Metro Spirit blog

Win Tickets to See "STOMP!"

2009-01-05T12:57:00.003-05:00

The hottest show in the cold month of February is the rhythmic sensation "STOMP!" - and we've got your tickets!

Enter here with four easy questions: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx

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State of the Black Youth: Mis-Education Of A Lost Generation

2008-09-16T10:27:00.001-04:00

Tabernacle Baptist Church M.I.C. (Ministry In Context) Invites YOU!

State of the Black Youth: Mis-Education Of A Lost Generation

Join us in the first of many powerful discussions while we address the questions and issues of our young people’s personal lives and spiritual walk.

Wednesday, September 17th, 7:30pm
1223 Laney Walker Blvd.
(706) 724-1230

Rev. Charles E. Goodman, Jr. – Pastor/Teacher
Min. Jonathan Richardson – Youth Pastor

Photos from The Partridge Inn

2008-09-14T14:32:00.003-04:00

Here's a look at at the David Heath Project, the crowd they drew, and the fun they had at the Partridge Inn on Saturday evening, Sept. 13. The photos were taken for the Metro Spirit by Deb Hemingway.

Photos from Marley tribute

2008-09-08T08:34:00.005-04:00

Here's a link to some photographs of the fantastic 11th Annual Tribute to Bob Marley this Saturday featuring EVER-G, Lady D, Rebel Lion and DJ Spud.

The photos are by Deb Hemingway, also known as Dr. Deb.

Soldier treated in Augusta

2008-09-05T17:09:00.002-04:00

MILITARY TRAINING SAVED HIS LIFE

A Special Forces Soldier’s path to recovery after getting shot eight times at close range

Story by Staff Sgt. Liesl Marelli, Army National Guard

August 18, 2008

AFGHANISTAN - During combat operations in 2006, a Special Forces Soldier assigned to Company A, 2^nd Battalion, 20^th Special Forces Group (Airborne) transmitted over the radio, “I’m down and bleeding out fast.”

Master Sgt. Tom Morrissey, who was deployed on his third combat tour, suffered eight shots from an enemy’s AK-47 at close range.

“I thought I was going to die.”

However, his quick thinking and “training ad nauseum” as he calls it, helped save not only his life but the lives of the other men who were hit, because of the muscle memory he developed from all the military training he had received.

“Once the shooting stopped, I intuitively did a medical assessment of myself,” he said. “Immediately following, I verbally did the same for my interpreter and the other injured civilian.”

Because he was shot in both arms and legs, Morrissey was not able to administer first aid, but he explained to his translator how to stop the bleeding while they waited for their Quick Reaction Force, from the 10^th Mountain Division, to come get them.

Morrissey said he recognized the man who shot them, but that was the least of his worries following the ambush.

Shortly after the call for help, 10^th Mountain Division Soldiers arrived and brought Morrissey back to the closest Forward Operating Base, where he was stabilized and prepared for medical evacuation.

Although his injuries were life-threatening, Morrissey said his top priority while receiving first aid was to stay in an operational mindset and relay the intelligence he was gathering to his fellow Special Forces Soldiers so they could continue with the mission.

“The day this [the ambush] happened to Tom was one of the worst in my military career,” said a Special Forces Soldier assigned to Morrissey’s team. “Talk about feeling helpless.”

Morrissey was alone in an area the team considered “secure” while the rest of the team was performing a mission in another area of Afghanistan. Over the radio, his team heard about a conflict in a nearby region. Not until hearing the call for a medical evacuation did they realize it was for Morrissey.

“We didn’t know what his condition was or any of the details,” said Morrissey’s teammate. “We just couldn’t get back [to the operating base] fast enough.”

The team arrived back at the base only a few hours after Morrissey was medically evacuated for emergency surgery. Twenty-four hours passed before they received word about his status.

“The atmosphere was glum,” said the Special Forces Sergeant on Morrissey’s team. “We were upset with the situation but we had to use [the anger and frustration] to charge us up to continue the mission.”

While the team waited to hear about his status, Morrissey had emergency surgery to stabilize him. After being stabilized, he was evacuated to Landstuhl, Germany, for further medical care.

“I learned early in life through Special Forces to be a survivor,” Morrissey said. “To be a survivor, you plan and train to deal with the unexpected. As a result, nothing is a surprise.”

After the shooting on June 5, 2006, it took approximately nine days until he arrived at a hospital in the United States. Within 10 minutes of his return to the U.S., his family arrived at Eisenhower Army Medical Center, Augusta, Ga.

It was perfect timing, said Morrissey, who was grateful to see his wife and three daughters.

To date, Morrissey has had 16 surgeries stateside. He said U.S. Army Col., Dr. Paul Cutting, a hand and nerve specialist, is the expert behind his recovery. Calling him a “near genius surgeon and an officer to be admired,” Morrissey is grateful for the recovery he has been able to make and for the care he has received.

Morrissey, who has served as a “Quiet Professional” for more than 30 years, has taken a new path during his recovery. He is a vocal supporter and mentor for other combat- injured Soldiers.

No matter the gaps of age or rank, Morrissey tells fellow Soldiers to “recognize how lucky they are to be alive.”

“They cannot feel sorry for themselves for thinking their lives will never be what they expected,” Morrissey said. “I tell them their lives were never going to be what they expected. They simply had not lived long enough to realize it yet.”

Morrissey said he is grateful for the support from his teammates, family and friends.

“Not to take anything away from blood family, but Soldiers who go to war together are family.”

More than two years after the ambush, Morrissey, now 55, is stationed at Fort Gordon, Ga., as a medical-hold Soldier, while his surgeries and rehabilitation continue.

KISS Army concert photos

2008-09-02T10:52:00.004-04:00

The KISS Army tribute band concert at Sky City drew hundreds of fans this weekend. For a look at a few of them, take a peek at Dr. Deb's gallery of photos.

Best of the "Cold N' Oldies"

2008-08-29T15:52:00.004-04:00

Michael Wolff, who opened Cruisin' Sundae three years ago, stopped by the office to give us a small "taste" of what he does. With 45 different toppings to please any palate, Wolff brings the flavor of the 50s to friends, families and colleagues in the CSRA.

I thought tiny Nutter Butter cookies in ice cream may be the best combination EVER. But listening to a Georgia Southern University graduate lose a taunting match to a Georgia graduate blasting UGA fights songs via iTunes across the office while eating ice cream... yeah. THAT was the best combination ever.

One response to Joe Bowles' comments

2008-08-29T09:30:00.002-04:00

The following came in to Whine Line as a response to an article about Joe Bowles' talk to the Republican Party. It was too long to publish as a whine, but it was thoughtful.

"I am a conservative middle to upper income white mother in Richmond county who would like eyes to be opened in regards to some of the gaps left looming after reading the article "How to win friends and influence people by Joe Bowles."

"Although I know Mr. Bowles, and he has some clear facts that should be addressed, it would be best if he researched more before stating opinion based on his financial state. Just because he can afford to pay for his own gas and private schooling, doesn't mean everyone can.

"Joe Bowles also indicates cutting many budget items including the arts. This 100 percent cut in the arts does not take into consideration the impact on tourism and growth for our city. Our re-granted city funds determined by the Augusta Commission and distributed by a select committee on the Greater Augusta Arts Council are also used to support the operating budgets of a wide range of Arts groups, performances, and productions in our city.

"These are the same groups that Bowles and Mayor Deke Copenhaver often attend with their wives such as the Augusta Symphony and the Opera. They are also the same groups that do "artistic outreach programs" for free to underprivileged youth in our community and keep many off the street and prevent many of the crimes committed during the afternoon hours until a parent or guardian is home from work.

"This also equates to less juvenile detention dollars and court costs for taxpayers. A proven statistic is being developed on paper by several arts organizations to show increased attendance during arts programs and activities brought to a school or experienced during a field trip. It has also been recorded that focus and performance on standardized test scores improves.

"This may be something to re-evaluate for those who may not be able to afford the $5,000- to $9,000-per-year cost of Richmond County private schools. The other question raised was why more people in Richmond County do not take advantage of the wonderful private schools that his children assumingly attend? There are no standardized test awards or academic awards for any of these schools. Why not send your child to a magnet facility such as C.T. Walker, A.R. Johnson, or Davidson Fine Arts with several awards and recognition?

"My point is this: Speak only if you want to be heard and make sure to have relevance and factual research completed to support your opinion. Free speech for city employees doesn't mean spouting out how you can spend your money and wish others had more. This also means putting the money you clearly are bragging about saving the city on gas into the organizations that need it and that you attend regularly such as the Symphony or the Opera."

Augusta makes good joke

2008-08-26T11:25:00.002-04:00

Darkmatter0205 makes fun of a lot of people, and apparently thinks that an Augusta dateline could make one of his jokes even funnier.

His recent post in Little Planet Daily called "Obama's Secret Ties to the Church of Flying Spaghetti Monster" postulates an Augusta group called "Get Straight With Jesus or Go Straight to Hell" led by someone named David Connors.

Just few days ago, we were talking about the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster at the Metro Spirit.

Did Darkmatter0205 overhear us?

Bad is good, Lil is big.

2008-08-26T10:26:00.003-04:00

No, our IQ didn't go up during summer vacation.

Last week, August Comcast reports, the most popular pay-per-view movie at On Demand was "College Road Trip." That's the one about an teenager whose police chief father escorts her on a trip to visit prospective universities.

On the Internet Movie Data Base site, "Road Trip" was rated 3.1 stars out of 10. It could be worse.

Here's the rest of the top 10:

2. "21" (6.8 stars)
3. "Step Up 2 The Streets" (5.2)
4. "Shutter" (4.8)
5. "The Bank Job" (7.6)
6. "Harold & Kumar 2: Escape from Guantanamo Bay" (7.0)
7. "Superhero Movie" (4.2)
8. "The Spiderwick Chronicles" (6.9)
9. "Never Back Down" (5.9)
10. "Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns" (2.7)

In the free On Demand section at Comcast, little is big. Lil Wayne topped the orders with "A Milli." Other top draws were SpongeBob, Yung Berg, Young Jeezy and Lil Josh.

Augusta Canal 3rd level will finally get cleaned

2008-08-25T14:45:00.002-04:00

The Augusta Commission plans to give the Augusta Canal Authority $460,000 to clean up the third level of the canal. That's the stretch between the old Davidson High School and the Southern Mill in downtown.

Mayor Pro Tem Betty Beard has been trying for more than a year to get city staff to handle the clean up. After all, the SPLOST money that's being used to fund the project has been in the budget for years.

But city staff was getting nowhere with the project. The third level of the canal had turned into a swampy breeding ground for mosquitoes -- which is hardly the kind of thing the city needs to spur development.

Only now, with the groundbreaking for the new judicial center coming up, has city staff moved on the project -- in this case passing it off to the canal authority.

Let's see how fast cleanup actually happens.

In the meantime, the canal authority is getting another $2.5 million from SPLOST to do the following things before 2010:

Create $1 million in new exhibits in the interpretive center.

Create a 3rd level multi-use trail.

Create a park on the 3rd level.

Complete a kayak feasibility study.

Extend the New Bartram Trail.

Put in new signage and markers.

Improve the dock for the Petersburg boats.

Improve the hydroelectic facility at Exterprise and Sibley mills.

Improve the multi-use trail along the canal.

Improve access to Eisenhower Park from the canal.

Create nature trails.

Improvements at the headgates.

Sentinel Offender Services under fire again

2008-08-22T12:37:00.002-04:00

The Metro Spirit recently told you about the high fees that people on probation for minor crimes must pay to Sentinel Offender Services, a private California firm contracting with Richmond County to provide probation services.

Yet the contract with Sentinel has never been put out for bid. In Atlanta, when bids were let another firm came in that charged about 70 percent less for some services. That story was called "Making crime pay."

Now Sentinel is has been ordered to pay a fine because of actions it took in the Atlanta area. As Fox 5 News in Atlanta reported, the State Probation Council fined Sentinel after it was caught sending people to an uncertified DUI school.

The school was run by another employee of Sentinel. The probationer in the report paid $1,500 for the classes.

"He was buying nothing," a state official said. Yet Sentinel and the employee were making money.

Since our report, no action has been taken by officials in Augusta to investigate Sentinel's operations in Richmond County. In Clayton County, it appears, leaders are more responsive to complaints about the treatment of people on probation.

Guns in churches?

2008-08-21T17:07:00.002-04:00

"I can only imagine how my experience of worshipping the Prince of Peace would be enhanced by the warm feeling of blue steel tucked in its holster between my arm and torso," writes Mike Ruffin in his blog, "On The Jericho Road."

