There will not be a Secret City Festival this year, organizers said Thursday.
In April, organizers had announced that the festival, which is normally in June, was postponed. But no new date was announced at that time.
On Thursday, the Secret City Festival board of directors said they have explored every option to have the festival in 2020, but “we have determined that we cannot provide the level of excellence this year that we wish to.”
[Read more…]
Dan Robbins leads an ORICL class on observing birds and butterflies at the Oak Ridge Greenway. (Submitted photo by Don Miller)
Because of the coronavirus pandemic and restrictions on use of Roane State Community College buildings on the Oak Ridge campus, the Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning (ORICL) is offering 25 online and off-site classes for its summer term.
Online registration is now open for the term, which runs from June 1 through July 31 for most classes. The summer 2020 catalog is available on the RSCC website at www.roanestate.edu/oricl. Click on the “Complete list of cancellations/Zoom list” link to see which classes are available and then, if you wish, read about the classes in the online catalog.
Please register by Friday, May 22, by emailing a list of the numbers and names of classes you wish to take to the ORICL office at [email protected]. If you are not an ORICL member, the fee for the summer term membership is $45. [Read more…]
The Sew Good Mask Project is a new organization in Oak Ridge formed to coordinate those making cloth masks with the organizations that are requesting them.
The three Rotary Clubs in Oak Ridge are working together to provide funding for the purchase of supplies for the Sew Good Mask Project as well as other much-needed personal protective equipment.
More than 65 volunteers have joined the Sew Good Mask Project since its creation on April 8. More than 1,100 masks have been donated to places including Methodist Medical Center, Emory Valley Center, the Free Medical Clinic of Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge High School, Oak Ridge Senior Center, Summit Medical Group Oak Ridge, Commonwealth Senior Living at Oak Ridge, Diversicare of Oak Ridge, and more, a press release said.
There are many ways to contribute to the project.
“You don’t need to be a sewer to help out,” said Judi Gray, the main force behind the Sew Good Mask Project.
[Read more…]
Charlie the Curious Bear, the Children’s Museum mascot, clowns around with a helper at a past Children’s Museum Gala. (Submitted photo)
The Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge is inviting children to participate in its first coloring contest featuring the Museum’s mascot, Charlie the Curious Bear. Children from one-year-old toddlers through fourth graders are invited to submit entries by April 30.
Families may print the official coloring page from the Children’s Museum’s home page at https://www.childrensmuseumofoakridge.org. Once the page has been colored and the form at the bottom of the page is completed, the original artwork may be mailed to the Children’s Museum at 461 W. Outer Dr., Oak Ridge, TN, 37830. Original artwork is preferred, but entries may also be scanned and emailed to [email protected].
The Secret City Festival has been postponed this year. A new date hasn’t been announced yet.
“Things will be a little different than usual, but we still look forward to bringing you a fantastic event!” organizers said in a Facebook post on Thursday. “More details to come soon!”
It’s one of four big Oak Ridge festivals that had been scheduled in June but have been affected by the COVID-19 global pandemic.
[Read more…]
The Flatwater Tales Storytelling Festival and writing workshops scheduled for June have been canceled because of COVID-19.
But there will be a virtual storytelling festival on Saturday afternoon, April 18. Part of the proceeds will be used for COVID-19 relief, organizers said.
The Third Annual Flatwater Tales Storytelling Festival had been scheduled for June 6 at the Historic Grove Theater in Oak Ridge. The writing workshops had been scheduled for June 4 and 5 at the University of Tennessee Arboretum.
“This is a challenging time for everyone, and this was a difficult decision,” organizers said. “However, we know that our top priority as a nation right now is to keep as many people as possible healthy.”
[Read more…]
The Lavender Festival, one of Oak Ridge’s most popular festivals, has been postponed to 2021 as the city, state, and country try to limit the spread of COVID-19.
“After consulting with Oak Ridge city officials, and in light of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, we regret to announce that Lavender Festival 2020 will be postponed until June 19, 2021,” said Barbara Ferrell, a Jackson Square business owner and Lavender Festival Committee member. “We agree with city officials that Lavender Festival’s crowd and limited area make it an unsafe event as the COVID-19 virus continues to circulate in our community.
[Read more…]The Winter Farmers’ Market will be open on Saturday, but it will be outside because of concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Winter Farmers’ Market is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, March 28. It will be outside the gymnasium at St. Mary’s School at 323 Vermont Avenue in Oak Ridge.
Vendors will be placed at least 10 feet apart, a press release said.
Customers who are seniors or immune-compromised may order ahead of time for curbside pickup, the press release said. Information on how to do that is listed on the market’s website at www.GrowOakRidge.org.
[Read more…]
Museums and the national park welcome center in Oak Ridge are closed because of COVID-19, the respiratory illness that has infected more than 200,000 people in at least 144 countries around the world and killed more than 8,000 people.
The museums closed in Oak Ridge are the American Museum of Science and Energy, Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge, K-25 History Center, Oak Ridge History Museum at Midtown Community Center (Wildcat Den), and Y-12 History Museum at New Hope Center.
Also closed is the Manhattan Project National Historical Park Welcome Center at the Children’s Museum.
The AMSE bus tours are also not operating now.
[Read more…]Anderson County Schools will be closed through the end of Spring Break on March 27, and extracurricular activities are being suspended. The Clinton Community Center will be closed through at least March 30.
The school system closure is to be cautious and to be in accordance with the latest recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about social distancing, Anderson County Schools said.
The school system is closing its buildings to all outside organizations.
Teachers and staff members were expected to report to work on Monday, March 16 to begin preparing an alternative education plan for students.
[Read more…]
Beth Shea, left, Children’s Museum executive director, receives a check from Panhellenic Alumnae Association President Joan Vicary to help restore and maintain the original Oak Ridge flat top house at the Museum. (Submitted photo)
After hearing plans for an exhibit featuring an original Oak Ridge flat top house, the Oak Ridge Panhellenic Alumnae Association decided to support efforts by the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge to restore and maintain the house.
Joan Vicary, Panhellenic Alumnae Association president, recently presented Children’s Museum Executive Director Beth Shea with a check for $1,800 to help complete the exhibit.
“The decision was unanimous that we wanted to support this project,” Vicary said. The association holds fundraisers and selects an Oak Ridge organization to support each year, a press release said. Members of the group visited the flat top on the museum’s grounds, heard plans for the history exhibit, and decided to help with funds raised in 2019, she explained. [Read more…]
Flashback: The five participating Subway restaurants have supported ADFAC for more than a decade, starting with the first “Feed the Need” event in 2007. This photo is from 2013, taken at the Clinton Subway at 1108 N. Charles G. Seivers Boulevard. (Submitted photo)
On Monday, March 9, you can help local families simply by eating out! On that day, participating restaurants will donate a portion of sales to support Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC).
March’s featured Dine & Donate supporters are five Anderson County Subway restaurants: two locations in Clinton, one in Oak Ridge at 1968 Oak Ridge Turnpike, and one each in Oliver Springs and Rocky Top. Known for sandwiches topped with your choice of fresh ingredients, Subway also offers daily soups, pizza, salads, and fresh-baked cookies, a press release said. [Read more…]
