Consumer Stories

B2B Stories

Award-winning baker branches out with grand opening for new restaurant

If you’ve ever had a sweet tooth, you’ve probably visited Bottom Line Bakery at 4534 Washington Road in the past couple of years. Surely, the display of cakes and the aroma of freshly baked bread and cinnamon rolls drew you into the establishment started by Kelsey Lucius. You might also have caught her on Season 7 of Chopped Sweets, where she turned four somewhat questionable baskets of ingredients into Million Dollar Desserts which captured the $10,000 winning prize. That was in March 2020. A few months later, Lucius opened her

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Consumer Stories

Simon Says: Location restrictions are bad for business

Imagine you want to open a new business in a town. The main street of this town is ten miles long and the residents are equally distributed along the street. Where would you locate your business? It may seem that if you are the only business, it does not matter where you are physically located, but some places are better than others. Locating at one of the ends may mean that the travel costs end up being so high, that some residents will choose not to buy at all. Remember,

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B2B Stories

$4M Grant to expand critical CSRA healthcare services

The four-year grant totaling $4M was awarded to Serenity Behavioral Health Systems (SBHS) by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and allows Serenity to become a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic. The grant funding will help to expand critical behavioral health services through the addition of care coordination, medical screenings, and extended service hours, along with the addition of mobile behavioral healthcare in rural areas of Richmond, Columbia, and McDuffie counties for underserved individuals, youth, and military members. “Our mission is to deliver the highest quality care

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B2B Stories

Local caterer delivers food with LOL

She grew up in a big family who all had a passion for cooking. At the age of 13, she was helping her grandma cook for various community centers around Augusta. It’s not surprising that Tashia Bailey started a catering business. “Through the years, I also worked in nearly every school cafeteria in Richmond County,” she said. “I’ve also worked at most of the area fast food places and for a while, as the bakery manager at Walmart,” said Bailey. When the pandemic hit, restaurants had to juggle and find

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Consumer Stories

The O$car $ea$on

As we near the end of the year, Hollywood studios are preparing to roll out their newest flock of contenders for the 2024 Awards Season. The period between October and January is, historically, the most bloated (and frantic) time for new movie releases, as companies cram to vie for decorations and publicity in the winter. This period is called “Oscar Season.” There are many – too many – award shows nowadays; hosted by guilds, artistic foundations, academies, critics, and whatever the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is. Let’s face it, the

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B2B Stories

Augusta celebrity launches new cookbook tomorrow

It’s a challenge to say anything about Vera Stewart that hasn’t already been said or written. She’s a chef, a caterer, an author, and a star of the syndicated “VeryVera Show” in 43 markets from Minnesota to Texas and back to her southeastern roots. She’s received numerous accolades for the brand she’s built through almost 40 years of hard work. Vera’s success can be attributed in part to her engaging personality, her love for mentoring kids as a Home Economics teacher, and through the VeryVera Cooking Camp she started 20

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B2B Stories

Generous bequest to benefit future computer and cyber students

A $2.4 million bequest from the estate of Victor Rattner has created the Lillian P. & Victor Rattner Computer Science Scholarship Endowment. The gift will provide scholarships for in-state and out-of-state students attending the School of Computer and Cyber Sciences at Augusta University. Rattner first attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hills and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1969. He planned to attend graduate school in North Carolina, but a diving accident left him a quadriplegic. He persevered, enrolling at then Augusta College. He earned a

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Consumer Stories

Simon Says: Throwing some good numbers your way

I was told by a colleague that my column last week was a bit too much doom and gloom, so I have some good news to cheer you up this week. THE CRICKET WORLD CUP HAS STARTED!!!! Last Thursday, England played New Zealand in the opening game of the tournament being played in India. The opening game of the tournament is a replay of the final from 2019, where England prevailed on the number of boundaries they scored after the match was tied after 50 overs and a super over.

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Consumer Stories

T’s “re-opening” brings back childhood memories

Edward Carruthers and his friend were one of the first customers last week at the launch of T’s food truck outside their original location on Mike Padgett Highway. Carruthers jumped at the chance to have lunch on Thursday afternoon with his friend. “I was here two or three times a week prior to the fire, “said the Augusta area auto mechanic. His favorite was the boatload salad bar, but he’ll gladly enjoy other T’s delicacies. Carruthers ordered the flounder, with hand-cut fries and T’s famous (oversized) hush puppies for $14.

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Consumer Stories

AU student-athletes join the team to fight cancer

Patients being treated at the Georgia Cancer Center (GCC) at Augusta University have new members on their team, and they know all about working as a team. Student-athletes at Augusta University launched the “Here to Win” campaign during a recent news conference. The campaign will bring awareness to cancer prevention and early detection, while also raising funds to support research projects at GCC. Ryan Erlacher, athletic director at Augusta University, said Jaguar athletics has long partnered with GCC for cancer awareness games. However, they looked for a way to advance

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