Oak Ridge Today

Y-12 raises $13,759 for Anderson County Relay for Life

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Joe Marshall

Joe Marshall is one of Y-12’s cancer survivors who took his victory lap at the Anderson County Relay for Life. (Photo by Y-12)

Employees at Y-12 National Security Complex raised $13,759 for Anderson County Relay for Life, which raises money to help fight cancer.

Here is more information from Y-12:

Joe Marshall is one of Y-12’s cancer survivors who took his victory lap at the Anderson County Relay for Life.

What do relays, races, and regattas have in common? They’re all ways Y‑12 employees stay active and support the community.

After hours, Y‑12ers are all about staying active and supporting their communities. Here’s a roundup of the activities: [Read more…]

Secret City Festival growing, evolving, but not ending, officials say

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Secret City Festival World War II Re-enactment 2015

A Flak 88 firing during a Battle of Normandy re-enactment at the 2015 Secret City Festival in Oak Ridge. (Photo by Rob Welton)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 10 a.m.

A rumor that circulated widely this month said this was going to be the last year for the Secret City Festival.

But city officials said it’s premature to say that.

It is true that a Special Events Advisory Task Force has been studying changes to the annual festival, including moving it from June and making it into an expanded celebration in the fall, starting in October and continuing through Veterans Day (November 11). It could be renamed the Secret City Celebration, implemented by a new nonprofit expected to become self-sustaining within five years, and add events while continuing to include the Secret City Festival.

At a Wednesday evening meeting, Task Force members said many of the current festival activities could continue, including music, World War II re-enactments, historical displays, and children’s activities. But they also said there could be opportunities for new partnerships with other organizations, including Wounded Warriors and Oak Ridge Playhouse. And it’s not clear that the Secret City Festival would continue to be a two-day event.

Task Force members say they’re hoping to help create something bigger and better. [Read more…]

Photos, results: Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival

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2015 Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival Entrance

Photo by D. Ray Smith

 

The second annual Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival on Friday and Saturday included dragon boat races, music, vendors, food trucks, a youth area for kids, Drummers’ Parade, and Lanterns on the Lake ceremony. Here are pictures by D. Ray Smith and Rob Welton.

The Dragon Boat Festival raises money for local charities. As many as 32 dragon boat teams had registered this year. Each team has 20 paddlers and a drummer to ensure that the paddlers are propelling the boat in synchrony.

This year, the festival started on Friday evening with the Dragon Boat Beer Garden Bash at Melton Lake Park followed by a full day of boat racing on Saturday.

The festival is organized and sponsored by the three Rotary clubs of Oak Ridge.

Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson and Fire Chief Darryl Kerley estimated that the new event on Friday had about 1,500 participants, and there were approximately 4,000 who attended throughout the day on Saturday.

The winners this year were:

  • Gold—Parkway Cardiology-Paddle Attack, from the Health and Wellness Division, with a time of 01:07.301;
  • Silver—Charlotte Dragon Boat Association-Charlotte Fury (the defending champions), from the Crazy about Dragon Boats Division, with a time of 01:08.278; and
  • Bronze—Glenwood Elementary School-Glenwood Gliders, from the Education Division, with a time of 01:08.759.

See the results of this year’s races here: 2015 Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Race Results. [Read more…]

Dragon Boat Festival includes races, music, beer garden, kids area

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Four Dragon Boats

Dragon boats are pictured above at the Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival at Melton Lake Park on May 31, 2014. (Submitted photo) 

 

The second annual Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival this weekend will include dragon boat races, music, vendors, a youth area for kids, and a beer garden.

The Oak Ridge Marina boat ramp will be closed on Friday, May 29, and Saturday, May 30, for the festival, organizers said. They expect increased traffic congestion on Melton Lake Drive this weekend. Organizers are encouraging those who attend to park at Roane State Community College on Briarcliff Avenue and catch a ride in a bus or van to the waterfront.

