Oak Ridge Today

Local organizations, congregations celebrating community unity

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Community Unity Celebration has events this week. During the celebration, local organizations and congregations are working together to offer opportunities for residents of Oak Ridge and surrounding areas to come together to get to know each other and build community, a press release said.

The Celebration kicked off with the Human Rights Rally on Saturday, January 18, and it will end with the World Day of Prayer on Friday, March 6.

“Please join us as you can!” the press release said.

Here is more information about the events:

[Read more…]

Presentation today about taking charge as a medical advocate

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Gay Marie Logsdon
Gay Marie Logsdon

At the February meeting of Women’s Interfaith Dialogue, Gay Marie Logsdon will give a presentation about taking charge as a medical advocate.

The meeting will be held on Monday, February 3, at the Jewish Congregation of Oak Ridge, 101 West Madison Lane, with an opening reception at 10:45 a.m. and program at 11 a.m., a press release said.

Logsdon’s presentation is based on her own experience as well as that of family and friends over more than 30 years, the press release said.

“The urgency to speak about medical advocacy grew out of months of in-patient and out-patient medical care, torrents of insurance claims, and gradual recovery following a head-on car wreck in 2016,” the press release said.

[Read more…]

Childhood trauma, a national epidemic

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Michelle Dipboye-Sames
Michelle Dipboye-Sames

The October meeting of the Women’s Interfaith Dialogue will feature Michelle Dipboye-Sames, clinical supervisor for the National Youth Advocate Program in Kentucky, who will speak about childhood trauma—its diverse causes, effects, and treatment. The meeting will be held at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church on Monday, October 7, with an opening reception at 10:45 a.m. and the program starting at 11 a.m., a press release said.

The number of children experiencing trauma has been on the rise throughout the nation, resulting in increased out-of-home placements and a higher incidence of mental illness among youth. As awareness of childhood trauma has grown, innovative programs in schools and communities are being developed to try to understand and address the complicated needs of these children and their families, the press release said.

Active in nine states, the National Youth Advocate Program is addressing the problem by providing safe therapeutic foster care homes, effective mental health services for all ages, substance abuse treatment, and reformative growth experiences for youth in the juvenile justice system, the press release said.

[Read more…]

Women’s Interfaith to focus on protecting youth from opioid crisis

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BeaThomas

BeaThomas

Women’s Interfaith Dialogue of Oak Ridge will learn more about the opiod crisis afflicting the nation and its communities during a meeting on Monday, April 1.

The meeting is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. Monday, April 1, at the Jewish Congregation of Oak Ridge, which is at 101 West Madison Lane.

Reverend Bea Thomas, an ordained elder in the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Zion Church, will speak on “The Impact of the Opiod Epidemic upon Our Youth and How We Can Protect Them,” a press release said.

Thomas has served as pastor of four churches in the Tennessee Conference of the A.M.E. Zion Church. Since 2016, she has been involved in correctional ministry, first at the Anderson County Jail and currently at Roane County Jail, the press release said. She holds a M.A. in Evangelism and Church Planting from Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia, and is currently completing courses toward a Chaplaincy Certificate in Correctional Ministry through the Institute of Prison Ministry at Christian University GlobalNet. [Read more…]

Panel on Monday to discuss building welcoming, inclusive community

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Anne Backus

Anne Backus

A Monday panel will focus on building a welcoming and inclusive community, a press release said. The discussion will be hosted by Women’s Interfaith Dialogue, and the panel will meet at 11 a.m. Monday, March 5, at the Jewish Congregation of Oak Ridge.

The Jewish Congregation of Oak Ridge is at 101 West Madison Avenue.

“The meeting will feature a panel discussion of issues impacting LGBTQ members of our community and efforts to make our community more welcoming and inclusive,” the press release said.

The panel will include three Oak Ridgers: John Jaruzel, Anne Backus, and Jessica Ammendolia.

Here is more information from the press release: [Read more…]

Asher of United Way to discuss community needs, issues, opportunities on Monday

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Naomi Asher

Naomi Asher

Naomi Asher will give the Monday, February 5, presentation at 11 a.m. to the Women’s Interfaith Dialogue of Oak Ridge, to be held at the Jewish Congregation at 101 West Madison Lane in Oak Ridge. The public is invited to learn and bring their questions, a press release said.

She will speak about how the United Way of Anderson County improves lives by mobilizing the caring power of our community to advance the common good, the press release said. The organization focuses on youth development, self-sufficiency, and senior and health services, all building blocks for a good life and strong community.

Asher, executive director of the United Way of Anderson County since May 2015, has lived in Oak Ridge since 1992, graduated from Oak Ridge High School in 2001, and returned to Oak Ridge in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree from Johnson University. She earned an MBA in marketing from King University in 2012, and left the executive director’s position with CASA for United Way. [Read more…]

Pastor, police chief the speakers at event on building community

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Derrick Hammond

Derrick Hammond

An Oak Ridge pastor and the police chief will be the speakers at a Monday morning discussion of building community.

