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‘Sergeant York: The Play’ to benefit hurricane relief in Puerto Rico

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First United Methodist Church Sergeant York The Play 0818 500x333

The touring play, “Sergeant York: The Play,” will be presented in Oak Ridge on Friday and Saturday, and proceeds will benefit hurricane relief in Puerto Rico.

The play will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Friday, August 17, and at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, August 18, in the Multi-Purpose Room at First United Methodist Church.

It’s a one-man show starring Greg Helton as Sergeant York, and it was written and directed by Lisa Soland.

Sergeant York grew up on a farm in Pall Mall, Tennessee, and he was the most highly decorated veteran of World War I, a press release said.

It said Soland did two years of research to put the play together, and it will travel across the United States. [Read more…]

Veterans/Armistice Day observed on Wednesday at Civic Center

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A Veterans/Armistice Day observance will be held on Wednesday, November 11, at 11 a.m. in Meeting Rooms A/B in the Oak Ridge Civic Center. Veterans and members of the public are invited to attend the program, which will feature music, reflections, and poetry to celebrate peace and to honor those who have served our country in the military.

If you were born after 1960, there is a good chance you don’t know that November 11 is Armistice Day, as well as Veterans Day. Armistice Day celebrates the coming of peace at the end of World War I, once optimistically referred to as “The War To End All Wars.” It became an official U.S. holiday in 1926 and is still celebrated in Europe at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month to commemorate the signing of the armistice at that moment in 1918.

Veterans Day was established as a U.S. holiday by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1954 to honor all those who had served in the U.S. Armed Forces. Ever since, Armistice Day has been overshadowed in the U.S. [Read more…]

Guest column: Christmas Spirit

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John Ragan

John Ragan

On Christmas Day a century ago, at several locations along the Western Front of the World War I conflict, soldiers from both sides of the Great War emerged from trenches to meet in peace and camaraderie in no-man’s-land: the war-torn spaces between the opposing trenches. In the days leading up to Christmas, troops on both sides had sometimes joined in singing Christmas carols, the melodies rising to mix in the frigid air over the battlefield.

When Christmas Day dawned, instead of exchanging artillery barrages and bayonet charges, they traded handshakes, gifts, and holiday wishes. One location even enjoyed a friendly game of soccer.

Briefly, on a European battlefield where death and bitterness had reigned supreme, there was peace on earth and good will toward men. Though it was for only a day—a Christmas Day—hatred gave way to recognition of humanity’s brotherhood. [Read more…]

Faith column: The Prophet of Oak Ridge

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Prophet of Oak Ridge Column

In light of the upcoming visit from a Harvard psychologist who will discuss dreams and other problem-solving phenomena which occur during states of sleep, I offer the local story about supernatural predictions which pointed directly to the development and worldwide impact of the city of Oak Ridge:

There was a prophet in Robertsville. Yes, right around the turn of the 20th Century, one farmer’s life underwent such a transformation that his community nicknamed him “The Prophet.”

It began in the late 1880s when a young man brought his new wife up the Emery Road and claimed a piece of property with a cold water spring for his new home. Over the years they built cabins and barns and planted an orchard. They had five children: one boy and four girls. [Read more…]

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