"I can only imagine how my trust in God would soar because of my knowledge that if anyone threatens me during my prayers, I could blow him away as fast as you can say 'Amen.'"

His tongue-in-cheek comments come as part of what is actually a very thoughtful look at the possibility that some want Georgia law to allow people to freely carry guns in churches and college classes. Even a turn-the-other-cheek kind of guy understands that sometimes force is needed to keep the peace.

Ruffin even contemplates going to the pulpit with a gun tucked into this belt. But he's more afraid of what will happen in the congregation. He jokes:

"I think that I would prefer to face a giant subterranean people-eating worm with nothing but a slingshot than a congregation of armed Baptists. I mean, we preachers know that we face the possibility of criticism but to know that we are facing the possibility of confrontation with an angry and gun-toting church member raises the stakes considerably."

Ruffin is pastor of The Hill Baptist Church in Augusta and Adjunct Professor of Religion at Anderson (SC) University.

Dale N. predicted Bolt's world record

2008-08-20T15:25:00.002-04:00

Dale N., the Augusta photographer who shot Usain Bolt's first world record in the 100 meters has correctly predicted the record again.

As we reported last week in "Shooting Speedsters", Dale N. of iTal iMages was so certain that Bolt would break the record in New York City in May that he upped the price of his photos before that meet. And Bolt ran the record time of 9.72.

Dale N. then predicted that Bolt would win the 100 meters at the Olympics. Bolt did.

And on Tuesday, Dale N. came into the Metro Spirit to predict that today, Bolt would break the world record in the 200 meters. That world record, set by Michael Johnson, was thought to be nearly unbreakable.

But Dale N. was right. Bolt mowed down the record with a sensational run.

Dale N. may have his biases. He is a native of Jamaica. But all I can say is it's too bad someone didn't hire him to photograph the Olympics, as Dale N. did at other top meets this year. He seems to know how when a great performance is coming.

French Market Grille West

2008-08-14T11:44:00.001-04:00

If you haven't been by Jim Beck's Columbia County location, it's a great time to do so. They have some beautiful outdoor seating. I like to sit in the air conditioning during the summer - and away from the bugs - but as soon as it cools down some, you'll find me chowing down on some duck at one of these tables. Yum!

Chick-fil-A leadership scholarship awarded to tem member from Martinez

2008-07-29T08:46:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA - The Chick-fil-A has awarded its national Leadership Scholarship to Adam Boudet of Martinez. For the past 35 years, the restarurant has helped its team members reach their educational goals.

Boudet received the $1,000 scholarship from the Chick-fil-A franchised operator John Powell at the Washington Road location. Boudet is the 72nd team member from that location to receive the honor. Boudetis studying business management at Augusta State University.

"Adam joins a distinguished group of more than 23,000 Chick-fil-A team members who have received the scholarship as they pursue their educational goals," said franchised owner John Powell. "We are very proud of the accomplishment and appreciate the example set for the more than 50,000 Chick-fil-A tem members who might also be inspired to reach higher goals."

Chick-fil-A founder Truett Cathy established the chain's Leadership Scholarship in 1973. Since then, scholarships totalling more than $5,470,000 in Georgia and more than $23.5 million nationwide.

Maybe the Third Time Will Be The Charm...

2008-07-23T10:50:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Morris Communications employees load up the street boxes that held their latest failure: the second coming of the former-glossy-turned-"mostly-online" pub Lounge. With millions of debt to pay in a mere few months, it looks like they're cutting corners wherever they can.

Augusta's watching Lil Wayne

2008-07-21T18:39:00.002-04:00

MEDIA Lil Wayne's ode to being a millionaire pops "like Orville Redenbacher" in at No. 1 on the Augusta Comcast list of most-requested free programs on Video on Demand for the week.

While free Video on Demand is often dominated by music videos, this week a movie, "The Fantasia Barrino Story" from Lifetime, was a close second.

In pay-per-view on Comcast Video on Demand, the movie "Jumper" edged "Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins."

Felon Ryan B. tries to run for S.C. House

2008-07-17T16:45:00.004-04:00

Ryan B., aka convicted felon Brian Lamont Doyle, is trying to run for elected office in South Carolina.

This week, he turned in a petition with 1,000 signatures to the South Carolina State Elections Commission, asking that his name be placed on the ballot in State House District 82. That seat is currently held by William Clyburn.

Ryan B. probably had enough signatures. He needed 5 percent of the registered voters in the district, or about 838 registered voters.

But South Carolina state officials had done their homework. According to Gary Baum of the Elections Commission, the U.S. District Court informed the state that Ryan B. had been under federal supervision until June 30, 2008.

Under the South Carolina State Constitution, a convicted felon is not eligible to hold an elected office until at least 15 years after he completes his full sentence. Ryan B. was only 15 days from the completion of his time.

On Wednesday, the South Carolina Elections Commission met and determined that Ryan B., aka Brian Lamont Doyle, would not have his name placed on the general election ballot.

According to sources in Aiken, Ryan B. quickly threatened to sue the Aiken County Election Commission. Given Ryan B.'s poor performance in other legal matters, including the multi-million dollar libel case won by Richmond County Sheriff Ron Strength, no one seems to worried.

Augusta Museum of History's Dollar Dog Days of Summer

2008-07-17T14:25:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA - During the month of August, museum admission is only $1 per person.

Nancy Glaser, Executive Director of the Augusta Museum of History said, "We are thrilled to be able to offer the families and residents of the CSRA special reduced admission rates during the entire month of August. Discounted admission will ensure everyone in the community has the opportunity to visit their History Museum. We are grateful to be able to provide these rates during these economically challenging times."

"By presenting Dollar Dog Days of Summer... is not only providing access to the Museum for individuals and families, but it also offers opportunities for the public to take advantage of the many programs the Museum has to offer, including specialized tours, children's activities and other family-oriented programming."

Exhibitions during the month of August include The Godfather of Soul, Mr. James Brown and From Ty to Cal: A Century of Baseball in Augusta.

Programs during the month of August include Hunt for History, a self-guided journey through time for ages 4-13 and Preserving History: Behind the Scenes at the Augusta Museum of History, which offers the public a behind-the-scenes view of the Museum every Saturday at 1:00 and 2:00 p.m.

Also in August, museum admission includes a viewing of Movies of Color: Black Southern Cinema, which examines independent African-American filmmaking in the South prior to World War II.

Death of a DJ

2008-06-30T16:20:00.004-04:00

DJ Casey Leonard, 28, died Sunday evening. He had been suffering from brain trauma and other injuries from an ATV accident on Memorial Day weekend of 2007.

Known as DJ Casey, Leonard was a popular Augusta DJ prior to his accident. He also performed in Charlotte, Atlanta and Columbia.

The ATV crash left him with such serious injuries that many doubted he would survive long. When Leonard began to open his eyes and communicate with people around him again, some doctors and nurses called him a “miracle child.”

Following his crash, other musicians in Augusta held a series of fundraisers to help his family.

Leonard is survived by his wife, Michelle, his daughter, Gabriella Lee, and his son, Aidan Trace.

Additional survivors include his mother, Gail Evans Patty and stepfather, George A. Patty of Augusta; his father, Michael Bernard Leonard of Augusta; sister, Lisa McGlaun of Henderson, Nevada; stepbrother: Brian Patty (Jennifer) and stepsister, Susan Patty, all of Augusta.

Funeral services will be held at the Thomas Poteet and Son funeral home on Wednesday, July 2, at 11 a.m.

Pallbearers will be Graham House, Paul Leonard, Brian Brittingham, Charles Cheeks, Adam Carter, Brent Jewett, Jeff Dow and Scott Mann. Interment will follow at Westover Memorial Park.

The family asks that, in lieu of flowers, donations in his memory be made to The Art Factory.

Newsosaur says Morris in perilous financial shape, 37% chance of going into default

2008-06-25T11:22:00.004-04:00

The Newsosaur, blogger Alan D. Mutter in Silicon Valley, says Morris Publishing is the second most likely newspaper in the nation to go into default this year.

Mutter is a former newspaper columnist and editor. He created his “Default-O-Matic” to let people see at a glance the financial peril facing the country’s largest publishing companies.

“Journal Register Co. is the shakiest in the group of 10 publishers, with Morris Publishing in second place and a tie for third between MediaNews Group and Tribune Co.,” Mutter writes.

He says Morris, owner of The Augusta Chronicle, has a 35.7 percent risk of failing to meet its debt payments this year.

The Metro Spirit has reported on the financial ills at Morris this year, as has Bloomberg.com.

Mutter notes that his has been a bad year for publishing companies.

“Apart from the fact that six of the 10 publishers [including Morris] are deemed to be in junk-bond territory, the other distressing phenomenon revealed in the Default-O-Matic is that the ratings of seven companies have been downgraded in the three months since I published the last list of bond ratings on March 18,” he writes.

Fort Gordon to Hold Summer Youth Drama Production

2008-06-18T15:44:00.005-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA - The Fort Gordon Performing Arts Center will hold a Summer Youth Drama production of Tamara Tudor's "Snapshots." This production, offering a funny and touching glimpse into teen life, is holding auditions open to all local students, middle through high school, plus one boy 7-9 years old.

The production will be held July 23-24 at Fort Gordon.

Auditions will be at the Fort Gordon Dinner Theatre/Performing Arts Center, Building 32100 on 3rd Ave., on Monday, June 23, from 5-7 p.m.

A teen guitar and keyboard player for this production are also needed.

Rehearsals will start June 24.

Participation in auditions and performances open to the public.

Visitors to Fort Gordon, 16 years and older must have a photo ID to enter the gate. Drivers must have State registration and proof of insurance in vehicle.

For a map to the Dinner Theatre, visit http://www.fortgordon.com/main_map.htm.

For more information, contact Fort Gordon Entertainment Director Steve Walpert at steven.walpert@us.army.mil

Danger of default at Morris

2008-06-18T10:08:00.003-04:00

Bloomberg.com is now reporting what the Metro Spirit told you two weeks ago, that Morris Communications is in danger of defaulting on its debt at the end of this year.

Bloomberg reported June 17, "Augusta, Georgia-based Morris Communications Co. -- owner of 13 dailies with 2007 revenue of $375 million -- may violate its debt agreement by Dec. 31, according to a May 14 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission."

Murfee Faulk of the Metro Spirit reported on June 4: "Buried deep in the arcane language of Morris Publishing Group LLC's latest Securities and Exchange Commission filing is the kind of wording that keeps investors awake at night."

Namely, Faulk continued, Morris was in danger of being unable to pay its debts due on Dec. 31, 2008. Morris executives said they may have to sell assets to a third party to make ends meet.

Morris isn't the only company in danger of default. The Tribune Co., owner of the L.A. Times and Chicago Tribune; MediaNews Group Inc., publisher of the San Jose Mercury News; and Journal Register Co., the New Haven Register owner, are also running the risk of being unable to make upcoming debt payments, according to Bloomberg.com.

You're watching Rihanna

2008-06-16T14:25:00.003-04:00

What’s Augusta watching? According to Comcast, the top free pick on Video on Demand was Rihanna’s “Take A Bow,” from Music Choice.

In the pay-per-view section, the movie “National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets” took the top spot for the week.

Here are the complete listings.

Free on Video on Demand

Rihanna, “Take A Bow” (Music Choice)

2. Plies, “Bust It Baby Pt.2” (Music Choice)

3. Karina, “16 at War” (Music Choice)

4. Chris Brown, “TakeYou Down” (Music Choice)

5. Lil Wayne, “Lollipop” (Music Choice)

6. Family Guy, “Bogus Journey” (TBS)

7. Ace Hood, “Cash Flow” (Music Choice)

8. “Rush Hour 2” (TBS)

9. VIC, “Get Silly” (Music Choice)

10. Mariah Carey, “Bye Bye” (Music Choice)

Pay per view On Demand

1. “National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets”

2. “Semi-Pro (Unedited)”

3. “28 Dresses”

4. “Cloverfield”

5. “Charlie Wilson's War”

6. “The Golden Compass”

7. “Juno”

8. “Alvin And The Chipmunks”

9. “I Am Legend”

10. “P.S. I Love You”

Drum-a-thon and Fan Drive for the Salvation Army

2008-06-12T13:21:00.000-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA - Staying cool in the summer heat can be a challenge, especially for needy families in our area. NBC Augusta is teaming up with the Salvation Army on Friday, June 13, to collect new and used fans from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

During that time, people are encouraged to bring fans to NBC Augusta's studios at 905 Broad Street in Downtown Augusta. NBC Augusta's Jay Jefferies will be in front of the studio playing drums all day to call attention to the cause.

