Consumer Stories

Consumer Stories

Air show returns to Augusta airport this weekend

The skies over Augusta will soon be filled with military teams and civilian aviators demonstrating their abilities. The second Annual Augusta Air Show will be held at Augusta Regional Airport on May 25 and 26. “It’s great that we’re coming back for a second year. We look forward to putting on another great show for the Augusta area folk,” Chris Dirato, Director of Public Relations for Augusta Air Show told ABD. “We’ll have a combination of military, as well as civilian performers. So, as I like to say, we have

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B2B Stories

Groundbreaking partnership pairs student career goals with workforce needs

Seated together at the intersection of education, technology, and workforce development, representatives from Strom Thurmond High School (STHS) and Self Regional Healthcare signed an innovative, long-term partnership recently that promises to join student career aspirations and community workforce needs hand in hand. The new agreement announces Self Regional Healthcare’s commitment to take the lead as the title sponsor and community partner of Strom Thurmond High School’s Human Services and Business Academy. The new academy will now be recognized as the Self Regional Healthcare Human Services and Business Academy. The heart

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Consumer Stories

John Deere honored with Good Neighbor Award

The company slogan is “Nothing runs like a Deere” and the Red Cross couldn’t run their humanitarian response without the support of businesses and individuals. As the volunteer partner for the Red Cross “Sound the Alarm” campaign, more than 30 John Deere employees volunteered their time to go door to door recently with Red Crossers and the Augusta Fire Department installing free smoke alarms and providing fire safety education to families in the Harrisburg Community. “It was truly inspiring working with such dedicated John Deere employees visiting homes, installing smoke

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B2B Stories

Kemp signs legislation targeting workforce and education

Ga. Gov. Brian Kemp (R) has signed more than half a dozen bills dealing with workforce development that were passed during the 2024 session of the Georgia Legislature. One of the bills, House Bill 982, requires the State Workforce Development Board to create a high-demand career list. The goal is to make sure the state is creating programs and educational opportunities to fill the most critically needed jobs. “Every job creator who calls Georgia home and every prospective company looking to expand tells me that, along with our business-friendly environment

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B2B Stories

A taste of Miami opens in the CSRA

Aiken is now home to an establishment that offers Latin jazz, flamenco performances, tasty dishes, cocktails, and premium cigars. Rhumba Rum and Cigar Lounge opened at 321 Richland West in Aiken, the former location of Antique Emporium which closed last year. Rhumba held a soft opening in April and a grand opening on May 9. Born in Cuba, Rhumba owner, Elier Alberto lived in Miami for 22 years working in nightclubs that served up Latin cuisine, Latin jazz, and fine cigars. Miami is known for its thriving nightlife and sandy

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B2B Stories

Brews, bites, and barks

Sometimes, business dreams are worth waiting for. When Andrew Phifer, an engineer, and his wife, Rachel, an accountant, found themselves more apart than together because of their jobs, they started thinking of what they could do together that both would enjoy. With inspiration from their own “good girl” Kate the rescue dog, the idea for Good Girl Brewing Company was born. In 2021, they found the perfect spot at 880 Banks Mill Road in Aiken, next door to Citizens Park and the former location of Found Treasures, an antique and

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B2B Stories

‘Tis the growing season in the CSRA

When you get off work today, you can pick up fresh veggies and other locally produced products at the South Augusta Farmers Market at Mayor Garnett Johnson’s Headquarters, 4104 Windsor Spring Road in Hepzibah. The official Ribbon Cutting Ceremony of the market is at 6:00 pm. They will also be open at 9:00 am on Saturday. Agriculture is Georgia’s leading industry with more than $74 billion in economic impact every year. In Augusta, agribusiness brings in more than $130 million, according to the Augusta Economic Development Authority (AEDA). “The event

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Consumer Stories

Business Lunch Review: Inner Bean Café

Food Quality: 5 Service: 4 Business Meeting: 4 Value: 3 Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 Inner Bean Café’s Facebook page refers to the eatery on Davis Road as “not just a place; it’s a state of mind,” and if you’ve ever eaten there, you probably know exactly what that description means. I’ve enjoyed visiting many restaurants in Augusta and beyond, but eating at Inner Bean has always been such a calming experience and a welcome respite from the chaos of the world. My wife, Rebecca, and I visited the

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Consumer Stories

In Wildcat, Flannery O’Connor’s life and words intertwine

The movie biopic has become something of a dreaded, exhausted genre; often an exploitative, surface-level travesty of a familiar personality played with predictable beats and cosmetic transformation of a leading actor hungry for an Oscar nomination (remember Mr. Cooper’s Leonard Bernstein?). Most of these films either try to capture an entire life in two hours, or laser-focus on one specific, usually climactic, period of a subject’s life with little to offer in terms of context. With the new film Wildcat, one may fear that legendary Georgia-born writer, Flannery O’Connor would

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B2B Stories

USCA gets financial boost to help cyber students

USCA has received money from a veteran-owned cybersecurity firm that will fund scholarships for students seeking a career in cybersecurity and computer science. SteelGate, LLC, a Virginia-based company with an office in Augusta, has donated $25,000 to USCA. The SteelGate Cyber Scholarships will be used to provide $1,000 scholarships to high school students in the Aiken-Augusta area. “We contacted about 15 to 18 high schools in the region. And there’s a competitive scholarship for each school, one to two scholarships,” Dr. Scott McKay, Dean of Sciences and Engineering, explained for

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