As a journalist since 2003, I have written about everything from pigeon racing to sex trafficking. I became the religion reporter for The Augusta Chronicle in October 2013 and joined WhereTraveler (now defunct) in October 2016, where I wrote about topics ranging from travel advice to inspirational slideshows for a global audience. I have earned two first place awards in religion writing by the Georgia Press Association, as well as a second place shared award for Best Online News Project.
In August 2019, I joined the Communications and Marketing team at Augusta University, and in 2020, I completed a Master of Science in Strategic Communication. I currently work in media relations for Wellstar Health System, and write about topics related to healthcare in an academic medical center setting.
When Coale Peace learned he had been chosen to be a 2025 National Champion by the Children's Miracle Network, he asked his mom, "Does that mean me and 12 other kids are going to take over the world?"
Clad in hard hats and neon construction vests, civic leaders and the media took their first look inside the long-awaited Wellstar Columbia County Medical Center on Nov. 14.
First hospital in Georgia to offer innovative Hospital Care at Home program.
Wellstar Children's Hospital of Georgia would not exist without Dr. Howell's steadfast advocacy.
A group of anesthesiologists at Augusta University Health want to make the hospital a greener place, and they're starting with their own department. They hope to inspire employees across the health system to reduce waste and greenhouse gases. "When we usually think of greenhouse gas, we always
Only 32% of kidney transplants in children are from living donors, and that number is dropping. Kidneys from living donors provide the best chance for successful transplants for pediatric patients and offer the lowest risk for complications. If Caitlyn Widener could have a holiday wish, it would be to give her daughter a kidney.
The new Cardiovascular ICU was designed to improve patient care, including larger rooms that are comfortable for patients' families to stay, a feature Scott Gay and his family said they appreciated. But the CVICU's greatest feature has been there all along - its caring staff.
Together, the SmithGroup/TVS design team will develop an innovative healing environment inside and out that is an extension of the patient and family-centered care proudly provided by Augusta University Health. After careful consideration, Board of Directors at Augusta University Health is pleased to announce it has chosen SmithGroup and TVS as the architects to design the long-awaited Columbia County hospital.
Ever since William "Willie" Nelson received an aortic valve replacement at Augusta University Health System last year, his physicians want to regularly see him to make sure he's doing well. His primary care physician, Dr. Thad Wilkins, conducted a routine follow-up appointment March 23 with his longtime patient.
Dr. Megan Buning didn't play teacher growing up. She played softball, and became one of the University of South Carolina's star pitchers until she graduated in 2002 with a bachelor of science in exercise science. Then, she decided, she was done. Except she wasn't.
From time to time, the news reports blood shortages. Shepeard Community Blood Center regularly hosts blood drives across the area. Frequently, The American Red Cross reminds us that "every two seconds, someone needs blood." Blood donors know they are doing a good deed when they donate.
"You're seeing someone in front of you that has given everything, right up until the very end. So that makes you appreciate that aspect of it, and then I think that bond starts to grow. I don't think you realize it.
Click through a slideshow of branded spirit banners placed in partner high school gyms. They're often not noticed until, in the middle of a Friday night football game, a player gets hurt during a play.
Craig Churchill spent a record 45 days on ECMO at AU Medical Center recovering from COVID-19 - the longest of any patient in the two-year history of AU Health's adult ECMO program. Technically, Craig Churchill died Sept. 26, 2021, from complications of COVID-19 and hypoxic cardiac arrest.
Riley Carraher's smile was almost as bright as the sunshine over AU Health on a recent September afternoon, as she sat on a campus bench and fondly recalled childhood days spent with her grandfather, packing DAISY Awards into cardboard shipping boxes to be sent off to local hospitals. The 23-year
Most people think of a stroke as only a brain disorder, but sometimes it's a matter of the heart. That's why structural cardiologist Dr. Kimberly Atianzar and neurologists Drs. Jeffrey Switzer, Askiel Bruno and Dilip Singh have come together to create a new heart/brain clinic in the AU Health Car
Public Relations Writing
The Rev. Brennan Francois of Augusta University Health 's pastoral care team was a little surprised when he received an email from Jennifer Dill, an institutional information analyst at Augusta University. After doing due diligence that included a phone call to her to ensure the email was legitimate, he opened it to find a joke and literally laughed out loud.