A previous drum-a-thon, held in November, collected more than 400 coats to help keep local families warm over the winter.

Please bring in any new or used fans you wouldn’t mind donating to a family in need!

Sky City Website Up and Running

2008-06-10T14:02:00.003-04:00

Check it out at http://www.skycityaugusta.com

Watch Out on Your Next Visit! S.C. police to ticket gum pole violators

2008-06-04T12:08:00.002-04:00

CHARLESTON, S.C. - The gum poles have been an unsightly Charleston landmark for years and now authorities want to do something about them. It seems three utility poles at the entrance to the South Carolina city's popular outdoor market are routinely plastered with used chewing gum in a rainbow of colors. Workers clean away the gum only to see more return.

City traffic and transportation director Hernan Pena has asked police to keep a close watch on the poles and there's talk of installing surveillance cameras.

Police said anyone caught plastering gum faces a maximum fine of $500 and 30 days in jail.

Read the story by clicking here.

Live radio candidate's forums to be held Wednesday

2008-06-03T14:03:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA – Two live radio candidate’s forums will be held noon – 3 p.m. Wednesday, June 4 at the Holiday Inn, 2155 Gordon Highway. Local talk radio host Helen Blocker-Adams, host of ‘People and Issues with Helen’ on NewsRadio 1230 AM WNRR, will offer these forums live on her radio program.

Georgia House of Representatives District 123 forum will be held 12 noon – 1:30 p.m. Incumbent Gloria Frazier and challenger A.K. Hasan have confirmed their attendance.

Augusta-Richmond County Tax Commissioner live radio candidate’s forum will be held 1:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Candidates Tommy Boyles, Steven Kendrick and Sanford Loyd have confirmed their attendance.

“We want to offer the community an opportunity for people to hear, see and meet the candidates who are running in these important races. They can either come to the forums in person, listen to the forums on their radio or listen via the Internet at www.newsradio1230.com,” said Blocker-Adams.

Other live radio candidate’s forums are scheduled for Wednesday, June 11th where Georgia State Senate candidates for District 22 and Georgia House of Representatives Districts 117 and 118 will be held.

Wednesday, June 18 will be the 10th and 12th Congressional Districts candidates’ radio forums.

The media and public are invited.

Woo! No more junk mail - no, like, in your actual mailbox. You know... the metal thing outside your house?

2008-05-16T19:22:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - So you've got spam filters set to keep out unwanted e-mails — but what about cleaning up your real mailbox? ProQuo.com can help you there.

With more and more junk mail hitting your inbox every day, you'd think there'd be less need to send it to your house, as well. But alas, you come home and grab your mail only to find countless credit card and mortgage offers, special deals and contests "just for you" and so many coupons you don't even know where to start. That's where ProQuo.com comes in.

Create a free account and stop the clutter. The only information they need is your name, address and e-mail (which they won't sell) so they can take you off the appropriate mailing and marketing lists. The best part? You pick what to nix. Use the coupons? Then keep getting them and remove yourself from the others. Like the Publishers Clearing House contests? Don't delete yourself from the list. Each data broker, marketing list, weekly circular and other directory has a "Stop" button underneath it. Click it once to stop getting junk from them (some require you to print, sign and mail a form — which ProQuo will give you). And with its new Catalog feature, you can even choose which catalogs you receive.

Harbor House Books and Pillars of Augusta Life Magazine Welcome New Director of Marketing

2008-05-16T15:17:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, Ga.—Cathy Shaw, a North Augusta native, has joined Pillars Publishing Company LLC and Harbor House as the new Director of Marketing.

Shaw will wear multiple hats in her new position. As the Director of Marketing and Publicity for Harbor House Books, she will be working with Harbor House’s active and newly signed authors, promoting their books through signings, speaking events and publicity efforts.

For Pillars of Augusta Life magazine, she is the Director of Marketing and Circulation Sales. Shaw will promote the “brand” to the Augusta community through publicity, marketing campaigns and strategies to increase circulation.

"We are tremendously pleased to have a marketing profession of Cathy’s caliber in our ranks,” said E. Randall Floyd, publisher and editor-in-chief of Pillars of Augusta Life. “She brings a very strong background in customer relations and online marketing to our enterprise.”

Shaw has worked in a variety of marketing and public relations roles throughout her career, including the American Jersey Cattle Association located in Reynoldsburg, Ohio; Information Control Corporation in Columbus, Ohio; and most recently Best Lawyers LLC in Aiken, SC.

A product of the Aiken County Education System, Shaw is a 1995 graduate of North Augusta High School. She received her associate in arts from Aiken Technical College in 1997 and a bachelor of arts with a major in communications and a minor in international studies from USC Aiken in 2000.

Pillars of Augusta Life magazine, launched in September 2007, features profiles of people from throughout the CSRA. It is about the people on the go who are making things happen and living interesting lives in our area.

We're predicting another sell-out!

2008-05-15T15:17:00.002-04:00

The Tickets for the two shows of Ed Turner and the # 9 Band for Aug. 15-16 at the Imperial Theatre just went on sale.

The Columbia County Exchange Club is holding this event to support Child Enrichment.

Last year the event sold out in 5 days! Get your tickets by clicking here.

Young Professionals of Augusta Announces March Meeting

2008-05-15T12:34:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - The Young Professionals of Augusta will host their monthly meeting on May 20, 2008, at the Historic Partridge Inn, located on 2110 Walton Way. Social Hour will begin at 6pm with meeting to follow at 7pm. YPA is pleased to annouce that Derek Dougan of the Salvation Army will discuss the efforts under way for the construction of the proposed Ray and Joan Kroc Center in the Harrisburg Community. The Kroc center started on a dream to include a state of the art Performing Arts Center, an Education Center that would incorporate job skills training, and a superior Recreation Center for Augusta's children in one location. See what is in store for the Augusta Area at our next meeting. For more information about the Kroc Center visit the Salvation Army of Augusta website at www.salvationarmyaugusta.com/kroc.cfm.

Young Professionals of Augusta was founded with the vision of delivering a platform for young professionals in the area to develop leadership skills and establish resources which previously have been lacking in our community. As active members of our professional community, it is crucial that dedicated men and women come together to preserve the rich cultural heritage of Augusta while building the framework for a promising future. YPA is dedicated to providing its members with the opportunity to become active in the community through social networking, philanthropic outreach, professional development, and cultural awareness. Through such activities, Young Professionals of Augusta strives to create better leaders to create a better Augusta.

For additional information, please contact YPA at ypaugusta@gmail.com, or visit the website at www.ypaugusta.net.

Sumerau selected as a 2008 Phi Kappa Phi Award of Excellence Recipient

2008-05-15T12:32:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Jason Edward Sumerau, of North Augusta, S.C., was awarded on April 15 an Award of Excellence by The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi for the 2008-2009 academic year. Sumerau is a senior at Augusta State University. The Award of Excellence will enable him to pursue a master's and doctorate degrees in sociology at Florida State University. He is the son of Edward and Patricia Sumerau.

This honor counts Sumerau among 100 students nationwide to receive the Phi Kappa Phi Fellowship and Award of Excellence. Since its creation in 1932, the Fellowship Program has become one of the Society’s most visible and financially well-supported endeavors, allocating nearly $380,000 annually to deserving students for first-year graduate study. Currently, 60 Fellowships of $5,000 and 40 Awards of Excellence of $2,000 are awarded each year.

The selection process for the Phi Kappa Phi Fellowships and Awards of Excellence is based on the applicants’ 1) undergraduate academic performance; 2) leadership and service on the campus and in the community; 3) evidence of graduate potential; 4) personal statement of educational perspective, purpose and objectives; and 5) the evaluation reports from three individuals who are in a position to attest to the student’s performance, citizenship and character.

Death of Artist Robert Rauschenberg Noted at Augusta’s Morris Museum of Art

2008-05-14T16:22:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA—The staff and board of Augusta’s Morris Museum of Art mourn the loss of Modern Art Master, Robert Rauschenberg, who died on Monday, May 12, at age 82. “It’s always a source of spiritual and intellectual invigoration to be associated with great art and great artists,” said museum founder and chairman William S. Morris III. “Bob Rauschenberg provided all of that. His like will not pass this way again.”

“Rauschenberg was undeniably one of the great figures in American art,” said Keith Claussen, Director of Fine Arts at Morris Communications Co. and former director of the Morris Museum of Art, “and we are very fortunate to have some of his works in the collection of the Morris Museum, particularly fortunate to have a major work that is specific to Augusta, Georgia.”

The Morris Museum owns thirty-nine works by Rauschenberg, including ilfochrome prints, photo etchings, and lithographs. Among them is an outsized work, measuring five by twelve feet, Augusta Allegory (Anagrams), that was commissioned by the Morris Museum in 1997. Augusta Allegory (Anagrams) contains several readily recognizable elements of the Augusta streetscape, including numerous church steeples, Springfield Baptist Church, Sacred Heart Cultural Center, a nineteenth-century textile mill, the Confederate Monument, a railroad bridge, an antebellum home, Augusta bricks, the Haunted Pillar, and the feet of the bronze sculpture of Arnold Palmer. A detail of the work-in-progress appeared in the September 1996 issue of Vogue magazine in an article on the artist and his career.

“I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work with Robert Rauschenberg on several occasions while I was Gallery Curator at Edison Community College in Fort Meyers, Florida, between 1983 and 1995,” said Jay Williams, curator at the Morris Museum of Art, and acquaintance of Robert Rauschenberg. “Toward the end of my time there, he exhibited a number of new prints that utilized montages of his own photographs, produced on an Iris printer using water-soluble inks, and transferred by offsetting them onto high-quality paper. The resulting images were fresh, experimental, and a departure from his previous work. When I saw the large Rauschenberg at the Morris, I realized that he’d utilized a similar process. That attitude of joyous experimentation was so typical of Bob.”

The work has been exhibited several times at the museum over the years, and the museum’s curatorial staff has been developing a plan for months to reinstall Augusta Allegory (Anagrams), as well as other supporting works, in September in conjunction with the city’s first-ever Westobou Festival.

Free Sandwich Day

2008-05-14T15:13:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - McDonald's launches its Chick-fil-A clone nationally this week and in celebration, is giving it away free. On Thursday, May 15, you’ll be able to swing buy any McDonald's store for a free Southern Style Chicken Biscuit or Chicken Sandwich (depending on when you wake up) when you purchase a drink.

(and then you can go by Dunkin Donuts for your afternoon caffeine rush!)

Free Coffee Day!

2008-05-14T15:08:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Dunkin' Donuts Keeps America Running With Second Annual Free Iced Coffee Day On May 15.

From 10 a.m.-10 p.m. on May 15, customers can walk into any participating Dunkin' Donuts restaurant throughout the country and receive a free small 16 oz. cup of Dunkin' Donuts' original or flavored iced coffee, double-brewed to ensure full flavor with every cup. Customers are also encouraged to try Berry Berry Iced Coffee, which combines the seasonal tastes of blueberry and raspberry with Dunkin' Donuts' award-winning coffee, or many other delicious flavors.

As part of the one-day event, the company is donating $80,000 to the National Police Athletic League's Youth Leadership Program, a nonprofit organization that works with disadvantaged youth across the United States to emphasize the importance of community service and peer leadership.

Aiken Center for the Arts Endowment Enjoys Excellent 2007

2008-05-14T12:56:00.005-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - From the newsletter from the Aiken Center for the Arts:

AIKEN, S.C. - Last year was an excellent year for our new endowment fund. Investments outperformed the established benchmark (up 9.07% vs 6.08%) thanks to investment manager Kathwood Advisors. Also, thanks to the generosity of Center supporters, the $50,000 matching challenge announced last fall was exceeded which will increase the fund over $100,000!

Listed below are contributors by level. Current and future contributions at the van Gogh level and above will be recognized on a permanent plaque in the Center.

