Oak Ridge Today

Robert Bruce Craig

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Robert Bruce Craig

Robert Bruce Craig

Robert Craig, 69, an environmental scientist, manager and corporate officer for environmental companies in Oak Ridge for nearly 40 years, died Thursday, July 18, at his home.

Dr. Craig, of Oak Ridge, was born April 22, 1944, in Washington, D.C. He was the son of Glenn Horace Craig and Evelyn May Craig, who predeceased him. His friends remember him as a very involved and concerned scientist, and a man with a big heart.

He was retired from MSE Technology Applications, where he served as regional vice president from 2006 to 2012. He came to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Environmental Sciences Division in 1974, where he headed the Environmental Impacts Program.

Dr. Craig was director of the Hazardous Waste Remedial Actions Program (HAZWRAP) from 1984-1994. The program, under his leadership, became a large organization supported by the U.S. Department of Energy and Work for Others program that created hundreds of jobs in Oak Ridge.

In 1994, he helped establish M4 Environmental Technology in Oak Ridge and served as executive vice president until 1997. He later served as vice president of OHM Corporation and senior vice president of Informatics Corp. [Read more…]

Monroe Seiber

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Monroe Seiber

Monroe Seiber

Monroe Seiber, age 81, a resident of Oliver Springs, passed away Tuesday, July 16, at Methodist Medical Center in Oak Ridge.

Monroe was born Aug. 26, 1931, in the New River Community of Anderson County. He has lived in Oliver Springs since 1944.

He retired from Rust Engineering, Construction Division, in 1993. His hobbies included fishing, hunting, and digging ginseng.

Mr. Seiber was a member of Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church. [Read more…]

Larry Bruce Henderson

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Larry Bruce Henderson

Larry Bruce Henderson

Larry Bruce Henderson, age 73, of Oak Ridge, went to be with his Lord on Tuesday, July 16, at Methodist Medical Center.

He was born Nov. 8, 1939, in Anderson County, the son of Floyd Leroy Henderson and Willa Mae Coward Henderson. Mr. Henderson retired from the City of Oak Ridge, where he was a foreman in the Public Works Department.

He was a member of Blessed Hope Missionary Baptist Church, where he had served as deacon until his health began to decline, at which time the church established him as deacon emeritus. He loved his church and was active in all aspects of the church. The Lord was his rock and his faith, and trust in the Lord was monumental.

Mr. Henderson was an avid fisherman and hunter, and he enjoyed gardening. He also loved and enjoyed his family. [Read more…]

Carol Joan Rogers Sloat

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Carol Joan Rogers Sloat

Carol Joan Rogers Sloat

Carol Joan Rogers Sloat, age 67, a resident of Harriman, passed away Tuesday, July 16, at Briarcliff Health Care Center in Oak Ridge.

Mrs. Sloat was born Sept. 17, 1945, in Chattanooga. She lived in Kansas, Clinton, Oak Ridge, and Harriman.

Carol was employed as the manager at Oliver’s Restaurant and Catering in Oak Ridge for 25 years. Her hobbies included crocheting, sewing, cooking, and canning.

She was a member of Central Baptist Church in Oak Ridge; however, she attended Community Baptist Church in Oliver Springs. [Read more…]

Noroma Shannon

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Noroma Shannon, Mrs. Robert L. Shannon, died peacefully in her sleep on July 7, in Alpharetta, Ga. She was born Oct. 18, 1924, to Paul and Myrtle Walker in Minneapolis, Minn., where she completed her early education, graduating from South High School.

At the onset of World War II, she moved to San Diego, Calif., to live with her grandparents and attend college. There she soon met a young Navy ensign who became the love of her life and she would marry. Robert L. (Bob) Shannon Jr., stationed in San Diego, fell in love with Noroma, and they were married six weeks after their first meeting.

After Bob received his ship assignment in the South Pacific, Noroma moved to Boston, Mass. There, their first child Lee, was born in 1945.

When the war ended, the young family moved to Oak Ridge, and there they reared four children, Lee, Melinda, Becky (Rebecca), and John. Bob’s continued activity in the local Naval Reserve ultimately elevated him to lieutenant commander, which paralleled his rise to manager of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Technical Information Center (now the Office of Scientific and Technical Information). As TIC manager, he was also the U.S. liaison for the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency’s technical information program.

