Oak Ridge Today

Bruce Edward Williams Sr.

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Bruce Edward Williams Sr.

Bruce Edward Williams Sr.

Bruce Edward Williams Sr., 87, of Oak Ridge passed away on Aug. 10 at Parkwest Medical Center.

He was born Aug. 29, 1925, in Rewey, Wis., to parents Henry H. Williams and Mary Ruth Hackman Williams.

Mr. Williams retired from Martin Marietta Energy Systems in 1992 as a machinist after 30 years of service.

He was a veteran with the U.S. Army and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

He was a kind and loving gentle man who loved his family and all things nature. [Read more…]

Raymond Miller (Ray) Clark

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Raymond Miller (Ray) Clark, passed away Saturday, Aug. 10, at Methodist Medical Center in Oak Ridge. He was 67 years old.

Ray was born in Ringgold, Ga., to Ralph Robinson and Gertrude Gibson Clark. He attended Ringgold High School and joined the U.S. Navy after graduation.

For most of the next 50 years, he served his country. Ray served 15 years in the Navy, serving throughout the duration of the Vietnam War. His military service was followed by 28 years working with various government contractors. He spent three years with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers in Saudi Arabia and 25 years with the U.S. Department of Energy and Department of Health and Human Services/Centers for Disease Control in Oak Ridge.

He attended school at the University of Idaho and the University of Louisville. [Read more…]

Dorothy Merle Gunderson Alford

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Dorothy Gunderson Alford

Dorothy Gunderson Alford

Dorothy Merle Gunderson Alford, age 83, of Oak Ridge, passed away Wednesday, Aug. 7, at the University of Tennessee Medical Center.

Dorothy was born Aug. 17, 1929, in Minneapolis, Minn., to the late Lloyd and Ellen Millington Gunderson. She received her bachelor’s degree in home economics at the University of Minnesota and was last employed by Millers Department Store as a clothing buyer. Dorothy was an active member of Grace Lutheran Church, where she served as a reader, usher, was in many church circles, volunteered at the fairs, sold trade coffee, and was instrumental in starting the Ecumenical Store House and served since 1982.

Dorothy, along with her husband David, was an avid motorcycle touring enthusiast, having traveled coast to coast in the United States and Canada. Her family has many fond memories and great stories of traveling to many of the national parks where they enjoyed camping and all that the parks had to offer. She was everything to her family, especially her husband, and enjoyed watching her grandchildren and great-grandchildren in school soccer, football, chorus, dance recitals, and scouting. Dorothy was a member of the Garden Club of Oak Ridge, Panhellenic, and served as a leader and held may other positions for the Campfire Girls for many years. [Read more…]

Thelma Elizabeth Rink

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Thelma Elizabeth Rink

Thelma Elizabeth Rink

Thelma Elizabeth Rink, better known as Terry, age 84, of Clinton, passed away Thursday, July 25, at Methodist Medical Center in Oak Ridge.

Terry enjoyed life to the fullest, loved her cat Patches, and loved playing bingo. She worked at Ace Hardware on Market Street in Clinton from 1993-2007.

Terry was preceded in death by her husband, Erick George Rink; parents, William T. Bulmer and Iva Margaret Matilda Newman Bulmer; brothers, Earl Hughes, Mossam (Lucky) Hughes, and Rae Abbey; sister, Margaret Della Marie Keusch; and brothers-in-law, George Keusch and Frank Crisologo. [Read more…]

Daws Bridges

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Daws Bridges, age 88, a resident of Harriman, went home to be with his Lord and Savior on Thursday, Aug. 8, at the Methodist Medical Center in Oak Ridge.

Mr. Bridges was born April 11, 1925, in LaFollette. In 1934, he moved to this area before serving in the Civilian Conservation Corps and the U.S. Navy. He began employment with Union Carbide at K-25 in the maintenance department and then with the University of Tennessee Experiment Station working with animals, plants, and waterways. He also worked as a heavy equipment operator in Clinton. Before his retirement, he owned and operated Bridges’ Town and Country Nursery in Oak Ridge from 1972 until 1996.

