Oak Ridge Today

Coach Kreis of Coalfield dies after battling brain cancer

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Garry Kreis

Garry Kreis

Information from WYSH Radio

Former Coalfield Head Football Coach Garry Kreis passed away Monday morning after battling brain cancer.

Kreis played wide receiver for the University of Tennessee in the late 1960s after playing high school football at Oliver Springs. He landed at Coalfield as an assistant coach in 1979 as a teacher, head basketball coach, and assistant football coach. In 1987, he was promoted to head coach of the Coalfield football team and held that post until his retirement in 2008. [Read more…]

Community sets up memorial fund to build statue to honor former coach

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Garry Kreis

Garry Kreis

 

By J. Brad Jones

COALFIELD—The people of Coalfield and Oliver Springs have put aside their sports rivalry to come together to honor one of their own.

Garry Kreis, also known as “High Pockets,” played his high school football in Oliver Springs and at the University of Tennessee before becoming a teacher at Norwood Middle School in Anderson County.

In 1979, he became the assistant football coach at Coalfield High School, as well as the head basketball coach and teacher. For the next 28 years, Coach Garry Kreis was Coalfield football. Garry was assistant coach until 1987, when he became the head coach. He continued that role through 2007.

Recently, Garry Kreis was diagnosed with esophageal cancer and was doing very well with that until he received the bad news that the cancer had spread to his brain. Coach Kreis was placed in hospice care on March 14, 2017, where he remains now. However, Garry’s health has been deteriorating rapidly.

The community has begun several projects to honor the memory of Coach Garry Kreis for his continued dedication and support of the Coalfield community. [Read more…]

Short section of Highway 62 closed north of Oliver Springs

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A short section of Highway 62, also known as Knoxville Highway, is closed north of Oliver Springs, authorities said Wednesday afternoon.

Both lanes are closed for about one-quarter mile between Big Mountain Road and Lookout Avenue, the Oliver Springs Police Department said.

The road was closed at about 2 p.m., and it could be closed a few more hours, the Oliver Springs Police Department said at 4 p.m. Wednesday. [Read more…]

Updated: Two teens injured in ATV crash in Morgan County

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UT-Lifestar-Oliver-Springs-Nov-27-2015

Two teenagers were injured in an ATV crash in Coalfield in Morgan County at about 3:16 p.m. Friday, Nov. 27, 2015, and one was flown to a hospital by a UT Lifestar medical helicopter that landed in Oliver Springs, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 9 a.m. Nov. 28.

OLIVER SPRINGS—Two teenagers were injured in a two-vehicle ATV crash in Coalfield in Morgan County on Friday afternoon, and one of them was flown to a hospital by a medical helicopter that landed in Oliver Springs, authorities said.

The teenager flown to the hospital is a 14-year-old who had been driving a 2007 Suzuki Eiger 400 on Back Petros Road at about 3:16 p.m. Friday, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said. It was headed in the same direction as a second all-terrain vehicle, a Honda Recon driven by another 14-year-old.

But the right front tire of the Suzuki ran into the left rear tire of the Honda as the two vehicles were going around a curve, a THP preliminary report said.

The 14-year-old driving the Suzuki then lost control of the ATV, and it overturned, the THP said. The driver was wearing a helmet, but had multiple injuries, the THP said. A 15-year-old passenger in the Suzuki was not wearing a helmet and was injured, the report said. [Read more…]

Oliver Springs teen killed in motorcycle-car crash

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An Oliver Springs teenager riding a motorcycle was killed in a Monday morning crash with a car.

Aaron Gunter, 17, of Oliver Springs, was riding westbound on a 2005 Suzuki dirt bike on State Highway 62 near Coalfield when he was hit by a 2008 Kia Sportage at about 6:41 a.m. Monday, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said in a preliminary report.

The Kia was also traveling westbound and driven by Sharon Morton, 75, of Andersonville. [Read more…]

AP prep football poll: Anderson County still No. 3, Oak Ridge moves into Top 10

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Note: This story has been updated to correct the date of the Oak Ridge-Anderson County football game.

Information from WYSH Radio

The Associated Press high school football polls for this week were unveiled Monday.

Here is a look at the teams from East Tennessee who are ranked this week.

In Class 6A, Maryville remains #1, with Science Hill at #6 and Dobyns-Bennett #9.

In Class 5A, Knoxville West (5-1) stays in first place, while the Anderson County Mavericks (7-0) remain at #3. South Doyle (6-0) is #7 in Class 5A, and Oak Ridge (6-0) made its debut in the poll this week at #10. [Read more…]

Signs installed for Top Secret Trail that stops in Oak Ridge

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Top Secret Trail Signs

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has recently installed signs for a new “top secret” 465-mile, self-guided driving trail that stops in Oak Ridge.

The brown signs were erected to direct visitors and curious local travelers along this important tourism route, a state press release said. They lead travelers to picturesque views in the Upper Cumberland and the “inside scoop on the state’s biggest secret.”

The Top Secret trail has 111 stops within Knox, Anderson, Campbell, Overton, Fentress, Morgan, Scott, Clay, Roane, and Pickett counties, giving visitors extensive history, culture, music, and cuisine experiences. The trail is part of the 16 Discover Tennessee Trails and Byways, an initiative by the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development, connecting Tennessee’s 95 counties to encourage guests to travel “off the beaten path” and to explore treasures of the state.

“Start the trip off at the site of the 1982 World’s Fair at World’s Fair Park, home to the world-famous Sunsphere, one of the only two remaining original fair structures,” the press release said. “Travel through the Upper Cumberland region, where guests can find out why Oak Ridge is considered Tennessee’s ‘secret city,’ the smallest library in the United States in Coalfield, and Tanners Café, Sundries & Antiques, housed in a 1906 bank that still has the original vault. Learn the history and culture of the region by stopping off at Old Union Meeting House, which is one of the oldest in the country and the Museum of Scott County, the only one of its kind created and curated by high school students. [Read more…]