Michelangelo
Mrs. Sharon Brown

da Vinci

Bonnie & Bud Coward
Louise Mellon
Elizabeth J. Witham

Van Gogh
Thea Reddy in honor of her mother, Mrs. Dorthea McDermott

Picasso

Mr. & Mrs. Michael Hosang
Southeastern Clay Company

Dali

Mrs. Katrina Becker
Mrs. Lydia Blanton
Dorothy Johnson
Double Eagle Foundation
Mr. & Mrs. George Kierspe
Mr. & Mrs. Ed Warner
Mr. & Mrs. Robert Stanton
Mr. & Mrs. Lee Curley
Mr. & Mrs. William Tucker
Mr. & Mrs. Ron Lewellyn in honor of Dr. & Mrs. Taylor Garnett

Monet

Susan Arnold
Mrs. Kingsland Brown
Mr. & Mrs. Leland Reynolds
Mr. & Mrs. William Reynolds
T. Scott & Kaye Smith

Matisse

Mr. & Mrs. Michael Brunson
Mr. & Mrs. Robert Cunningham
Mrs. & Mrs. Carl Lanham
Mr. & Mrs. Jerry Linton
Mr. & Mrs. George Sewell
Mr. & Mrs. Gerry Owen

Other contributors

Mr. & Mrs. John Butler
Mr. & Mrs. Michael Collver
Nancy Francis
Mr. & Mrs. William Matheson Jr.
Mr. & Mrs. David Ridley
Mr. & Mrs. James Wetzel
Mr. & Mrs. Robert Wade

Aiken: Retrospective Awards

2008-05-14T12:56:00.004-04:00

The Nandina Best of Show Award for $250
Winner - Judy Adamick, “Bloody Mary”
Runner Up – Trish Arnold, “I Think I hear Woodpeckers”

The Nandina Most Creative Award for $250
Winner - Carol Sue Roberts, “Dancing Trio at Hopelands”
Runner Up – Shannon Jennings, “After Dark”

Executive Directors Award for $100 - Special & Unique
Winner - Forrest Roberts, “After the Hunt”

Aiken Center for the Arts Staff
Winner - Guy Milligan, “Under Fire 1865”

Soulja Boy Tell'em and Friends CANCELLED

2008-05-14T11:25:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - In what was probably the least surprising event of my morning, the Augusta Entertainment Center Complex faxed out a release that said the Soulja Boy & Friends concert scheduled for Friday, May 16, had been canceled.

Interim General Manager Linda Roberts said that she was disappointed, but that the promoter canceled the concert after the venue sold only 155 tickets as of 9:05 a.m. this morning.

"We need the community to purchase tickets in advance. We really do," she said. Roberts added that the question of whether or not to move ahead with a concert is, in this case, entirely up to the promoter.

"We're renting the facility to the event planner. To determine when it's going to be a success is up to the promoter, because the promoter bears all of the expenses as it relates to the show," she said.

In comparison, final ticket sales for the Blood, Sweat and Tears show with Chuck Negron of Three Dog Night stood at only 369 sold, with nearly 100 complimentary tickets given away, for a final total of 461 people in the building for the show on Friday, April 15.

Morris Museum of Art Exhibition Featured in International Publication

2008-05-14T09:32:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA — The Morris Museum of Art’s exhibition Notes on the 19th, 20th, and 21st Centuries: Paintings by Jeffrey Kronsnoble, which opens to the public on Saturday, June 7, and remains on view through Sunday, August 10, was featured in the international online art newspaper, ArtDaily, Tuesday, May 13, 2008.

“The coverage of the Kronsnoble exhibition in ArtDaily is an indication of the importance of these paintings,” commented Jay William, curator of the exhibition and curator at the Morris Museum of Art.

Notes on the 19th, 20th and 21st Centuries: Paintings by Jeffrey Kronsnoble, includes more than forty works of art, dating from the late 1960s to the present, by renowned painter and teacher Jeffrey Kronsnoble. From landscapes to meticulously rendered figure paintings, Kronsnoble’s work is characterized by fluent draftsmanship and a deep appreciation of art history. His paintings often incorporate portions of historically important works of art while reflecting the influence of photography and the most modern of 20th century art forms, collage.

Jeffrey Kronsnoble’s work has been featured in one-man shows in galleries in New York, Milwaukee, New Orleans, La Jolla, and Florida, as well as in group shows at the Milwaukee Art Museum, the Detroit Institute of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, the New Orleans Museum of Art, the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, D.C., The National Academy of Design in New York City, and The Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown, Ohio. His work is represented in the permanent collections of art museums in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Orlando, Daytona Beach, and Jacksonville, Florida and New Orleans, Louisiana, as well as in more than 175 public, corporate, and private collections. Kronsnoble has been awarded the William A. Paton and Thomas B. Clarke prizes by The National Academy of Design in New York, and three Individual Artist Grants from the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs. A twenty-five-year retrospective exhibition of his work was presented in 1990 at the Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland, Florida, and traveled to museums in Melbourne, Hollywood, and Ft. Myers, Florida.

Founded in 1996 by Editor-in-chief Ignacio Villarreal, ArtDaily is the first online art newspaper in the world. It is headquartered in Mexico City, Mexico, and covers numerous art-related topics including exhibitions, auctions, and acquisitions. To view the article, please visit http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=24185.

Open to the public since 1992, the Morris Museum of Art is the oldest and largest museum in the country that is devoted to the art and artists of the American South. It is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m., and on Sunday, noon–5 p.m. For more information about the Morris Museum of Art, visit the museum’s web site at themorris.org or call 706-724-7501.

Eddie Huff Makes Hole in One at Chamber Event

2008-05-14T09:16:00.000-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - The Columbia County Chamber of Commerce held a 9 Hole Tournament at Bartram Trail Golf Club on Monday, May 12th. The golf tournament was a new element added to the Chamber’s regular networking event “SuCCess Columbia County Style.” The back nine was played and on the 12th hole Eddie Huff, with Sandler Sales Institute, scored a Hole In One. The ace was witnessed by Robby Watson who is the Head Golf Professional at Bartram Trail Golf Club. Ironically, Eddie had discussed taking lessons from Robby before the tournament began.

The 170 yard shot was made with a 6 iron and was the final shot of the day for the team. “It was a miracle” Eddie remarked, “this was almost as much fun for the other guys as it was for me!” Mr. Huff stated that he is not a very good golfer and had never come close to making a hole in one before now.

The Columbia County Chamber will hold another golf tournament September 9th at Champions Retreat and Eddie Huff plans to participate. When told that there are large prizes planned for a Hole in One shot he said “I’ll definitely be there!”

Congratulations ASU Grads!

2008-05-13T16:28:00.002-04:00

Among Augusta State University's distinguished alumni this year:

Scott Hudson, investigative reporter, WGAC News/Talk 580
Christine Riffle, marketing director, The Augusta Symphony

Mayor Deke Copenhaver gave the commencement address.

Renowned Artist with Augusta Ties Dies

2008-05-13T13:22:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Augusta native Jasper Johns worked with artist Robert Rauschenberg to bring a sense of playfulness and irony to their canvases. Rauschenberg, whose use of odd and everyday articles earned him a reputation as a pioneer in pop art but whose talents spanned the worlds of painting, sculpture and dance, has died, his gallery representative said Tuesday. He was 82.

Read about his effect on Jasper Johns here.

Augusta's Belles of the Brawl

2008-05-13T09:06:00.001-04:00

Check out the Soul City Sirens, Augusta's sporty spices!

Principal Cellist for Augusta Symphony Murdered

2008-05-12T13:15:00.002-04:00

Augusta, GA…On Sunday morning the Augusta Symphony received tragic news that Principal Cellist David Reader was murdered early that morning in Augusta. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating and no further details are available at this time. Augusta Symphony Executive Director Sandra Self stated, “David was an outstanding young man, a superb musician, and a sensitive and intelligent human being. His untimely death is a tremendous loss for the Symphony. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends during this difficult time. ”

David Reader held a Bachelor Degree in cello performance from the University of Cincinnati-College/Conservatory of Music where he studied with Yehuda Hanani, and a Masters Degree in cello performance from Georgia State University. He was an alumnus of the Eastern and Aspen Music Festivals. In addition to his work as an orchestral cellist, Mr. Reader also frequently performed as a chamber musician. The 2007-2008 season was Mr. Reader’s first season as principal cellist with the Augusta Symphony.

We Could Do Worse

2008-05-07T13:43:00.001-04:00

In case of disaster

2008-05-03T13:23:00.004-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Nobody likes to plan for the worst. But 72 Hours says that when disaster strikes, you should be prepared to fend for yourself for the first three days — and shows you how to do it. The site, run by the city and county of San Francisco, includes fires, floods, tsunamis, evacuations, terror attacks, contagious diseases and, of course, earthquakes. It doesn't specifically cover zombie attacks, but if you combine the information under terror and evacuation, you should have a workable plan. Just remember to bring an ax.

Panic at the Pantry

2008-05-03T13:11:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Some nights when I get home, I open the cabinet doors... and close them again. I check the freezer... and then the fridge... what was I thinking at the grocery store?! Can I get away with making cranberry muffin chicken pie? Perhaps some soy and ginger cake? Nothing seems to fit together, and recipe sites like epicurious and allrecipes took so long to scroll through. Half of their suggestions had more ingredients (or took more time, I need dinner now! I can't marinate for 24 hours!) than I had. In frustration, I googled ingredient list recipe match and discovered there is actually a site called Recipe Matcher. Of course, it has its limitations. If all you have in your house IS actually cranberry muffin mix and chicken, you should have the Chinese food delivery on speed dial. But if you have a few more ingredients, or you're looking for new combinations for more of the same ingredients you always have, this is a fun resource.

Artistic Opportunities

2008-05-02T09:16:00.000-04:00

Art Factory Looking for Professional Instructors
The Art Factory is looking for professional instructors to teach Dance, Theatre and Visual Arts in a classroom setting for grades K-12. Send your resume and letter of interest to info@artfactoryinc.org. Or mail to: 1510 Johns Road, Augusta, GA 30904.

The Garden City Chorus
The Garden City Chorus is the Augusta Chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society. The chorus seeks men of all ages who love to sing and perform. In addition to the chorus, we have active quartets that perform all over the CSRA. Please come and join us. We rehearse on Tuesday evenings at 7:15 p.m. at The Church of Christ, 600 Martintown Road, North Augusta. For directions and more information visit gardencitychorus.org or call the chorus manager at 706-868-0135.

Columbia County Choral Society
The Columbia County Choral Socieity seeks singers from throughout the CSRA. Rehearsals are held Tuesday evenings from 7-9 p.m. at the First Baptist Church of Evans. Call 706-650-2311.

Bone marrow donor drive scheduled May 5

2008-05-01T12:16:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA - First-year Medical College of Georgia School of Medicine students will
help cancer patients by hosting their seventh annual bone marrow and
stem cell donor drive May 5.

The drive, which will be held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on the second floor
of the MCGHealth Children's Medical Center, encourages the public,
especially minorities, to join the National Marrow Donor Program
registry.

To join, donors must provide a cheek swab, which is tested for human
leukocyte antigen, or HLA, type. Antigens are markers on virtually all
cells recognized by the immune system, which can lead to rejection.

Donors matched to a patient will get more information about the
donation process and a checkup, then decide whether to proceed with the
donation.

National funding makes registration free for anyone who would like to
donate. The cost for non-minorities is normally $97.50.

For more information about the drive, contact Jessica DeJarnette,
coordinator of this year's event, at 404-422-0317. For more
information about donation, visit marrow.org.

This Saturday!

2008-05-01T09:59:00.001-04:00

A Day In The Country Festival
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Augusta Riverfront Marina - Augusta, GA
Gates Open at 11am

AUGUSTA, GA. - A Day in the Country Cars, Crafts, & Music Festival, celebrating its 23rd year as Augustas longest-running outdoor musical event. Grab your sunscreen, chairs, and blankets for quality family entertainment as you enjoy a day of fun, food, and great country music on the banks of the Savannah River.

There will be two stages. The Riverfront Stage will feature Jason Aldean, Kellie Pickler, Lee Brice, Eric Durrance, Crossin Dixon, Jeremy Graham Band, and Jaycie Ward. Gates will open at 11 a.m., and the concerts will begin at noon. The Festival Stage will feature Augustas Foot Loose & Fancy Free Cloggers and the Rhythm & Class Cloggers and your chance to be a Star on stage "Karaoke". There will also be arts and crafts, a car show, and a variety of foods and beverages. The events will benefit the Augusta Sertoma Club and other local charities.

Tickets are $20/advance, $25/day of the show, and free for children 6 & under with an adult. For more information and tickets call 803-278-4849 or visit www.tixonline.com or email tkp@tixonline.com. No pets, swimming, food or coolers, and no re-entry will be allowed. Bring your lawn chairs!

Augusta case creates death penalty foe

2008-04-29T14:37:00.002-04:00

Billy Moore pleaded guilty to was the robbery and murder of 77-year-old Fred Stapleton. Back then, Moore was a 22-year-old trainee electrical engineer at Fort Gordon. At one time, Moore was only hours away from execution for his crime.