During the 1970s, Noroma would sometimes accompany Bob to annual IEA program reviews. One especially-enjoyed trip included visits to Paris, Brussels, and Vienna, which was considered their dream vacation together. 

 [Read more…]

Arthur Daniel Dean

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Arthur Daniel Dean

Arthur Daniel Dean

Arthur Daniel Dean, 87, of Harriman, passed away on July 13 after a brief illness.

Dan was born to parents Arthur Otis and Mattie Odessa Harding Dean in Tarrant City, Ala., on June 3. 1926. He retired from Union Carbide Corporation at the Y-12 facility as an electrician, served overseas with the Army Air Force during World War II, enjoyed fishing, and was an avid gardener, and was a devoted family man. He was also a member of IBEW.

Preceding him in death were his parents and his brother, Cleo Dean, of Chicago, Ill. [Read more…]

B.W. ‘Ben’ Chitwood

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B. W. “Ben” Chitwood, age 88, a resident of Oliver Springs, passed away Saturday, July 13, at the Oneida Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

Mr. Chitwood was born Feb. 27, 1925, in Oliver Springs. He continued to live in Oliver Springs until early adulthood, when he enlisted into the U.S. Navy, where he served his country during World War II.

Following his military discharge, he became a public servant and worked as a police officer in North Carolina, Florida, and Tennessee. In Tennessee, he was employed at the Oak Ridge Police Department, the Roane County Sheriff’s Department, and on two separate occasions he served as the Oliver Springs police chief. While working in North Carolina, his most memorable employment was for the Biltmore Forest Police Department.

Ben was preceded in death by his parents, Harrison B. and Lillian Chitwood, and by two brothers, Harrison Benjamin Chitwood Jr. and Louis Chitwood. [Read more…]

George Joseph Kwiecien

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George Joseph Kwiecien, 85, of Oak Ridge, passed away on July 13.

George was born to parents Joseph and Lucille Loncki Kwiecien on April 7, 1928, in Milwaukee, Wis.

He was a veteran with the U.S. Marines, retiring after 30 years of service. He then retired from Martin Marietta at Oak Ridge National Laboratory as an instrument technician after 22 years of service. George was a master woodworker and had been a member of Oak Ridge Sportsman Association since 1966. [Read more…]

Frank Foust

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Frank Foust

Frank Foust

Frank Foust, age 85, of Oak Ridge, passed away Tuesday, July 9.

Frank was born Jan. 27, 1928, in Lake City to the late William Owen and Dora Miller Foust.

A veteran of the United States Army and Navy, Frank moved to Oak Ridge in 1945. Frank was employed with Oak Ridge National Laboratory for 48 years until his retirement in 1992. He was a member of Faith Masonic Lodge, where he was a 33rd degree mason. Frank enjoyed playing softball and was an avid camper and outdoorsman.

In addition to his parents, Frank is preceded in death by his brother Jakie Foust; sisters, Swela Slover, Daphma Johnson, and Lois Lee Foust; son Timothy Foust; and grandson James Aaron Foust. [Read more…]

Jesse Coleman Sumrell

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Jesse Coleman Sumrell, age 90, of Harriman, formerly of Oak Ridge, went to be with the Lord on Tuesday, July 9, at Methodist Medical Center.

He is survived by daughter, Mary J. Runkles and husband Joe of Harriman; son, Terry Sumrell and wife Sharon of Smyrna, Tenn.; 28 grandchildren; 29 great- grandchildren; many great-great-grandchildren; and special friends, Francis Gutman S.A., Pastor John Underwood and wife Judy, and Wanda Murray.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 57 years, Laura C. Sumrell; sons William L. Mehaffie and Anthony P. Mehaffie Sr.; and sisters, Louise and Bunny.

Mr. Sumrell was born in Brooklandville, Md., on July 26, 1922. He was a World War II veteran who entered the United State Marine Corps in 1942 and served in the Pacific Theaters in the Philippines and Iwo Jima until 1946. He worked as an electrician for more than 25 years. He was a faithful member of Bethel Baptist Church in Harriman. He was an avid bowler and cigar smoker who enjoyed his life and family. [Read more…]