About Denise

Denise Dunlap Billings, a proud native of Oak Ridge, spearheaded the creation of the “Save the Oak Ridge Pool” Facebook page, which currently boasts 3,500 members and continues to grow.

Her family has a rich history with the Big Pool. Her grandfather, who worked on the Manhattan Project, swam there in the 1940s. She and her brother, Cleon Hartman, learned to swim there in the 1960s, and more recently, two of her nephews served as lifeguards.

In the 1950s, Denise’s mother, Pat Bonney, practiced water ballet, adorned her hair with plastic flowers (à la Esther Williams), and braved the swarms of yellow jackets to savor her first Zero candy bar from the old concessions stand—a treat that became her lifelong favorite. Even in her later years, wheelchair-bound Pat found comfort in the pool, using a contraption made of pool noodles to float effortlessly, allowing her to be pain-free for the first time in years.

Today, Denise swims laps occasionally, attends a free, volunteer-led aerobics class, and dances with her husband, Tom, in the deep end on weekends. She’s also using her media advocacy expertise to ensure the pool remains a cherished community resource for future generations.

The blonde on the right is Pat Bonney, Denise’s mother. Pat graduated from ORHS in 1956. The teenager in the middle is Susan Emlet Crandall who graduated in 1960. Susan believes the photo was taken for one of the local nuclear plant’s publications. Unfortunately, we don’t know the name of the other young lady but we’d love to hear from you if you know her.