But Moore eventually because the only prisoner who had entered a guilty plea to murder to be released from Death Row and paroled. Now Moore has made speaking out against the death penalty his occupation.

In the United Kingdom, the Guardian wrote about Moore's case and his continuing crusade against capital punishment.

Augusta Museum of History Only Beneficiary of Concert

2008-04-28T11:11:00.001-04:00

Augusta, GA – It has been brought to the attention of the Augusta Museum of History that it is not clear Saturday's concert - PAYBACK (celebrate James Brown) and The Godfather of Soul, Mr. James Brown exhibit that will open the same day at the Augusta Museum of History are fundraisers only for the Augusta Museum of History.

We are reaching out to you and all media to help make this clear to the public. All tickets purchased include admission to both the May 3rd concert at the Augusta Common and to the exhibit which opens to the public on May 3rd at the Augusta Museum of History located at 560 Reynolds Street and will remain on display for the next three years.

Each ticket is $35 in advance and if tickets remain the day of the show, they will be available for $45 each. All children 5 and under are admitted for free and children 16 and under can purchase a special $10 ticket at the door on May 3rd when accompanied by a ticketed adult. Concert doors open at noon on May 3rd and music will begin at 1pm. The Augusta Museum of History will be open on May 3rd from 10am - 5pm.

PAYBACK (celebrate James Brown) will begin with the Swanee Quintet followed by Augusta native Greg Hester performing with his friends - many of whom have shared the stage with James Brown. After that Athens, Georgia pop darlings the Modern Skirts will take the stage. Next up, world renowned jazz musician Branford Marsalis will play with his quartet and will be followed by rock legends - The Doobie Brothers. James Brown's band - The Soul Generals - will end the evening for fans at the Augusta Common on Saturday, May 3rd.

All proceeds from this event go directly back to the Augusta Museum of History - that's why the ticket includes admission to the exhibit that the funds raised will be supporting. The AMH is a 501c3 non-profit organization and while they have the support of the Brown family on the exhibit and concert - the museum is the only group receiving any financial gain from the concert and exhibit.

For more information on PAYBACK (celebrate James Brown) please visit us online at PaybackJamesBrown.com. To reach the Augusta Museum of History, visit augustamuseum.org or call 706.722.8454.

Coliseum Authority to lose $$$ on Blood, Sweat and Tears concert

2008-04-22T18:30:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA (April 17, 2008) — Ooops. One more thing former General Manager Flash Gordon forgot to tell his bosses on the Augusta Richmond County Coliseum Authority: They’re promoting the Blood, Sweat and Tears concert on Friday, April 25.

And it’s going to cost $70,000 or so to put on the show. (One source says it may be only $35,000, but that’s just another example of the confusion surrounding things.)

The good news for fans, however, is that some very good tickets are still available. Only 212 tickets to the Bell Auditorium show had been sold as of today, according to one board member.

The Coliseum Authority lost more than $30,000 on the Aaron Tippen show that Gordon promoted. Now, even though Gordon is gone, it looks like they’ll lose tens of thousands of dollars more.

The authority also elected new officers today — but not without one wasted meeting and a strange side trip through Robert’s Rules of Order.

A nominations committee met last week and selected a slate of officers for the full board to consider. However, the bylaws of the authority call for the slate of nominations to be presented to the full authority in writing seven days prior to the meeting.

The committee failed to meet that deadline.

The rejection of that slate is a sign that the board remains as contentious as ever. Jenkins was supposed to be nominated for the chair, but when nominations came from the floor, her name was not considered.

Keith Brown and Freddie Sanders were nominated for chairman, at which point meeting began to unravel. Willie Law said he wanted a vote by secret ballot. Then motion failed for lack of a second and Law abstained from further votes.

By a 5-3 vote, Brown won the job as chairman. His nomination was a surprise because some thought there was a strong coalition to put in Sanders. Regardless, Harry Moore seemed quite pleased to relinquish what has become the city’s most thankless job. As soon as the vote was taken, he gave his seat to Brown.

That seemed to swing the balance of the board.

When nominations for vice chairman were taken, Richard Isdell and Jenkins were nominated. Following a squabble over rules, Isdell won the job by a vote of 6-3.

Five members declined nominations as treasurer before William Fennow nominated an absent member, Adrian Arnold. She was elected subject to her approval.

Fennoy accepted a nomination as secretary.

The authority still did not get a complete financial report. They haven’t seen one for about six months. They’re expected to get a completed report by May 5.

Tour de Georgia stage finish

2008-04-22T17:45:00.005-04:00

Despite a crash on the final corner, the Tour de Georgia stage finish in Augusta had the top team leading the way.

The top spot went to J.J. Haedo of CSC, a top pro squad that showed its strength at the end of the race. Second went to Gregory Henderson of High Road and third to Toyota United's Ivan Dominguez.

One difficulty with bike racing: Spectators only get to see a few seconds of the action at any one point. The best thing about the stage finish: Spectators in downtown Augusta got to see some of the best riders in the world go by three times.

Let's hope they come back next year.

Beware!

2008-04-22T14:40:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - This is how they were towing cars downtown in advance of the Tour de Georgia coming through. Yikes!

Local Teachers Honored with Art Award

2008-04-21T15:18:00.000-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA—The Morris Museum of Art and Wachovia Corporation have named Angelika Selman-Bondar, visual arts teacher at Stevens Creek Elementary and Euchee Creek Elementary, the 2008 Outstanding Art Teacher in Visual Art, and Silke Piper, fifth grade teacher at South Columbia Elementary, the 2008 Outstanding Classroom Teacher in Visual Art. The awardees were honored at a special ceremony held at the Morris Museum of Art on April 20, 2008. Their award included a cash prize which may be used for professional learning, travel, conference expenses, art supplies, or resources for the classroom.

“We congratulate Ms. Selman-Bondar and Ms. Piper on their awards and commend both of these wonderful teachers for enriching their students’ lives through art,” said Kevin Grogan, executive director of the Morris Museum of Art. “The purpose of the awards is to recognize teachers who demonstrate a commitment to the idea that art is an essential part of learning and who demonstrate excellence in teaching art. These two individuals have more than fulfilled that purpose.”

The competition was open to the public and independent school teachers in the Central Savannah river Area, grades kindergarten through twelve. Nominees submitted questionnaires, lesson plans, letters of recommendation, and supporting portfolios. Judging was based on the following criteria: evidence of creativity and innovation in teaching methods and curriculum; development of a philosophy and theory of art teaching that is reflected in and outside the classroom; involvement in: community arts activities, professional organizations, art councils, visual arts workshops or conferences, and/or arts integration workshops or conferences; and involving students in art activities such as exhibitions, field trips, and conferences in and beyond the classroom.

The Morris Museum of Art, located at 1 Tenth Street on the Riverwalk in Augusta, Georgia, is the first and largest museum in the country dedicated to the art and artists of the American South. The museum is open from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, and on Sunday from noon until 5:00 p.m. For more information about the Morris Museum of Art, visit its web site at www.themorris.org.

B.Y.O. or B. – Bring Your O or B (Blood type, that is!)

2008-04-18T17:10:00.001-04:00

Augusta, GA – Shepeard Community Blood Center is throwing a party and all are asked to B.Y.O.B. - Bring Your Own Blood. Patients in our local hospitals are in urgent need of types B and O blood right now. If you donated in the days immediately following the Imperial Sugar Refinery explosion, YOU MAY BE ELIGIBLE TO DONATE AGAIN! FOUR BURN VICTIMS ARE STILL IN CRITICAL CONDITION. Please donate at a Shepeard Center or mobile drive and give the gift of life today.

The demand for type B blood has increased yet the supply has not met the need. We are now dangerously low on B type blood and need your help today. With O negative type blood able to be transfused to anyone, the shortage of B type blood is also decreasing the O blood supply. So…B.Y.O.B – A.S.A.P!

The kind generosity of Bi-Lo, Books-A-Million, O’Charley’s and Outback Steakhouse, will make the party even more lively! Come to any Shepeard Center between April 23rd and April 26th for special gifts from one of these loyal supporters. Please donate or encourage someone who is eligible to help save local lives. More information on times and locations of our mobile units can be found at shepeardblood.org.

Transformational Learning

2008-04-18T14:54:00.001-04:00

Augusta, Ga. – Sir Christopher Ball, a leading representative for education policy, will give two presentations while visiting Augusta State University from April 22-23. He will discuss poetry and creative writing on Tuesday, April 22, at 11:30 a.m. and on Wednesday, April 23, at 10 a.m. the topic of discussion will be Transformational Learning. Both presentations will be held in 170 University Hall.

Ball, whose interests in early learning, brain science, higher education, and learning in the workplace, has held numerous prestigious positions in higher education institutions, and has served on, or chaired, many advisory committees. Knighted more than a decade ago for his services to education, Ball has close ties with Westminster Institute of Education and he is a member of the Oxford Cognitive Neuroscience Education Forum.

This free event is sponsored by ASU’s Department of Communications and Professional Writing at 706-729-2416.

Life in Relief: Woodcut Prints by Kent Ambler

2008-04-18T13:48:00.004-04:00

Opening Reception, Friday, April 18, 6 – 8 PM
Main Gallery, Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art, 506 Telfair Street
Open to the public: members free, non-members $5

Seneca, South Carolina artist Kent Ambler brings an exceptional collection of recent woodcuts to the Institute’s Main Gallery this spring. Expressionistic in style and often deeply personal in its inspiration and subject matter, Ambler’s work reaches beyond the surface of representation and explores his deeper concerns for nature.

On View: April 18 – May 23, 2008

Dog Days are Numbered...

2008-04-16T12:01:00.005-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Mariah Gardner, Executive Producer, Marketing & Promotions for WAGT 26 NBC Augusta wrote to the Spirit staff today:I know how well connected you are, so please help spread the word. We had a very well mannered 3-and-a-half year old Black Lab mix on our 11 a.m. show today, who is in desperate need of adoption.

Blaze is a really calm dog, who we’re told is great with children and other animals, and he doesn’t like to bark too much. He is on borrowed time at Aiken County Animal Services and will be put down if he’s not adopted soon. He’s already neutered and micro-chipped so the adoption fee is only $38.

If anyone is interested in adopting this very gentle, calm dog, please call Jessica at Aiken County Animal Services at 803-642-1537 or stop by their offices on Wire Rd. in Aiken. They of course have all kinds of dogs and cats there in need of a good home.

ASU wins Math Jeopardy Competition

2008-04-14T12:45:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA – Questions that required not only knowledge of mathematics and highly developed problem solving skills proved to be not too difficult for four Augusta State University students.

Augusta State students Morgan Dominy, Dan Gray, Howard Turner and Tony Zamberlan, took first prize in a math jeopardy competition at the annual Mathematics Association of America Southeastern on March 29.

The ASU students competed against 15 other teams from the Southeast in the competition held at the Citadel in Charleston, S.C. They received the top scores on the first day of the competition, qualifying them for the second round where they competed against four other teams and again achieved the best scores.

Masters Celebrity Sightings

2008-04-11T09:40:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Publisher Bryan Osborne had a few celeb sightings last night: Tony Romo, who plays for the Dallas Cowboys and dates Jessica Simpson at Vue, and Ron Harper, a former Chicago Bull. That's basketball, y'all.

He also mentioned that there might have been some women of questionable reputation there, but not with the two sports stars.

If You're Coming to Augusta for the Masters Golf Tournament...

2008-04-07T14:28:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Masters Tournament News: I'm going to post some things you should know over the next couple of days, to help our friendly tourists who visit the area every year. Many people return for years, and they need little assistance. So I'll start with some basics for the newbies among you.

Three very important considerations this week are the big C's: cops, construction and cars.

Between Atlanta (into which many golf fans fly) and Augusta, there isn't much to see besides pine trees - some historic sites, sure, but it's all four-lane highways to Columbia, S.C. And on those highways, there are not only state patrol officers, but representatives of just about every precinct from Newton County to North Augusta policing the speeds of drivers. I drove back from ATL this evening. I counted no less than 32 traffic stops, and I'm certain there are some cruisers I didn't spot hidden back among the trees. So, the first rule of thumb is to slow down.

Second, since Georgia has been growing exponentially from about the mid-80s, and that growth hasn't shown any signs of slowing down, we've been working on I-20 pretty much every day since 1986. That blue line on your map... well, it's pretty much just a suggestion by now. Now, having lived here a while, many of us are immune to the orange cones and barrels, accustomed to sudden drops in speed limit and in traffic stalls that seem to have no apparent cause. You are not. So, the second rule of thumb is to slow down.