Thirty or or more teams of 20 paddlers each are expected in Oak Ridge for the 2015 Dragon Boat Festival.

The festival, which will raise money for local charities, will start on Friday evening, May 29, with a “Lanterns on the Lake” ceremony, music, beer garden, and other festivities. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge dragon boat festival expected to grow

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Mark Watson and Penny Behling at Dragon Boat Festival

Penny Behling, CEO of Dynamic Dragon Boat Racing, makes an announcement before the races begin at the Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival last May. Looking on is City Manager Mark Watson, then president of the Rotary Club of Oak Ridge, which initiated the festival. (Submitted photo)

 

Submitted

Penny Behling wants you to have fun on Saturday, May 30, at the Oak Ridge waterfront, and help raise funds to support the good works of the people of Oak Ridge.

She wants you to be safe as a member of a dragon boat team, and she is sure that you will meet new people, make new friends, build self-confidence, and contribute to your team and the community’s well-being.

Behling is the chief executive officer and owner (with her husband Chris) of Dynamic Dragon Boat Racing LLC of Knoxville. She will be the race director of the second annual Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival, which is again being launched by the three Rotary clubs of Oak Ridge.

Dynamic was the race director of last year’s inaugural festival, which attracted an estimated 5,000 people and a media team that broadcast the Oak Ridge races to a television network in Beijing, China, which has an audience of a billion people. [Read more…]

Second Dragon Boat Festival scheduled for May 30

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Four Dragon Boats

Dragon boats at the first Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival on May 31, 2014, at Melton Lake Park. (Submitted photo)

 

The second annual Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival will be held Saturday, May 30, at the Oak Ridge Marina and Pavilion in Melton Lake Park. The annual festival was launched a year ago by the three Rotary clubs of Oak Ridge.

This year, the festival will be preceded by an evening social event and beer garden on Friday, May 29, at the park. For the dragon boat paddlers and other visitors from out of town, the host hotel is Comfort Inn of Oak Ridge.

The festival’s organizing committee is headed by Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson, immediate past president of the Rotary Club of Oak Ridge. Chairs and members of the steering committee and subcommittees are members of this club, the Breakfast Club, and the Sunset Club. [Read more…]

Photos: Dragon Boat Festival

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oak-ridge-dragon-boat-festival-19

 

Thirty boats participated in the inaugural Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival on Saturday at the Oak Ridge Marina at Melton Lake Park.

The event was organized by the three Rotary clubs of Oak Ridge: Rotary Club of Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary, and Oak Ridge Sunset Rotary Club.

Organizers were pleased with the participation and turnout, and they’ve already announced that next year’s festival will be on May 30, 2015.

A dragon boat is a long, low boat adorned with a snarling dragonhead at the boat’s front end, as in the Chinese tradition. Dragon boat races have become popular events in many U.S. cities, ranging in size from Philadelphia to Knoxville. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge’s Rotary clubs to host dragon boat races May 31

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Penny Behling Dragon Boat Steerer

The three Rotary clubs of Oak Ridge are combining forces to launch the inaugural Oak Ridge Dragon Boat Festival, to be held Saturday, May 31, at the Oak Ridge Marina and Pavilion in Melton Lake Park.

“The purpose of the festival is to provide a venue for dragon boat races, offer food and musical entertainment and raise funds for nonprofit service organizations in the community,” said Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson, president of the Rotary Club of Oak Ridge.

The boat-racing event will celebrate Oak Ridge’s waterfront and signature rowing venue. The other two clubs are the Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary and Oak Ridge Sunset Rotary clubs.

A dragon boat is a long, low boat adorned with a snarling dragonhead at the boat’s front end, as in the Chinese tradition. Dragon boat races have become popular events in many U.S. cities, ranging in size from Philadelphia to Knoxville.

This all-day Dragon Boat Festival race will be an entertaining competition among teams of 20 persons each—18 paddlers, a caller, and a steerer. The teams will come from community employers and organizations, some of which are signing up to become corporate sponsors of the event. [Read more…]