Oak Ridge Today

Candidate forums this week

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There are two forums this week in Oak Ridge featuring candidates in the Tennessee primary election and Anderson County and Roane County general elections in August.

The forums have been organized by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge, and the public is invited.

Early voting begins in both counties on Friday, July 12.

The Anderson County forum is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 9. It will take place at the Oak Ridge Campus of Roane State Community College in Room 107 in the Goff Building.

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League has Brown Bag with legislators Friday

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The League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge will host a Brown Bag Lunch with the Legislators on Friday.

The session is scheduled to start at 12 p.m. Friday, April 26, in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center at 1401 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Tennessee Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally, Senator Ken Yager, and representatives John Ragan and Monty Fritts have been invited to bring those who attend up to date on what’s happening in the Tennessee General Assembly, a press release said.

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Borchers to discuss schools on Tuesday

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Bruce Borchers
Bruce Borchers

Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers will discuss the state of the schools during a lunchtime meeting on Tuesday.

The presentation will be hosted by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge. The Lunch with the League is scheduled from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 16, at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

“All are welcome to bring their lunch or purchase a boxed lunch for a nominal fee,” a press release said. “Coffee and tea will be served. The presentation will begin at noon.”

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Links between religion, violence, gender to be discussed at Lunch with League

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Rosalind Hackett

Links between religion, violence, and gender will be discussed during Lunch with the League on Tuesday, November 7.

Lunch with the League is hosted by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge.

The November 7 talk is scheduled from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

“All are welcome to bring their lunch or purchase a boxed lunch for a nominal fee,” a press release said. “Coffee and tea will be served. The presentation will begin at noon.”

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Lunch with League: Global warming at a local level

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Melissa Allen-Dumas

A research scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory on Tuesday will discuss the expected impacts of climate change on extreme weather and cities.

Melissa Allen-Dumas is a research scientist in the Computational Sciences and Engineering Division of Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Her talk at Lunch with the League is scheduled from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike. Those who attend can bring a lunch or purchase a boxed lunch. Coffee and tea will be served. The presentation will begin at noon, a press release said.

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Breakfast with Legislators on Monday

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The League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge will host Breakfast with the Legislators on Monday, April 24.

The breakfast is scheduled from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center at 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

Senators Randy McNally and Ken Yager and representatives John Ragan and Monty Fritts have been invited to provide updates about what’s happening in the Tennessee General Assembly, which is the state legislature. Members of the audience may ask questions and give opinions, a press release said. A light continental breakfast is provided at no charge. The public is encouraged to attend.

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Presentation: Laws & children of different sexual identities

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On Tuesday, February 7, the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge will host John Jaruzel and Anne Backus, co-chairs of Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) Oak Ridge, and Nathan Higdon, CFO of Knox Pride, to discuss laws and children of different sexual identities.

This hybrid Lunch with the League event (available in person and virtually via Zoom), will be held at 12 p.m. Tuesday at the Unitarian Universalist Church Social Hall in Oak Ridge. A lunch from The Soup Kitchen will be available for purchase or bring your own lunch. Coffee and tea will be provided. If you cannot attend in person, you can use the Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85481905266.

Since moving to Oak Ridge seven years ago, John Jaruzel has continued his advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community in East Tennessee, a press release said. As treasurer of the AIDS Housing Project in South Knoxville, he helps provide low-cost housing for people dealing with HIV/AIDS. He co-chairs PFLAG Oak Ridge, is on the Grants and Allocation committee of the East Tennessee Ryan White Planning Council, and volunteers with the Bearden Central Baptist Church outreach group Samaritan Ministries doing HIV prevention outreach.

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Medicaid forum in Oak Ridge on Jan. 17

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There will be a Medicaid forum in Oak Ridge on Tuesday, January 17. It will feature a family physician, health care campaign director, pastor, and health care economics professor.

The forum will be presented by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge.

The forum will be moderated by Zack Buck, associate professor of law at the University of Tennessee who specializes in health law, bioethics, and tort law.

Other guests will include:

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Creswell, new Roane Co. executive, to talk to League

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Wade Creswell

Wade Creswell, who was elected Roane County executive this year, will talk to the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge on Tuesday.

Creswell’s presentation is scheduled to start at noon Tuesday, November 15, in person at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Church Social Hall. It will also be available on Zoom. A link for Zoom access will be distributed later.

It’s a Lunch with the League hosted by the League of Women Voters.

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Forum today about overturning of Roe v Wade

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Four Oak Ridge and Tennessee organizations are having a forum today (Tuesday, November 1) about the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that recognized a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion in 1973.

This summer, almost 50 years later, Roe was overturned by the court in a 5-4 vote.

“The over-turn of Roe v. Wade destroyed 50 years of legal precedents—and along with the trigger ban law of the state of Tennessee—placed the health, lives, livelihood, and families of Tennessee women in serious jeopardy,” a press release said. “The physicians and health care providers who have met the needs of these women for decades could now face felony charges. No exceptions are allowed under the law.”

The forum today will feature five female experts, including professors of nursing and medicine, a criminal defense attorney and nonprofit founder, a state senator, and a family nurse practitioner, the press release said.

They will “continue the conversation on the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the trigger ban in Tennessee,” the press release said.

The five women are:

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State, federal candidate forum on Tuesday

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There will be a forum on Tuesday for candidates running for the U.S. House of Representatives and Tennessee House and Senate.

The candidate forum is sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge, and it is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Tuesday, October 18, in Roane State Community College City Room A-111 in the Coffey/McNally Building, 701 Briarcliff Avenue.

Candidates running for the U.S. House Third Congressional District, Tennessee Fifth Senatorial District, and Tennessee House of Representatives Districts 32 and 33 have been invited to participate, a press release said. William “Bear” Stephenson has been invited to moderate.

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Expungements to be discussed March 1

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Wade Davies

A partner in a Knoxville law firm will discuss conviction expungement during a virtual talk sponsored by an Oak Ridge organization March 1.

The information about expungement will be presented by Wade V. Davies, managing partner at Ritchie, Davies, Johnson, and Stovall, a law firm specializing in criminal defense, a press release said.

The Lunch with the League presentation is scheduled from 12 to 1 p.m. Tuesday, March 1. It is titled “Cleaning Up the Past: Expanded Opportunities to Expunge Convictions.” It is open to the public.

“The path to expungement of a criminal record in Tennessee is complicated and not standardized across the state,” the press release said. “Changes to Tennessee law starting in 2012 created a partial path to voting rights restoration by providing a mechanism for expungement of certain convictions, and (they) were expanded again in 2021. The importance of expungement cannot be understated—it allows a person to seek employment without a criminal record and vote, thereby regaining their place as a meaningful member of society.”

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