Now allow me to mention an experience I had right as I got off I-20 to go home. My daughter whining hungrily in the back seat, I attempted to stop in at the McDonald's to pick up dinner at the drive-thru. When I turned into the parking lot, there was a man in full golf regalia - Masters logos affixed to everything that his seamstress could pin down - standing in the middle of the in-lane, checking his text messages. My car half in the lot and half still on Washington Road, I attempted to be patient and wait, inching forward carefully, hoping the sound of my engine would bring him out of his OMG LOL!!!!!-induced reverie. Alas, the cars stuck staring at my trunk began to rev their engines angrily. So after 30 seconds, I gave the briefest and softest (((honk))) that I could produce. It was the vehicular equivalent of "Oh, pardon me. I seem to be trying to use your parking lot. Do you mind terribly if I were to pass through?" If my car could speak, it would use a very British accent. The man looked up, threw his arms out, and screamed, "What the [F-word] is your problem, [B-word]?!" For which my daughter thanks him. Those are vocabulary words every 3-year-old should know. Some "gentleman's game."

My point? Allow me to explain it more directly: Despite the annual exodus of all Augustans who could get the week off - i.e., those not employed by either the service industry or the media (hi!) - traffic in Augusta has already doubled in number of cars on the road. By Wednesday, the roads in any proximity to the Masters Golf Tournament will be a long shining example of why Al Gore won the Nobel Prize for Documentary Filmmaking - oops! I mean, the Nobel Peace Prize. In short, y'all need to learn to carpool. There's shuttle buses and everything. You can't carry your golf clubs onto the clubhouse grounds, so why are you driving that ridiculous, rented SUV? So, the third rule of thumb is to drive little - and I mean both in size and quantity.

And stop screaming at me, chicken legs. Standing in traffic is just a stupid idea.

Masters Tournament Traffic Report

2008-04-07T14:27:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. -

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

And that's the Masters Tournament news for this hour.

The Masters Tournament

2008-04-04T14:19:00.000-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - The Masters Tournament has become the most exclusive sporting event in the world. It's harder to get into than the White House - hey, the White House gives tours. For one week, the eyes of the world turn towards Augusta.

But The Metro Spirit will give you a number of "inside" peeks at the workings behind the wall during the tournament week. You're welcome to share your information with us, too. We're collecting it here. So e-mail us here, and maybe we'll get to share your stories with the rest of the world.

"Try It On for the Cure" to benefit local affiliates of Susan G. Komen for the Cure

2008-04-03T11:06:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA - For one day only, all you have to do is try on great clothes.

That's the simple idea behind national women's apparel retailer Coldwater Creek' fundraising program, Try it On for the Cure, which benefits the Susan G. Komen for the Cure and their vision of a world without breast cancer.

On Sunday, April 20, Coldwater Creek will donate $1 to the Susan G. Konen for the Cure for every shopper who tries on their clothes in the dressing room of Coldwater Creek at Augusta Mall. No purchase is necessary; however, for those who do purchase, the company will also donate 10 percent of the event sales to Konen.

"It's such a simple way to involve our customers up close with a cause we are all passionate about! And it's so easy, we do the giving - shoppers just have to try something on, said Diann Prouty, store manager of the Coldwater Creek location in Augusta.

For more information on the Try It On for the Cure, please visit Coldwater Creek or phone 706-738-2259.

Find the Worst Neighbors in Your Town!

2008-04-02T13:58:00.003-04:00

Visit Rotten Neighbor. I wouldn't advocate using Rotten Neighbor to harass people, but for research on possible neighbors it can be very handy. Be careful what you post, though! It could come back to haunt you!

Augusta to Go Wireless

2008-04-02T13:32:00.002-04:00

Read about it here, if you haven't already heard.

File Under "Duh"

2008-04-02T13:28:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Rap music glamorizes drug use, study says.

Blues Singer's Home Restored

2008-04-02T13:09:00.003-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Playwright August Wilson memorialized her in "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," but the Columbus, Ga., blues legend made a name for her darn self through music. Now the city of Columbus has restored the final home of Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, a two-story house that she built for her mother. Read about it in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's story here. Read more about the play that she inspired here.

Tour of Augusta history

2008-04-01T12:28:00.001-04:00

For visitors to the Masters Tournament who want to know more about the city can take a guided driving tour.

And this year during Masters Week, the Augusta Convention and Visitors Bureau will offer three Guided Driving Historical Tours of Augusta.

The two-hour driving tours are lead by local historian Ann McKnight and include downtown and the historic Summerville, “Hill,” area. Tours also include admittance into Augusta’s Museum of History.

Tours depart from the Augusta Visitor Information Center located inside the Augusta Museum of History at 560 Reynolds Street. The cost is $10.00 for adults and $5.00 for children.

The tours are offered Tuesday, April 7, from 10:30 a.m. to12:30 p.m; Thursday, April 10, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; and Saturday, April 12, 1:30-3:30 p.m.

To make reservations visitors can call 706-724-4067.

New!! Economic Stimulus Tax Return Calculator

2008-03-31T09:44:00.001-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - How much will you be receiving from the feds in the much-discussed economic stimulus tax return? Just check out the IRS website to find out! And don't spend it all in one place!

Symphony Announces Music Director Candidates

2008-03-31T09:17:00.008-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Augusta Symphony Board of Directors President Phil Caldwell and Chairman of the Augusta Symphony Music Director Search Committee Peter Klacsmann today officially announced the four Music Director candidates for the 2008-2009 season: Susan Haig, Benjamin Loeb, Shizuo Kuwahara and Diane Wittry.

One of the four candidates will be chosen as the Augusta Symphony’s new Music Director at the conclusion of the 2008-2009 season. As they vie for the position, each candidate will guest conduct, in a live and public audition, one of the first four Masterworks concerts of the 2008-2009 season (2008-2009 Masterworks schedule and candidate information following). The Music Director Search and these four candidates mark a pivotal moment in the Augusta Symphony’s existence; in its 54 year history, the Augusta Symphony has been led by only two Music Directors: founder Harry Jacobs (1954-1991) and current Music Director and Conductor Donald Portnoy (1991-2009). Members of the search committee and orchestra members will evaluate each candidate based on several factors including audience and orchestra report. The new Music Director will be selected and announced in Spring 2009.

All accomplished musicians and conductors, these four candidates were chosen by the Music Director Search Committee during a stringent selection process. Comprised of Symphony Board President Caldwell, Chairman Peter Klacsmann, Symphony Executive Director Sandra Self, board and community members, and musicians, the Music Director Search Committee unanimously decided upon Haig, Loeb, Kuwahara and Wittry based on their experience, knowledge of musical programming, and philosophies regarding community engagement and music education. Also part of the Search Committee is internationally renowned conductor Gustav Meier who, as Artistic Advisor, brings his extensive musical expertise and objective guidance to the process.

“We have been extremely pleased with the level of interest in the Music Director position. Over 200 applications were received from all over the world,” Board President Caldwell remarked. “These four candidates are among the best, and we are confident that our expectations will be exceeded.” The Music Director position is vital to fulfilling the vision and mission of the Augusta Symphony— “to be the premier provider of orchestral music in the Central Savannah River Area.” As artistic leader of the Augusta Symphony, the Music Director is not only responsible for the repertoire, programming, artistic production, and selection and development of the musicians, but also the continued growth of the orchestra’s visibility and involvement in the community.

The search for a new Music Director began in September 2007, immediately following current Music Director and Conductor Donald Portnoy’s announcement that he will retire from the position at the end of the 2008-2009 season. Augusta Symphony Executive Director Sandra Self commented, “As Music Director and Conductor of the Augusta Symphony for 17 years, Maestro Portnoy has led the way for the orchestra in so many respects--his contributions to the organization are invaluable and innumerable. During this time of transition, we honor and celebrate all Maestro Portnoy has accomplished while we continue to look toward the future.” Maestro Portnoy will conduct the final two Masterworks concert of the 2008-2009 season in addition to other scheduled concerts.

Following is each Music Director Candidate’s Masterworks performance date, music program, and biographical information.

OCT. 10-11, 2008
SUSAN HAIG, CONDUCTOR
LEONARD ROWE, BARITONE

Sibelius Symphony No. 2 in D
Leoncavallo Prologue and Intermezzo from I Pagliacci
Mozart Overture and Aria ("Non piu andrai") from Le Nozze di Figaro Verdi Aria from Rigoletto: "Cortigiani"
Verdi Overture and Ballet Music from I Vespri Siciliani

Maestro Susan Haig completes her fourth season as Associate Conductor of the Florida Orchestra, following tenures as Music Director of the Windsor Symphony (Canada) and the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra. She has won acclaim for her exceptional musicality, imaginative and spirited conducting style and superb sense of communication with musicians and audiences alike. Through a varied career that has encompassed orchestral and opera conducting, opera coaching, and piano and viola performance, her leadership has been described as "original, inspired, deeply musical and energetic."

During fifteen years in Canada, Ms. Haig earned national recognition for numerous premieres of contemporary works, broadcasts on CBC radio, and innovative audience development initiatives. In 1999, she was selected for the American Symphony Orchestra League’s National Conductor Preview.

Recognized as a strong advocate of public access to the arts, Dr. Haig speaks frequently on the relationship of arts to education, media, and cultural citizenship. She was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Humanities from the University of Windsor, and received keys to the City of Windsor, (Ont.) and St. Petersburg (Fl.). She is a member of the International Womens Forum (Florida Suncoast Chapter), and serves on the Board of Trustees of the National Music Museum at the University of South Dakota.

Maestro Haig's guest appearances include the orchestras of Toronto, New Jersey, Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Vancouver, as well as opera performances in Toronto, Ottawa, Minneapolis, and Victoria, British Columbia. She was appointed the first resident conductor of the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra in 1988, after serving as coach and assistant conductor with the Canadian Opera Company, the New York City Opera and the Juilliard Opera Center. A native of Summit, N.J. and a graduate of Princeton University, she received Master's and Doctoral degrees in orchestral conducting from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

NOV. 8, 2008 BENJAMIN LOEB, CONDUCTOR ANDREW ARMSTRONG, PIANO

Nelson Savannah River Holiday
Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 15
Debussy Prelude to an Afternoon of a Faun Stravinsky Firebird Suite (1919)

Benjamin Loeb, a native Texan, is an accomplished conductor, accompanist, soloist, arranger, and educator. His widely varied projects range from concerts of Beethoven and Bruckner Symphonies to recordings with Yo-Yo Ma of Italian 16th century madrigalists to tours with popular rock musicians to world premieres of the most cutting-edge avant-garde contemporary music. As the Associate Conductor of the El Paso Symphony Orchestra, Loeb founded and serves as Music Director of the El Paso Symphony Youth Orchestras – El Paso’s only national-level, multiple-orchestra system serving the best young musicians in the El Paso, southern New Mexico and Juarez region. He has held the position of Assistant Conductor for the Haddonfield Symphony for four years and Assistant Conductor for the Greater Bridgeport (CT) Symphony Orchestra for two, and has served for three summers as Assistant Conductor for the TodiMusicFest in Portsmouth, VA. He is the Founder and Artistic Director of the International Conducting Workshop and Festival, now in its seventh year, last summer being held in Zlin, Czech Republic.

During his tenure, the Haddonfield Symphony won the MetLife Award for Excellence in Community Engagement for the musical outreach he led into schools in southern New Jersey in which he introduced children of all ages to the instruments of the orchestra. At Rutgers University, the Peabody Conservatory and Harvard University, he led operas in full productions. At the Peabody Conservatory, as a musical response to the attacks of September 11, Loeb organized and led what Tim Smith of The Baltimore Sun called “a remarkable concert” of Bruckner Symphony #7 and the world premiere of John Traill’s “In Memory”, a set of four orchestral miniatures based on the themes of the Bruckner. He has toured with his sister Lisa Loeb leading orchestral accompaniments to her rock music.

He holds a Graduate Performance Diploma from the Peabody Conservatory in Conducting, as a student of Gustav Meier, a Master in Music from the Curtis Institute and a Doctor in Musical Arts from the Juilliard School in Accompanying and a Bachelor of Arts from Harvard University. He continues to tour worldwide as conductor and pianist, teaches at the new El Paso Conservatory of Music, and conducts the El Paso Symphony Youth Orchestras.