The speakers are Derrick Hammond, pastor of Oak Valley Baptist Church, and Oak Ridge Police Chief James Akagi.

The discussion is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. Monday, September 11, in the Fellowship Hall at Grace Covenant Church at 320 Robertsville Road.

The discussion is sponsored by Women’s Interfaith Dialogue. It will focus on “Building Community in a Time of Hatred and Violence,” a press release said. [Read more…]

Refugee services to be discussed Feb. 6 in Oak Ridge

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Drocella Mugorewera, executive director of Bridge Refugee Services Inc. (Submitted photo)

Drocella Mugorewera, executive director of Bridge Refugee Services Inc. (Submitted photo)

Submitted

Coming to a strange country not knowing the people, culture, or even language can be daunting. Many United States citizens often trace their families back and learn about those who came to these shores and struggled against difficult odds. The challenge continues, and sometimes people are available to offer a helping hand during the critical transition, to bridge the gap between one’s former life and the new one stretching out ahead with so many unknowns. One organization that serves in this capacity is Bridge Refugee Services, operating in the Knoxville and Chattanooga areas, which assists refugees, a group of people often including asylum seekers.

“How can I help?” is a question often posed by those who wish to help eliminate the pain and confusion of those living this difficult set of circumstances.  With this question in mind, Drocella Mugorewera, executive director of Bridge Refugee Services Inc., will present at the next meeting of the Women’s Interfaith Dialogue of Oak Ridge. It will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, February 6, at the Jewish Congregation, 101 West Madison Lane in Oak Ridge. This is across the street from the back of the Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Interfaith Dialogue to discuss favorite books on Monday

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Members of the Oak Ridge Interfaith Dialogue group each have at least one favorite book that they find important and interesting, and at a Monday meeting, they can share these books with interfaith friends.

All those who attend will be encouraged to bring a book with them to display for the meeting. A few members have agreed in advance to present on a selected book at the meeting, which will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, January 9, in the Entry Forum of the Jewish Congregation at 101 West Madison Lane in Oak Ridge.

Among the selected books are the following: [Read more…]

Quinn to discuss homelessness, TORCH in Monday program

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Torch Logo

The director of an organization that helps homeless families in Oak Ridge and Anderson County will discuss homelessness during a Monday morning program in Oak Ridge.

Anthony “Andy” O. Quinn is executive director of TORCH, or Trinity Out-Reach Center of Hope.

Besides homelessness, Quinn will also discuss TORCH during the Monday program, which starts at 11 a.m. January 4 at the Jewish Congregation of Oak Ridge, which is at 101 West Madison Lane. The program is presented by the Women’s Interfaith Dialogue of Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Today: City planner to discuss demographic changes in Oak Ridge

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Sherith Colverson

Sherith Colverson

Sherith Colverson, senior planner for the City of Oak Ridge, will discuss the changing demographics of Oak Ridge at the Women’s Interfaith Dialogue meeting on Monday, November 2, at 11 a.m. The program will be held in the social hall of Grace Covenant Church, Trinity Center, 320 Robertsville Road.

Colverson will focus on the historical and current demographics of the city, a press release said. In a synopsis of her presentation, she said that these demographics tell the story of how Oak Ridge has changed, “both in form and function, throughout the past seven-and-a-half decades.”

She will also discuss how the city’s current demographics can help shape the future of our neighborhoods.  Colverson said she is also very interested in ideas of how to gain more involvement from all citizens in the future social and structural development of the city. [Read more…]

Group visit, tour of Alex Haley Farm on April 6

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The Women’s Interfaith Dialogue of Oak Ridge has scheduled a group visit to the Alex Haley Farm in Clinton on April 6, and participants will enjoy a presentation and a lunch on site. Those who wish may stay for a 90-minute walking tour (for a $5 fee) of the expansive grounds.

Purchased in 1994 by the Children’s Defense Fund, the 157-acre Haley Farm is a countryside retreat consisting of guest cottages, chapel, meeting lodge, and library. The facility connects young leaders and activists with the heritage of the struggle for freedom, and it is where policy makers and community builders come to connect, recharge their spiritual and physical batteries, and brainstorm strategies.  The Children’s Defense Fund and its many programs have transformed Haley Farm into a training ground for the next generation of leadership, advocacy, and service for children and families.

Haley Farm houses several programs for the CDF, including Freedom Schools. The Freedom Schools are “inspired by the civil rights movement’s Freedom Summer of 1964, when community leaders organized Black Americans to register to vote,” a press release said. The program has trained more than 6,000 high school and college-age leaders who serve first and then lead in order to increase service to institutions and individuals. These young leaders, in turn, teach “children ages 5 to 18 for six to eight weeks, integrating reading, conflict resolution, and social action in activity-based curricula.” [Read more…]