Oak Ridge Today

Oak Ridge will have Independence Day fireworks

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Fireworks at Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge on July 4, 2017. (File photo by D. Ray Smith)

Oak Ridge will have its fireworks show to celebrate Independence Day this year.

The annual display was canceled last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The fireworks show will be in Alvin K. Bissell Park on Sunday, July 4, and it is scheduled to begin at dark, around 9:45 p.m.

The Oak Ridge Community Band, now in its 77th year, will perform prior to the fireworks. the press release said. The concert is free, but donations are accepted by the band to help cover the cost of equipment and other expenses. The music is expected to begin at 7:30 p.m.

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Oak Ridge Outdoor Pool re-opens this weekend

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The Oak Ridge Outdoor Pool on Providence Road is pictured above. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge Outdoor Pool opens for the season beginning Memorial Day weekend.

The pool will be open from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, May 29, through Monday, May 31, a press release said. Beginning June 1, summer hours will be in effect. Public swim is Monday through Friday from noon to 7 p.m., Wednesday nights from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The pool will also be open Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to noon for 100-meter lap swim.

“As a reminder, areas of the pool may be closed at times depending on activities, attendance, and staffing,” the press release said. “The kiddie pool will remain closed this season for repairs.”

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AMSE re-opens

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The American Museum of Science and Energy is pictured above on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

After a long closure during the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Museum of Science and Energy has re-opened.

AMSE re-opened at 9 a.m. Friday, May 21.

AMSE will be open to a limited number of visitors at a time, 50. Museum visitors will be asked to maintain an appropriate physical distance from others (the general guidance has been to maintain a distance of six feet or more, when possible, from people who live outside your home).

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Friends of Library Book Sale returns

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Friends of the Oak Ridge Public Library Spring 2021 Book Sale will be Friday, May 21, and Saturday, May 22. Pictured above are FOL President Nancy Hardin, right, and Treasurer Jan Pierce sorting books from a previous year. (Submitted photo)

The Friends of the Oak Ridge Public Library Spring 2021 Book Sale is returning after more than a year.

The Book Sale is Friday, May 21, and Saturday, May 22. It will be a smaller sale at a different location because the Oak Ridge Public Library is not yet fully open to the public, a press release said.

“But we are ready to have a sale to share with you the many items we have received since our last sale in March 2020,” the press release said.

The sale will be held in two rooms on the lower level of the Habitat for Humanity ReStore building in Grove Center. The entrance is on Robertsville Road.

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Scott Jamison receives Children’s Museum Friend of the Child Award

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Scott Jamison, a Children’s Museum volunteer who received the Friend of the Child Award, teaches a summer camp annually in the Museum’s Craft and Science Room. (Submitted photo)

Submitted

When Scott Jamison is teaching children about crime scene investigation or sharing his telecommunications skills at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge, he arrives with a smile that shows his selflessness and generosity.

Jamison recently received the museum’s annual Friend of the Child Award for volunteering his business and telecommunications skills, as well as his teaching skills, when the staff seeks his help.

“When Scott walks in the door, frequently responding to urgent pleas for help, there is only one desire—and that is to make things work,” said Ronnie Bogard, former museum board member who presented the award to Jamison.

The award is presented in memory of Selma Shapiro, Bogard’s mother and the museum’s executive director for its first 31 years. With her vision and resourcefulness, Shapiro built the museum from a its single-room beginnings to fill a former school building. The award was established to honor an individual who has contributed in a big way to the success of the museum. [Read more…]

Anderson County has fireworks Saturday night

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Fireworks at Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge on July 4, 2017. (File photo by D. Ray Smith)

There are fireworks in Anderson County for Independence Day this evening.

The fireworks are funded by Anderson County with help from private donations from businesses and residents.

Anderson County commissioners debated last month whether to have the fireworks because of the COVID-19 pandemic. They also debated how much to spend, with potential amounts ranging between $12,000 and $20,000. The goal was to get to a total of about $20,000.

The fireworks show will start at 9:45 p.m. today (Saturday, July 4) at Anderson County High School. The high school campus will be closed to the public.

Anderson County High School is at 130 Maverick Circle in Clinton, close to Exit 122 on Interstate 75. The Anderson County mayor’s office recommended that anyone watching the fireworks from public areas around Exit 122 use social distancing, which generally means staying six feet away from people who don’t live with you.

There are normally fireworks in cities such as Oak Ridge, but those displays have been canceled this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This year, in what could be a one-time event, the county is hosting and helping to fund the display.

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Protesters want life, liberty, justice

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Civil rights leader Reverend Harold Middlebrook tells Black Lives Matter protesters in Clinton on Thursday, June 11, 2020, that the movement will require more than a march. (Photo by John Huotari/oak Ridge Today)

CLINTON—Civil rights pioneer Anna Theresser Caswell asked people to not hate.

