Oak Ridge Today

Roane approves ‘In God We Trust’ signs

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Roane County Courthouse

The Roane County Courthouse in Kingston is pictured above. (Photo by Sara Wise)

WYSH Radio/Oak Ridge Today

The Roane County Commission voted 13-1 on Monday to place the words “In God We Trust” at three locations in the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston. The signs will be similar to those placed above all four entrances at the Anderson County Courthouse last year and the one placed above the entrance to the Oak Ridge General Sessions Court building.

The Roane County proposal was made earlier this year, but commissioners initially balked at approving it until it made its way through the property committee.

The black granite signs will be placed above the north and south entrances to the Courthouse. A bronze plaque inscribed with “In God We Trust,” which is the national motto, will also be placed in the Commission meeting room, which also serves as a General Sessions courtroom. As in Anderson County, the signs will be paid for by private contributions. [Read more…]

Roane Commission sends ‘In God We Trust’ proposal to committee

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Roane County Courthouse

An “In God We Trust” sign could be placed above the main entrance of the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston under a proposal being considered by county officials. The signs could also be displayed in the Roane County Commission chambers. (Photos by Sara Wise)

 

KINGSTON—The Roane County Commission voted on Monday to defer a resolution to the property committee that would place signs that say “In God We Trust” on the County Courthouse in Kingston.

The vote to defer was closely split, at 8-7. Commissioners James Brummett, Ray Cantrell, Bobby Collier, Randy Ellis, Jerry Goddard, Chris Johnson, and Fred Tedder all voted not to defer the resolution.

Many commissioners who voted against deferment argued that deferral would only delay the process further. Others, however, felt that the issue should have gone through the committee before the commission had any say in the matter.

Ellis, who filed the resolution in favor of the signs, said that the resolution would reach the committee either way, and that the committee would have the final say in the design and placement of the signs.

“Roane County is deep in its faith,” he said. “Not one of my constituents…has come to me against this.” [Read more…]

Roane Commission to consider ‘In God We Trust’ signs

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In God We Trust Courthouse Signs

Workers from Island Home Granite, Signs, and Monuments install the first of four granite “In God We Trust” signs over the entrances at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton in July 2013. (File photo)

Information from WYSH Radio

Roane County leaders are considering installing signs bearing the phrase “In God We Trust” at the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston.

Roane County Commissioner Randy Ellis said his proposal would have one sign installed above the main entrance to the courthouse, and another in the commission chamber. The signs would have to be privately funded as Anderson County’s signs were when a similar proposal approved last year.

“In God We Trust” signs now hang above all four entrances to the Anderson County Courthouse as well as at the Oak Ridge General Sessions Court building. The Roane County Commission is set to discuss the proposal at 7 p.m. Monday.

New citizens group will serve as county government watchdog, spokesman says

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Anderson County General Sessions Flagpole

Lynn Byrge, back left, spokesman for a new political study group in Anderson County, watches above as Brad Heun, right, commander of Oak Ridge Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Leon Jaquet, director of Anderson County Veterans Office, raise the flag on a new flagpole at the General Sessions Courthouse in Oak Ridge in September.

A new community organization formed to study contentious political issues in Anderson County will be modeled after the PolitiFact fact-checking website, a spokesman said Monday.

The group of Anderson County residents is called Friends of Anderson County Taxpayers, or FACTs, spokesman Lynn Byrge said in a press release. The release said members are concerned about county spending, debt, and the threat of property tax increases.

The formation of the new group comes just before the start of what is expected to be a busy election year in Anderson County, with candidates already announcing they’re running for election or re-election on county commission and for various seats ranging from juvenile court judge to chancellor to sheriff.

Byrge, who helped lead the effort to install “In God We Trust” signs on the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton, said FACTs has already organized study groups around specific areas of concern, including county commission’s legislative process, the sheriff’s department’s burgeoning budget, the role of the county law director, and the responsibilities of the county mayor. [Read more…]

Fifth ‘In God We Trust’ sign, flagpole, vets memorial celebrated at courthouse

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Anderson County General Session Court In God We Trust Sign

Steve McDonald of Calvary Baptist Church introduces a new “In God We Trust” sign on the side of the Anderson County General Sessions Division II Courthouse in Oak Ridge.

A sign inscribed with the national motto “In God We Trust” was unveiled on the side of a Anderson County courthouse in Oak Ridge on Friday.

It’s the fifth “In God We Trust” sign to be posted on a county courthouse since July in a citizen-led initiative that has prompted a debate over the proper separation of church and state.

Also celebrated during a lunchtime ceremony Friday were a flagpole and memorial to five Anderson County veterans killed in the past decade in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. [Read more…]

Letter: Why must a ‘In God We Trust’ sign be placed on courthouse?

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To the Editor:

I find life really amusing, you see people running around boasting about doing something about bullying in today’s schools. A good example, how our society runs around trying to push an old motto on its people.