JAN. 24, 2009
SHIZUO KUWAHARA, CONDUCTORJAMES ACKLEY, TRUMPET

Ravel Mother Goose Suite
Haydn Trumpet Concerto
Prokofiev Symphony No. 5

Promising young conductor Shizuo Kuwahara recently won second prize in the prestigious Georg Solti International Conductors’ Competition in Germany. Klassik.com praised his performance, writing, “[I]n terms of artistic courage, musical élan, and emotional identification with the score, surely for many in the audience Shizuo Kuwahara had the edge. His interpretation of Death and Transfiguration was astonishingly mature and imbued with a strong personal note. ...”

Mr. Kuwahara has held the positions of associate conductor of the Virginia Symphony and conducting fellow with The Philadelphia Orchestra. In Philadelphia, he was mentored by Music Director Christoph Eschenbach and led the Orchestra in Family and Student concerts and covered additional performances. Currently, Mr. Kuwahara is an artistic director and the principal conductor of the IPPO Philharmoniker in Tokyo, Japan. In 2006 he spent his summer in Sapporo, Japan, where he was assistant conductor of the Pacific Music Festival. Mr. Kuwahara was music director of the William & Mary Symphony from 2003 to 2005 and of the American University Symphony Orchestra from 2001 to 2003.

A frequent guest conductor of the Nagoya Philharmonic and the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa, during the 2007-2008 season Mr. Kuwahara will debut with The Japan Philharmonic, The Tokyo Symphony, Osaka Century Orchestra, Omaha Symphony and Baton Rouge Symphony. His past guest conducting appearances have included the Polish Chamber Philharmonic, the Buffalo Philharmonic, the Chattanooga Symphony and the Baltimore Symphony.

Mr. Kuwahara participates in international conducting competitions around the world. In addition to winning second prize at the Solti Competition, he received an honorable mention in the 2006 Tokyo International Music Competition for Conducting and was a semifinalist in the Prokofiev International Competition in St. Petersburg, Russia. He is also a recipient of the Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans.

Born in Tokyo, Mr. Kuwahara studied conducting at Yale University, where he won the Eleozar de Carvalho Prize for students of conducting, and at the Eastman School of Music, where he was awarded the George Eastman Scholarship and certificates in performance and arts leadership. His principal teachers have included David Effron and Lawrence Leighton Smith. Mr. Kuwahara has also studied with Leonard Slatkin, David Zinman, Timothy Muffitt, and Michael Jinbo at various conducting institutions, including Aspen, the National Conducting Institute, the Pierre Monteux School, and the Chautauqua Music Institute.

FEB. 21, 2009
DIANE WITTRY, CONDUCTOR
STEFAN JACKIW, VIOLIN

Mozart Overture, Magic Flute
Stravinsky Violin Concerto
Franck Symphony in D minor

A native of California, Diane Wittry, is respected as an innovative conductor who maintains a dual career as an esteemed music director and acclaimed guest conductor throughout the world. During the past few seasons, Diane Wittry has conducted concerts in Japan, Russia, Slovakia, New York, Washington D.C, and New Jersey, as well as her regularly scheduled concerts with the orchestras in Pennsylvania and Connecticut.

In the United States, Diane Wittry has led performances by, among others, The Los Angeles Philharmonic, Florida Philharmonic Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic, and the symphony orchestras of San Diego, Houston, New Jersey, Stockton, Wichita, and Wichita Falls, while her international engagements include concerts with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, Russia’s Maikop and Sochi symphony orchestras, Slovakia’s State Orchestra-Kosice, Italy’s Sinfonia Dell’Arte di Firenze and Japan’s Orchestra Osaka Symphoniker.

As the Music Director of both the Allentown Symphony Orchestra and Norwalk Symphony Orchestra, Diane Wittry has helped expand the size of each organization’s concert season, while reaching out to the diverse populations of the communities-at-large. She has been a tireless advocate for the development of extensive educational programs, and she has championed an exciting, innovative programming style for concerts of all types. In 2000, Ms. Wittry was singled out nationally by Symphony magazine as “a conductor to watch.”
Prior to this, Diane Wittry served as the Music Director of The Symphony of Southeast Texas. Her work in Beaumont, Texas garnered national attention for the exceptional artistic and organizational growth the occurred under her leadership. She has also conducted at the music festivals of Ojai and Penn’s Woods.

Diane Wittry began her conducting studies with Daniel Lewis at the University of Southern California, from which she graduated with honors. While still a student, she was the recipient of a conducting fellowship from the Aspen Music Festival. Her other teachers and mentors include Michael Tilson Thomas, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Gustav Meier and Jorge Mester; most recently, she worked with the renowned Russian conductor Leonid Korchmar of the Kirov Opera, and Jorma Panula from Finland.

Over the years, Diane Wittry has received many honors and awards, including the American Symphony Orchestra League’s 1996 Helen M. Thompson Award for outstanding artistic leadership of a regional orchestra. She has been the subject of profiles in The New York Times (September, 2002) and Newsweek (September, 1994). In 2000, Ms. Wittry received the “Women of Excellence” Award in Beaumont, Texas and, in 1999 and 2000, the “Arts Ovation Award” and the “Woman of Distinction Award” from Allentown, Pennsylvania. Most recently, she became only the third American to be named -in recognition of her leadership in the arts and humanities - the recipient of the prestigious Fiorino Doro Award from the city of Vinci, Italy. Ms. Wittry’s new book Beyond the Baton (Oxford University Press 2007), about artistic leadership for young conductors and music directors, was recently nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

More information will follow regarding the entire season of concerts of the Symphony’s 2008-09 season which opens with a Westobou Festival concert on Friday, September 26, 2008, under the direction of Music Director Donald Portnoy featuring “Cirque de la Symphonie” at the Bell Auditorium in downtown Augusta.

For more information about the Augusta Symphony, call 706-826-4705 or visit augustasymphony.org.

This Baby Will Have You Crying With Laughter

2008-03-29T08:16:00.001-04:00

Thurmond announces $33,297 grant for summer jobs for youth in Richmond-Burke County Area

2008-03-28T16:12:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA - State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond announced that the Georgia Department of Labor will provide $33,297 for summer jobs for youth ages 14-21 in the Richmond-Burke County area.

The funds are part of a $1 million grant that the labor department will provide statewide to create summer jobs for youth in rural and urban Georgia communities with limited employment opportunities.

In making the announcement, Commissioner Thurmond said, "These jobs created by this grant will offer many young people their best opportunity to get a job and earn wages this summer, when jobs may be scarce because of our weakening labor market. Their experience in a real-life working environment will also provide them the opportunity to develop good work ethics and better prepare them to eventually enter the job market full time."

The grant will help create 25 jobs for youth in the Richmond-Burke County area, including those with disabilities who are enrolled in High School/High Tech, a department program designed to help students with disabilities study technology.

Each youth will typically work 32 hours per week for six weeks and earn $5.85 per hour. A wide variety of jobs in both the public and private sectors will be available for the young people.

The initiative is a partnership between the labor department and the state's 20 Workforce Investment Boards (WIBs). In its sixth year, the program has previously allocated $5.3 million to serve 5,920 youth across the state.

Youth interested in applying for one of these summer jobs should contact their local Workforce Investment Board for more information. In the Richmond-Burke area, the contact is Jacqueline Dunn, executive director of Richmond-Burke Job Training at 209 7th St. in Augusta. The telephone number is 706-721-1858.

Info That You Need

2008-03-28T14:43:00.001-04:00

From black holes to déjà vu, find out how the world really works.

Every day we rely on a lot of stuff to help us get things done. But how much do we really know about the objects that surround us? That was the question HowStuffWorks.com was founded on in 1998 — and it's been giving credible, unbiased and easy-to-understand explanations since. Just don't try to find an answer for the Richmond County Commission... or the Coliseum Authority... or the Board of Education...

Visit HowStuffWorks

Foundation Doubles Prize Money

2008-03-27T15:02:00.001-04:00

The Porter Fleming Writing Competition will accept entries in the categories of Short Stories (2,500 words max), Poetry (one poem per page, three poems per entry); Nonfiction (Article or Personal Essay, 2,000 words max), a Playwriting (15 pages max) until June 13.

There is a $10 entry fee, and any resident of Georgia, Florida, Alabama, South Carolina and North Carolina are eligible to participate. Top Prize in each category is $1,500; Second Prize is $800; Third Prize is $500.

Call the Greater Augusta Arts Council for more information: 706-826-4702 or augustaarts.com.

Patrick Davis Show Expanded

2008-03-27T11:46:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - This Saturday night Patrick Davis will be back in Augusta at La Chat Noir -- and his father, Rusty Davis, will make the drive in from Camden, S.C. to play alongside him.

La Chat Noir is located downtown at 304 8th Street and you can get advance tix by calling 706-722-3322. La Chat's website is www.LCNAugusta.com!

Video of Coliseum Authority Meeting

2008-03-27T09:41:00.002-04:00

WJBF-TV News Channel 6's George Eskola was at the Augusta Coliseum Authority meeting, Tuesday, that resulted in the firing of Julie Huggins as Facilities Manager, at the James Brown Arena. They've posted the raw video of the meeting on their site. Click here to view it.

Great times for MCG Health

2008-03-26T14:30:00.002-04:00

MCG Health CEO Don Snell told the executive committee of the hospital board that this has been an exceptional two weeks.

The hospital was named as one of the Thompson 100 Top Hospitals for the second time. It also made the list in 2003. The ranking places it on the top tier with such teaching hospitals as the University of Michigan, Evanston Northwestern, University of Kentucky and Vanderbilt.

The hospital also earned a stellar evaluation from the Joint Commission Accreditation survey. The surprise visit examined patient care at the hospital over seven days and is considered the "gold standard" of the hospital industry, Snell said.

"The told us this was one of the very best hospitals they'd inspected through the past three years," Snell told the board members.

"Those of us who went through the process, we were really impressed with the staff here and their devotion to patients."

Snell also told the committee that a benefactor has offered to donate a surgical robotic device to the hospital. The device is worth more than $1.5 million.

The executive committee approved issuing $135 million in revenue bonds for development of new healthcare facilities. The bonds are being issued through the Development Authority of Richmond County.

Checking Coliseum Authority's books

2008-03-26T09:18:00.002-04:00

Augusta Commissioner Joe Bowles is calling for the Augusta-Richmond County Coliseum Authority to appear at the commission next week -- and bring the books.

"Please place a presentation from coliseum authority on the April 1 agenda. This should include most recent audit report and current financial statements with supporting cash, receivable and payable supporting documentation," Bowles wrote to clerk Lena Bonner.

The Coliseum Authority, while greatly experienced at firing people, hasn't seen a good set of financial reports for at least six months. Bowles, an accountant, is the right person to call them on it.

After all, they do get millions of dollars from the taxpayer. We can only pray that they're better at managing the dollars than at managing the employees.

Beauties Crowned at Miss Southeast 2008

2008-03-25T14:28:00.002-04:00

(L) Lauren Rickabaugh, Teen Miss Southeast 2008
(C) Heidi Landon, Miss Southeast 2008
(R) Elizabeth Towles, Young Miss Southeast 2008

AUGUSTA,GA. - Three beauty queens were crowned Saturday night at the Miss Southeast Pageant, held at North Augusta's Riverview Park Center. Winning the Young Miss Southeast 2008 title was Elizabeth Towles, 15, a sophomore at North Augusta High School. Lauren Rickabaugh, 18, a senior at North Augusta High School was crowned Teen Miss Southeast 2008, and Heidi Landon, 19 of Sylvania, Georgia was crowned Miss Southeast 2008.

Contestants participated in personal style wear and evening gown, and were judged on beauty, poise and onstage personality. In addition to cash awards, winners received $500.00 prize packages.

Beech Island Historic Homes Tour

2008-03-24T14:43:00.003-04:00

Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site, one of the homes on the tour.

The Beech Island Historic Homes Tour will be Saturday, April 19, from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Tickets are $25 and may be purchased at:

Historic Augusta 415 Seventh St. Augusta
First Citizens Banks of Beech Island, Jackson and North Augusta
Tickets may also be obtained from the BIHS by mail, phone or email.

Proceeds from this fund raiser will benefit the Beech Island Agricultural Museum.

Children's Art Walk is a near sell-out show

2008-03-24T14:37:00.003-04:00

Emma discusses her piece with Children's Art Walk founder Bruce Klassen.

AUGUSTA, GA. - Bruce Klassen reports that his organization received a Porter Fleming grant last week to continue the good work they've been doing with the kids at Heritage Academy. Their Bee's Knees show has almost sold out.

The program is looking to expand - Klassen expects a few other large donations - and will be making what he termed "some interesting, non-traditional moves" soon. Non-traditional for public charities, that is.

"One of our next 'gigs' is going to be four of us (three kids) giving paintings to Walton Rehab for their 'Unknown' Artist fund raiser," Klassen said. "So, again, the kids get a totally different success experience, giving their paintings to raise money.