It's been a year since the first six people were tested for the novel coronavirus at Augusta University Health. Since then, Augusta University and AU Health have led the fight across the state of Georgia against the virus and the disease it causes, COVID-19.
Respiratory therapists at Augusta University went above and beyond to learn and manage the ECMO machines for critically ill adults, spending 12 hours per day at patients' bedsides.
In a new series chronicling the experiences of Augusta University heroes on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic, we sit down with caregivers from across Augusta University Health to find out what they're seeing and feeling, as well as what they're learning about this novel disease.
When Shandreka Burrell learned she would be assigned to work in the COVID-19 testing site at Augusta University, at first she refused. A traveling nurse originally from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Burrell was recovering from COVID-19 herself, which she contracted two weeks before she got her new assignment.
Travel Writing
Some of the world's most beautiful and astounding attractions may not be ours to enjoy much longer.While nature and time are both cruel mistresses, the forces of life are particularly savage in taking these sites from the world. Carbon dioxide, global warming and even tourism are all taking thei
Craving an island escape? For chef Ralph Motta, every day is an island escape. The young entrepreneur owns a boutique catering company, Motta Cuisine, specializing in sea-to-table, modern cuisine and was recently named the culinary ambassador to the U.S. by the USVI Department of Tourism.Motta
Half the fun of taking a trip is snapping the perfect envy-worthy Instagram photo to show friends and family back home.
Coming home from a fantastic vacation is never fun, but it's even less so if the car keys are in hiding and other minor nuisances arise. Take a little time before and after the trip to tend to tasks that will make coming home a whole lot smoother.[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"body","fid":"
Social media is quickly becoming a great source for travel information. Wondering where to go next? Check Instagram to see friends' latest travel adventures. Need to find the best coffee shop in Rome? Search "Rome" on Facebook, find friends who checked in there and ask them for recomme
Slideshows
From the Rocky Mountains of North America to the Virunga volcanoes in Rwanda, there are lush mountain vistas waiting to be admired. Where there are mountain vistas, there are mountain lodges offering spaces to relax and repose.Relaxing in a mountainside retreat, any time of the year, has a
Historically libraries were a quiet place of contemplation and learning.Libraries today are transforming into centers of the community by offering concerts, community programs, historical displays and even fine art galleries. Some libraries are works of art themselves with displays of architectural
As the capital and largest city in Slovenia, Ljubljana, deserves exploring.It's surprisingly relaxed and uncrowded while offering a vibrant, multicultural experience thanks to its spot in the center of Europe. As the recipient of "The European Green Capital" award the city took ec
From the beginning of time, people have loved alcohol. It's become a social thing, a way to meet new friends and a reason to visit old ones."Right from the beginning, humans have been seeking out to become intoxicated," said Drinks Educator Jane Peyton. "It's something that co
The photos from that once-in-a-lifetime trip to India have all been uploaded, shared and liked by everyone you know on Facebook and Instagram, but they still beg to be shown off. Keep reminders of that amazing trip fresh by displaying them on everyday things you didn't know were customizable. He
When alcohol was outlawed in the 1920s, the number of American speakeasies skyrocketed.Revelers in search of alcohol and good music could easily find the hidden joints underground or tucked in the back of a legal establishment; entry for many of these covert clubs was given with a code word whi
Award Winning Stories
She said she was even more shocked to learn that the same thing was happening to young girls in her hometown, and worse, that many of these victims have children who are destined to grow up and become victims or pimps themselves.
A wide view of the Breaking Free ranch in Davisboro, Georgia. The Christian-based rehabilitation facility was founded in 2004 by Scott and Melanie Mormon. CHRIS THELEN/STAFF DAVISBORO, Ga. - Volunteers from surrounding areas say what impresses them the most about Breaking Free Ministries is its self-sufficiency.