I still have difficulty with the “In God We Trust” motto. I can only trust in one God for I can only speak for myself. [Read more…]

Faith column: No one can rid the community of faith in God

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Faith cannot be separated from community life in America. It is intermingled with the affairs of daily life because the people around us carry that faith. A bugler plays “Amazing Grace” at a community memorial service, and an athlete publicly thanks God for their victory and strength. The victim in a high-profile case broadcasts, “With the guidance of God, I will prevail and help others who have suffered…” A health facility posts a plaque that states, “Grounded by our faith in God, this facility seeks to provide…” A plea for prayers is heard during a national tragedy, and an acknowledgment of God’s divine intervention is overheard from the next booth in a restaurant. A chaplain offers an invocation at a public meeting thanking God for His blessing and guidance, and a funeral card memorializes the deceased with an inscription of the 23rd Psalm. Who can snuff out the magnitude of faith expressions that existence in our world?

Particularly amusing this week has been the man who filed a motion against the county for installing our country’s motto over the courthouse doors, stating he believes in the Red Road religion and not in God. This man is quoted as saying that the signs remind him every time he passes that “Christians” think he is going to hell. The country’s motto, however, does not say, “In Christ We Trust.” (Oh, how I wish it did.) It simply says, “In God We Trust.” The use of the word God is very generic in this context. [Read more…]

First legal challenge filed over ‘In God We Trust’ signs

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Steve McDonald at In God We Trust Ceremony

During a Tuesday ceremony, Steve McDonald, left, pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Oak Ridge, says the “In God We Trust” signs at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton honor the nation’s heritage and remind residents that “it is in God that we trust.” Also pictured are Kathy Moore, Tom Byrge, Anthony Allen, and Gil Bates.

Information from WYSH Radio

The first legal challenge to the signs bearing the inscription “In God We Trust” over the entrances to the Anderson County Courthouse came on Wednesday but not from any organization. Instead, it came from a man charged with attempted first-degree murder. Kenneth Darrin Fisher, 22, of Clinton is accused of the attempted first-degree murder of his wife and illegal possession of an assault rifle, and his case is due to go trial next spring.

Through attorney David Stuart, Fisher filed a motion in Anderson County Criminal Court on Wednesday seeking to dismiss all charges against him, asserting that the signs violate his freedom of worship rights under the U.S. and Tennessee constitutions. The motion states that Fisher is a blood member of the Cherokee Nation and a follower of “a Red Road” faith. [Read more…]

Residents, pastors celebrate ‘In God We Trust’ signs on Anderson County Courthouse

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Bates Family of Lake City TN

The Bates family of Anderson County, including County Commissioner Zach Bates, left, and father and pastor Gil Bates, second from right, and mother Kelly Bates, right, sing “This Land is Your Land” and “God Bless America” during a Tuesday ceremony for new “In God We Trust” signs at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

CLINTON—In a ceremony that featured pastors, prayers, and patriotic songs, a group of about 150 people watched Tuesday morning as the first of four signs emblazoned with the national motto “In God We Trust” was unveiled at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

Supporters celebrated the installation of the seven-foot, 180-pound sign as a victory for the majority, a chance to honor the nation’s heritage.

“Whether you agree with this or disagree with this, the democratic process took place,” said Tom Byrge, director of missions for Clinton Baptist Association. “The majority of the U.S. citizens will continue to believe, and will not be ashamed to say, ‘In God We Trust.’” [Read more…]

Public ceremony for ‘In God We Trust’ signs this morning

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CLINTON—Four pastors, including the father of an Anderson County commissioner, are scheduled to speak during an unveiling ceremony this morning for four new “In God We Trust” signs on the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

The ceremony starts at 10 a.m., said Lynn Byrge, an Oak Ridge business owner who spearheaded the drive to install the signs inscribed with the nation’s motto. [Read more…]

After setbacks, workers start installing ‘In God We Trust’ signs at Anderson courthouse

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In God We Trust Courthouse Signs

Workers from Island Home Granite, Signs, and Monuments install the first of four black granite “In God We Trust” signs over the entrances at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

CLINTON—Several setbacks put the project behind schedule on Monday, delaying the work for several hours, but by Monday evening, workers from a Knoxville company began installing the first of four black granite signs emblazoned with the national motto “In God We Trust” over the entrances at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

Plans had called for completing the work by Monday night, but it wasn’t clear if that would be possible. Among the setbacks were rain, a traffic jam, a hydraulic hose that popped off a hydraulic lift, and a drill that ran into rebar in the rock-solid courthouse walls.

Still, those who supported the project—with the work being done by Island Home Granite, Signs, and Monuments of Knoxville—were pleased to see it was under way. [Read more…]

‘In God We Trust’ signs to be installed on Anderson courthouse today

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Public Hearing on In God We Trust Motto

Philip Warfield of Andersonville says county residents should be able to decide what goes on the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton during a March committee hearing on putting the national motto “In God We Trust” on the three-story building.

New granite signs engraved with the national motto “In God We Trust” are scheduled to be installed on the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton this afternoon.

The Anderson County Commission approved the signs this spring after hours of discussion and five meetings.

They will be installed above the four courthouse doors starting at about 1:30 p.m. today, the Anderson County Mayor’s Office said in a media advisory. The work will be done by employees from Island Home Granite and Signs. [Read more…]