall kickoff (where catalogs on the upcoming ORICL fall term will be available). Refreshments will be offered after the lecture.

A native of Richmond, Va., Daniel grew up in Weldon, N.C. He attended Weldon public schools and Fork Union Military Academy before serving as a private in the U.S. Marine Corps. [Read more…]

Man walking across America treks through Oak Ridge

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Ryan Ray Walk Across America Oak Ridge Sign

Ryan Ray, left, is walking across America from Los Angeles to New York, and he passed through Oak Ridge on Monday. Pictured above with Ryan on Monday morning on North Illinois Avenue are Hazel Carroll, Jana Walker, and Carla Brooks, all of Wartburg. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 6:21 p.m.

He’s walked more than 2,300 miles and posed for thousands of selfies with people he’s met along the way. On Monday, he passed through Oak Ridge, trekking from Oliver Springs to Powell.

Ryan Ray is walking across America from Los Angeles to New York City. It’s a 3,050-mile journey that will include a stop at the White House and is expected to end in Times Square on October 10.

Ray said he is following his passions: speaking, traveling, and writing.

“Follow your dreams,” he said during a 90-minute walk from a welcome sign at the north end of Oak Ridge on North Illinois Avenue to the intersection of South Illinois Avenue and Lafayette Drive on the south side of town. “Nothing is impossible.” [Read more…]