Keegan Mason grew up in Florida, the son of an Army colonel and a nurse. He easily made friends, made good grades and was a star golfer, winning the all-state championship with his team and earning a golf scholarship. He was 15 the first time he tried marijuana.
A couple of turquoise houses on one corner of an intersection in the middle of nowhere, also known as Davisboro, Ga. A gray double-wide next door to a matching gray triple-wide. The nearest towns - Louisville and Sandersville - are about 13 miles away in either direction.
One of the first things you see when you walk into Stephanie and David Davis' home in Grenelefe Park in Grovetown is the mice.They cavort on the risers of the stairs.There's no need to call the exterminator, though: They're Halloween decorations incorporated into everyday décor."People, I guess, put them on their windows or something like that during Halloween.
Today's Home
Laney and Andrew Mize consider their Summer Hill home to be their little bubble.Built in the 1980s in a quiet cul-de-sac and recently updated, the three-bedroom, two-story home is more modern than many Summerville homes that surround it.The large, covered deck on the side of the home adds to the illusion of isolation, as a treeline nearly hides the neighbors and gives a feeling of being in the woods.The deck is one thing that sold the Mizes on the home.
From the street, the home of Paul and Janet Foust in the Waters Edge community appears to be a small, cozy cottage on the Savannah River.Inside, the home seems much larger but still cozy. It's casual and comfortable."We enjoy living here.
Deer and wild turkeys wander onto Stephen and Tara Chostner's 3-acre Aiken estate.
The sloped, 1-acre lot that creates an interesting and beautiful landscape for Angie and Bruce Howland's Lake Thurmond home presented construction challenges.
Plenty of sunlight and a small yard drew Pam and Jerry Daniels to their Hardy Pointe home in Evans nine years ago.Their previous home had a wood exterior, was on a heavily wooded lot and required a lot of maintenance.Now their two sons are grown and have families of their own, and the small front yard and a largely concrete backyard are much easier for the couple to keep up with.The 2,900-square-foot house, tucked into a quiet cul-de-sac, is filled with items that are meaningful to the couple.
'Your Faith' Stories
Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, begins at sundown Sunday. The holiday will continue through Tuesday and is celebrated with special service, at which shofars, or ram's horns, will remind the congregation of God's sovereignty. Congregants will share meals by eating apples with honey, drinking sweet wine and wishing one another a sweet New Year.
Twenty-two white crosses stand on a hill at St. Augustine CopÂtic Orthodox Church in Evans. The largest represents Jesus Christ. The 21 smaller crosses are in memory of 21 Coptic Christians recently killed by Islamic State militants in Libya. "Coptic means Egypt. The Coptic church is worldwide," said Rafik Abdelsayed, the secretary and treasurer of the local congregation.
The celebration started with the morning prayer at the mosque, then continued with a time of feast and fellowship. "It's a big time to hang out and eat food. Food is a big part of all of the holidays," said Shima Syed, who works with children and youths at the mosque.
The shadows were growing longer and the ceiling fans above were whirring, keeping the temperature bearable. Nearby, Danny Jackson; his mother, Martha Jackson; and Janelle Dent sat on a cushioned wicker chair, a picnic bench and a kitchen chair discussing the extensive improvements they made to the cabin - they call it a tent - in the five years they've had it.
"Burn Leviticus 18:22 Lies" was painted across the double front doors of the Metropolitan Community Church of Our Redeemer on 557 Greene St. On the front steps was another passage, Leviticus 18:20, with the words "You'll Burn." The vandalism comes almost three weeks after a rainbow flag had been stolen from the front of the church.
He didn't imagine then that his congregation would encompass the 3,500 staff members, 700 physicians, roughly 5,000 students and countless patients who make up the Georgia Regents University and Georgia Regents Health System community. Because his parents were nurses, he was very comfortable in a hospital setting, and he found his calling while serving in a hospital during his practicum.
His mother, Carol Thompson, glanced at him sideways in the booth at Mellow Mushroom, rolled her eyes and said, "You and that toothpick." He looked at her, twirled it around in his mouth a little bit and said, "What?" Thompson grinned, soaking up every nuance of the 26-year-old.