Daws was a faithful Christian, and he attended the Beechfork Holiness Church in Wartburg. [Read more…]

Edward C. Kirstowsky

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Edward Charles Kirstowsky

Edward Charles Kirstowsky

Edward C. Kirstowsky, 92, a longtime Oak Ridger, passed away at his home on Memorial Day, May 27.

Born in Detroit, Mich., on Aug. 13, 1920, Edward was the fourth child of Frederick W. and Frieda Ehlow Kirstowsky, German immigrants who settled in the Detroit area. He wed Mary Grace (Marigrace) Weeks from Clarksdale, Miss., on June 28, 1947. They spent 64 happy years together before her death in September 2011. They were both longtime members of Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Oak Ridge.

Edward grew up in Saginaw, Mich., graduating from Arthur Hill High School in 1938 with honors. He earned his B.S. degree in metallurgical engineering from the University of Michigan. He attained his master’s degree from the Chrysler Institute of Engineering. During the war, he was assigned to the K-25 uranium isotope separation plant in Oak Ridge, from which he retired in 1984 after 39 years of service.

His memberships included the American Society for Metals, American Institute of Metallurgical Engineers, American Welding Society, Charter Member of Oak Ridge Country Club, and before his death, he was the longest living member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks Lodge #1684. [Read more…]

Nathan Edward Wilson

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Nathan Edward Wilson

Dr. Nathan Edward Wilson

Dr. Nathan E. Wilson, age 80, of Oak Ridge, expired and went to heaven on July 21 at Methodist Medical Center.

He was born May 5, 1933, in Four Mile, Ky., the son of Edgar and Carrie Wilson. Dr. Wilson retired from his dental practice of over 40 years in Oak Ridge. He was a retired commander in the U.S. Navy.

Dr. Wilson was an avid musician, golfer, bowler, joke teller, Kentucky sports fan, and bacon cheeseburger lover. He also enjoyed and loved his family. [Read more…]

Lillian Virginia Tilley

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Lillian Virginia Tilley

Lillian Virginia Tilley

Lillian Virginia Tilley, age 88, of Oak Ridge, passed away on Saturday, Aug. 3, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s.

She was born on April 14, 1925, in Stonega, Va. She was first employed with the Stonega Coke and Coal Co. in the payroll department. Lil and her family moved to Oak Ridge in 1954. With the nickname “Busy,” that is indeed how she lived her life. She had many jobs including selling Avon and working as a store clerk at Miller’s Department Store, Proffitt’s, and the Shoe Box, all while dedicating her life to her family. Her passions were her grandchildren, cooking, sewing, gardening, and playing on Watts Bar Lake. [Read more…]

Carl William Gehrs

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Carl William Gehrs

Carl William Gehrs

Dr. Carl William Gehrs, age 72, of Oak Ridge, died Thursday, Aug. 1, at his home.

He was born May 4, 1941, in Elmhurst, Ill., the son of Carl John and Pearl Hitzke Gehrs and grew up in the western suburbs of Chicago: Westmont and Lombard, where his father was a Lutheran teacher. The first 16 years of his education were in Lutheran schools, and it was at Concordia Teacher’s College in River Forest, Ill., that he met his future wife, Judith Diane Hein.

Following graduation, they were married and taught in Chicago. He taught biology and later became dean of students at Luther High School South, where he also helped coach football. They later lived in Kansas and Oklahoma as he continued his education. After receiving his PhD, the family moved to Oak Ridge in 1972. He worked at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory until 1999, retiring as director of the Center for Biotechnology. [Read more…]

Patricia Burris Hair

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Patricia Burris Hair

Patricia Burris Hair

Patricia Burris Hair, age 79, of Oak Ridge, went to be with the Lord on Wednesday, July 31, at Park West Medical Center in Knoxville.

She is survived by her husband, Carl E. “Eddie” Hair Sr. of Oak Ridge; son, Carl E. “Eddie” Hair Jr., of Oak Ridge; daughter Lisa West and husband Greg of Oneida; sister, Deloris Ann “Snookie” Foster of York, S.C.; and nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Pat was a loving wife, mother, sister, grandmother, and great-grandmother, as well as a dedicated servant to our Lord and Savior. She served as church organist at Glenwood Baptist Church in Oak Ridge for more than 25 years and had a passion for music, mission work, and Bible school. She was a beacon of light to anyone around her. [Read more…]