Civil rights leader Reverend Harold Middlebrook told local Black Lives Matters protesters that the movement will require more than a march.

Caswell and Middlebrook were two of about a dozen speakers at a Black Lives Matter march and protest that started at the Clinton football field and ended at Clinton Middle School on Thursday. Several hundred people attended.

Clinton Middle School is where the high school used to be. It was desegregated more than 60 years ago. It’s reported to have been the first high school in the South to desegregate under the U.S. Supreme Court decision Brown vs. Board of Education in 1954.

Caswell, 77, was one of the 12 Black teenagers who walked down from Green McAdoo School on Foley Hill and desegregated the old Clinton High School, which had been all-white, on August 27, 1956.

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More than 1,000 protest for equality, police reforms, end of racism

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Hundreds of people march from Oak Ridge High School to the Civic Center for a Black Lives Matter protest on Tuesday afternoon, June 2, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was updated at 9:45 a.m. June 11.

More than 1,000 people marched and protested in Oak Ridge last week, asking for equal treatment for black people.

They said the nation is obligated to fight systemic racism, racial inequality, and police brutality. They want to live without fear. They advocated for police reforms, accountability, and the use of de-escalation tactics.

Protesters hope to end 400 years of oppression that started with slavery in America in 1619 and continued after the Civil War with attacks on black people, lynchings, the Ku Klux Klan, segregation, discrimination, and racism. That oppression has been felt in Oak Ridge, and some young adults and teenagers said they have experienced or witnessed racism.

Protesters said they were angry, upset, and frustrated. They called the death of George Floyd while he was detained by police in Minneapolis last month a murder. They recalled the deaths of other black men and boys, some killed by police and others by citizens. They acknowledged that there are many good police officers, but they condemned police officers who they said hide behind their badges to do wicked deeds.

“Enough is enough,” protesters said. “We are done dying.”

Hundreds of people meet at Oak Ridge High School before marching to Oak Ridge Civic Center for a Black Lives Matter protest on Tuesday afternoon, June 2, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Protesters met at Oak Ridge High School Tuesday afternoon, June 2, and marched to the Oak Ridge Civic Center. They carried signs and wore T-shirts that said “Black Lives Matter” and “I can’t breathe.” They chanted “No justice, no peace” and, led by organizer Trevor King, “Make racism illegal.” Silence is compliance, the protesters said, and silence in the face of evil is itself evil.

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Updated: July 4 Fireworks Celebration canceled this year

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The annual fireworks show was in Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge on Thursday, July 4, 2019. (File photo by D. Ray Smith)

Note: This story was updated at 11:30 p.m. June 10.

The July 4 Fireworks Celebration in Oak Ridge has been canceled this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a press release, the City of Oak Ridge said the challenges related to COVID-19 include:

  • The Oak Ridge Community Band has canceled its performance.
  • Surrounding areas have also canceled similar events.
  • Those attending the July 4 Independence Day celebration would not be able to successfully follow the social distancing requirements established by the State of Tennessee and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The city said there is a risk of larger crowds and more traffic because other nearby events have been canceled. Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson said residents can instead spend time with family and friends at home.

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No Secret City Festival this year

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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.”

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New at Street Painting Festival: Take the STEAM challenge

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Artists turned Jackson Square into a work of art last year at the annual Rotary Club of Oak Ridge Street Painting Festival. This year’s event will be held on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019, at Jackson Square. (Submitted photo)

The 20th annual Oak Ridge Street Painting Festival at Jackson Square on Saturday will offer a new challenge this year, a press release said.

The October 19 event will be held in historic Jackson Square, and it will offer the first STEAM Challenge. STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics.

The festival will, as always, offer prizes for artists in each category, the press release said. But this year, artists in any category can win an all-ages, all-categories bonus prize as part of the STEAM challenge.

The Street Painting Festival is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Oak Ridge. It’s a fundraiser for Roane State Community College scholarships.

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Taste of Anderson County is Oct. 17

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An aerial view of Taste of Anderson County in Jackson Square. (Submitted photo)

Taste of Anderson County will be in Jackson Square this month. It’s scheduled from 5-10 p.m. Thursday, October 17.

“The annual food festival and fundraiser for United Way of Anderson County is the perfect way to spend a fall evening, with free activities for the kids, live music, alcohol tastings, and of course, tastes from your favorite local restaurants,” a press release said.

Soup Kitchen, Burchfield’s, Sassy Pants, Volunteer Dogs, Murray’s Oak Ridge, Freddy’s, Sicilia Pizza, Aubrey’s, and Panda Express are just a few of the restaurants to choose from, the press release said.

In addition, several local breweries and distilleries will be at the event to provide tastings. Beer tastings will be provided by Fanatic Brewing; Seven Springs Farm will be offering wine tastings; Sugarlands Distilling Company will have moonshine to sample; and Postmodern Spirits will be providing tastes of some of their vodkas, gins, and whiskeys. [Read more…]