Check out the Children’s Art Walk Show and Sale at The Bee’s Knees, or follow this link to their website and online gallery and store: childrensartwalk.com

Pictures of anything... from anywhere... or anytime

2008-03-24T09:37:00.002-04:00

This photo from one of the earliest known professional baseball games is just an example of the photo archives from the New York Public Library. Free and open online access to over 600,000 digital images, from a library whose holdings total more than 43 million items. Yeah, it's pretty comprehensive.

This massive compilation from the New York Public Library collects images from primary sources and printed rarities such as illuminated manuscripts, historical maps, vintage posters, illustrated books, rare prints and photographs, short-lived prints and more.

Know what you're looking for? Search by a specific keyword and jump right to your results. Just browsing? Peruse through thousands of subjects and names or digitally leaf through NYPL categories like Cities & Buildings, Arts & Literature or Nature & Science to find the most interesting, bizarre and beautiful images from the distant past to more recent publishings.

How Stuff Works

2008-03-21T17:43:00.001-04:00

Augusta native in new play at Booth Theater

2008-03-19T13:20:00.003-04:00

Augusta, Ga. - Native son LAURENCE FISHBURNE stars in "Thurgood," at Booth Theater in NYC.

His performances have been deemed "brilliant, "riveting" and "electrifying" by The New York Times. He's a Tony Award winner, a Drama Desk Award winner, an Emmy Award winner, an Academy Award nominee and the recipient of a Theatre World Award.

In George Stevens Jr.'s powerful new play, the towering Laurence Fishburne brings the words, wit and wisdom of one of America's greatest heroes to life.

Thurgood Marshall rose from the backstreets of Baltimore to the Supreme Court of the United States, overcoming whatever obstacles society placed in his way. THURGOOD is his remarkable story, a triumph of courage -- not just for the man, but for the nation he bravely challenged and proudly served.

Written by eleven-time Emmy Award winner and two-time Peabody Award winner George Stevens, Jr., THURGOOD is directed by Leonard Foglia, who also directed Broadway's Tony Award-winning play, MASTER CLASS. THURGOOD is produced on Broadway by five time Tony Award winner Bill Haber.

Better than a yard sale?

2008-03-19T13:15:00.002-04:00

Classic quid pro quo — trade things you have for things you want. With swaptree's unique "multiple-way trade algorithms," as soon as you post an item for exchange, you'll see hundreds of things you could get for it.

Unlike other online trading communities, on swaptree you don't have to spend time searching for and negotiating trades or dealing with a points system. Join for free, list what you have (either by ISBN or UPC number or by clicking a "Have It" button if you see your item featured on the site) and add things to your "Items I Want" list (the same way). swaptree will instantly alert you when you have a valid trade with a "Get Now" button next to something you wanted. Click it and you're set. The only thing you pay for is shipping your item (usually under $2.50 via USPS).

Might be of interest to writers out there...

2008-03-19T13:14:00.001-04:00

The traditional model of book publishing involves researching interested editors, searching books that were published a year ago or websites that might never have been updated. When you find an editor you think might be interested, you package up your manuscript and put it in the mail. Then you wait. And you wait. It could be months before you hear a thing.

Creative Byline employs first readers, who have expertise in writing and publishing. They'll read your children's picture book or a synopsis, outline, and first three chapters of a longer work. And they'll give you (or your writing friend!) useful feedback that you can use to polish your work so you know that it's ready to be reviewed by an editor, who's a professional critic!

The service provides:

Helpful coaching from first readers
Target the editors you want
Guaranteed connection to the editor you choose
Discounted submissions for you and your friends

Eryn Eubanks featured on Georgia Public Radio...

2008-03-19T11:54:00.001-04:00

Eryn Eubanks featured on Georgia Public Radio. Go to their website and click on the "Georgia Gazette" broadcast for March 13, 2008. Her segment will be on around the -18:08 mark.

You Tube new testing ground for Hollywood TV sitcoms

2008-03-19T11:00:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - You Tube is coming of age. It should come as no surprise that now even veteran independent TV show producers are testing out their skills and creating pilots and using the You Tube audience to evaluate the online success to spot a winner for possible shows.

Take a look at "The Hicks." This 11-minute pilot looks inside the southern born and bred household of Vern, Violet, and their young and beautiful daughter Lola Hick (played by Crystal Hunt) before and during the time they are uprooted and forced to relocate to New York City to support Lola's developing television career. It’s a modern day Beverly Hillbilly’s adventure filled with campy romance, growing pains humor, and North vs. South cultural clichés. This very funny video short showcases the talents of a wonderful cast of Hollywood veterans. Will it be a success? You be the judge and cast your vote!

Starring Crystal Hunt, Tom Pelphrey, Shuler Hensley, Catherine Hickland, Sonya Eddy, David Naughton, Kim Chesser and Two-Foot Fred.

Tuesdays Music Live tops 5,000 attendees this year

2008-03-18T17:02:00.000-04:00

On behalf of the more than 5,000 people who attended this year's free Tuesday's Music Live concerts, thanks for covering our events. The 20th anniversary season ended today, 18 March, with a standing-room-only audience for Elisabeth von Trapp ("The Sound of Music"). Tuesday's Music Live looks forward to expanding its operation when the 21st season opens on 23 September 2008. The lunches following the concerts will be held in the new facilities adjoining Saint Paul's Episcopal Church and Augusta's Riverwalk. Here's hoping you all have relaxing summers and thanks again for all you do for our community.

Keith Shafer
Artistic Director
Tuesday's Music Live, Inc.

First Take Film Festival Now Soliciting Entries

2008-03-18T11:08:00.004-04:00

First Take Film Festival in Augusta, GA, April 8-13; March 25

From their site: "With the explosion of the film festival market, the circuit has become less about giving new and upcoming artists a platform as it has become just another vehicle for mainstream to strut their “artistic” side. First Take strives to be a return to the festivals of the late eighties and early nineties where visionary young filmmakers, musicians, and now visual artists, can premier the next great song, sculpture, or feature. As a result, the materials the founders will be looking for will be edgy, against-the-grain, and possibly even controversial."

More at First Take Film Festival.

And here's the withoutabox page for the fest.

GreenJackets Single Game Seats go on Sale

2008-03-18T11:06:00.002-04:00

Tag-a-Seat Day Allows Fans to Choose their Season Seat Location

AUGUSTA, GA. – The Augusta GreenJackets 20th Anniversary season is right around the corner and single game seats are going on sale. Fans will be able to purchase single game seats beginning Saturday, March 22, the same day as Tag-a-Seat Day.

Tag-a-Seat Day allows fans to see what seats are still available for season seat purchases and the type of view they will have of the field. All remaining box and reserved level seats along with general admission seats not currently sold as season seats will be tagged.

“This is a really fun day because it means the season is just around the corner,” GreenJackets General Manager Nick Brown said. “Fans really like the opportunity to come out and see where their seats are and what the view is like.”

Tag-a-Seat Day will run from 10:00 a.m. through 1:00 p.m. on March 22 and the tags will be color-coded according to the season seat plan type. Season seat plans include 11 Game Plans, 22 Game Plans, Half Season Plans and Full Season Plans. The 11 game plans start at just $55 per season seat plan for General Admission and include four free gifts per plan.

Season seat plans have been selling fast in 2008 with the GreenJackets already surpassing the 2007 season seat total of 1,608. With over 1,800 already sold expectations are high that the GreenJackets may hit 2,000 season seats sold.

GreenJackets individual seat sales will begin at 10:00 a.m. at the Stadium Box Office. There are a limited number of seats still available for Opening Night on April 3. Single game seats starts at $6 for General Admission and $7 for Reserved seating.

“Ever since we announced that we would open the season at home before the Master’s, ticket sales for that weekend have been moving fast,” Brown said. “There are also some games during the year that feature some top entertainment acts and we anticipate seats for those games will move fast when individual seats go on sale.”

Top entertainment acts like Myron Noodleman, Mad Chad, and Rally will make appearances during the summer. The GreenJackets also plan on having a Bark-in-the-Park night on June 7 where fans can bring their dog to the game and also be entertained by America’s Favorite Frisbee Dogs. Additionally, there has been an increase in Firework shows and giveaways.

Single game seats can be purchased on Saturday in person at the Lake Olmstead Stadium Box Office until 4:00 p.m. or online at greenjacketsbaseball.com.

The GreenJackets set a franchise high mark in attendance in 2007 as 177,780 fans watched GreenJackets baseball moving Augusta into the league’s Top 10 for attendance. The GreenJackets also had a franchise high 19 sellouts in 2007.

The 20th Anniversary season begins at home on Thursday, April 3 with a four game series against Greensboro. The home stand will include a Fireworks Show on Friday, April 4, the ZOOperstars on Saturday, April 5 and finish on Sunday, April 6; one day before The Masters first practice round will begin. It is the first time since the 2003 season that the GreenJackets will open at home before The Masters.

For more information on tickets and promotions call the GreenJackets at 706-736-7889 or visit greenjacketsbaseball.com.

Your Tax Dollars at Work

2008-03-17T15:58:00.001-04:00

Photos courtesy of Michael E. Johnson, better known as "The Sightings Guy"

Rich-moNd County, people! Do you even know what planet you live on?!

Last Call for Sweet Potato Recipes in National Competition

2008-03-17T14:42:00.002-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - A total of $5,000 in prize money at stake for best soup, salad, side and desserts can be won in the North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission's first-ever consumer contest.

Original recipes for soups, salads, sides and desserts must be received by April 15. Winners will be notified by June 1, 2008.

Rules and entry forms may be found at getfreshwithsweetpotatoes.com. Interested cooks may send a SASE to Get Fresh with North Carolina Sweet Potatoes Recipe Contest; P.O. Box 575; Selma, NC 27576 to request contest information. In all, $5,000 will be awarded for the best sweet potato recipes.

"There will be four first-place prizes of $500. They will come from each of four recipe categories - soups, salads, sides and sweets. A grand prize of $3,000 will be selected from the four first-prize winners," said Sue Johnson-Langdon, Executive Director of the Commission.

Byrdy to Speak at Chamber Breakfast

2008-03-17T14:40:00.000-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Well-known local sportscaster, Stan Byrdy, will be the featured speaker at the North Augusta Chamber's AM Connection on Wednesday, March 26 at the North Augusta Community Center. The breakfast meeting will kickoff at 7:15 a.m. He will be speaking on the history of the Masters Golf Tournament and the Augusta National. The event is being sponsored by The Episcopal Day School.

The dean of Augusta sportscasters, Stan brings 28 years of broadcast experience to NBC Augusta News. He has covered the Masters Golf Tournament since Jack Nicklaus historic win in 1986.

An authority on the history of golf in Augusta, Stan is the author of two books (The Augusta National Golf Club: Alister MacKenzie's Masterpiece, Ann Arbor Media, 2005; Augusta and Aiken in Golf's Golden Age; Arcadia Publishing, 2002) and speaks frequently on the subject.

Cost for the breakfast is $10 for members and $15 for non-members. Reservations may be made by contacting the Chamber at 803-279-2323.

Augusta Symphony tees off for education

2008-03-17T14:39:00.000-04:00

AUGUSTA, GA. - Play with your Augusta Symphony! Golf, that is. On Monday, May 19 the Augusta Symphony presents its first ever Golf Classic at Belle Meade Country Club in Thomson, Georgia. Proceeds benefit the Augusta Symphony’s education and outreach programs. Chairmen of the event are Symphony Board members Jim Jones, Senior Vice President of Georgia Bank & Trust, and Mike Ramp, Vice President of Fifth Third Bank.

Registration is $100 for individuals and $400 for a foursome. The registration deadline is Wednesday, April 30. Entries include lunch, gifts, awards reception, and a chance to win a Lexus, courtesy of Jim Hudson Lexus. Hole sponsorships are available. To register or for more information, contact Beverly Smith at 706.826.4704, email beverlysmith@augustasymphony.org, or visit augustasymphony.org. This event is made possible through the Knox Foundation.

The Augusta Symphony’s scope of educational and outreach services covers a 15-county area and two states. Music to the People concerts present symphonic music to individuals in outlying areas including Swainsboro, Waynesboro, Athens, and Thomson, Georgia and McCormick, Barnwell, and North Augusta, South Carolina. The Symphony’s Music in the Schools program annually presents over 175 lecture-demonstrations for elementary school students in more than 50 area schools including Columbia, Richmond, and McDuffie counties in Georgia and Aiken County, South Carolina.