Energetic, elite aerobatics will fill the skies at a popular air show

The Air Dot Show is back. This year, however, the show is coming to town a month earlier than usual as Augusta is the first stop on the eight-destination tour that celebrates military and civilian aviation excellence.

The U.S. Navy Blue Angels will headline the show with a combination of solo and formation maneuvers. The performance also will include an A-10 Thunderbolt II Close Air Support Demo, a P-51 Mustang Demo with Scott “Scooter” Yoak, the SOCOM Para-Commandos, the Georgia State Patrol, aerobatic pilot Michael Goulian and more.

A variety of aircraft will be on static display inside the event site as well.

Spectators can bring sunscreen, ear protection and up to a one-liter sealed bottle of water. Those who purchase general admission or lawn box tickets also should bring their own chairs. However, no tents, awnings or canopies will be allowed. Backpacks, bags, wagons and strollers will be permitted.

Tickets can be purchased in advance or on the day of the event. However, all tickets must be purchased before arrival at the show.

If You Go:

What: Air Dot Show Augusta

When: Noon – 4 p.m. Saturday, April 26 and Sunday, April 27; gates open 9 a.m.

Where: Augusta Regional Airport

How Much: Seating options and prices vary; children ages 5 and under are free in general admission section

More Info: augustaairshow.com

Ivey Homes is partnering with Bridge Builder Communities, a nonprofit that supports 18- to 25-year-olds who are aging out of the foster care system, to construction Tiny Home Village.

The campus, located on Merry Street in downtown Augusta, will include 25 tiny homes, shared community spaces and comprehensive life skill development programs to encourage independence and long-term success.

Each tiny home will be furnished with the items needed to start a new home, including a new bed with linens; pots, pans and kitchen utensils; a table and chairs; and bathroom supplies. Upon graduating from the community, the resident will take all the items originally found in the home with them to begin their post-graduation, independent life.

Other community partners in the project include Bill Beazley Homes, RW Allen Construction and McMillan Padzen Smith Architecture.

Just like humans, wildlife is adapting to the new post-Helene normal.

Hurricane Helene and its aftermath, not to mention the cold winter, have been trying for all of us. Spring, however, finally may bring some much-needed relief to creatures great and small.

We also can laud the resiliency of our feathered and four-legged friends.

“Animals are extremely adaptable,” says I.B. Parnell, Georgia Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division regional supervisor. “If they don’t adapt, they’ll die.”

He says downed trees from the storm affected them in two ways – loss of habitat and loss of food sources such as insects, larvae and acorns.

To adapt, a songbird now may make its home in vegetation that’s lower to the ground like a box shrub instead of an oak tree.

John McPherson, a Georgia Forestry Commission ranger, also says that while prey animals including birds, squirrels and rabbits will nest in debris piles out of convenience, they’ll find new homes as the piles are removed.

However, he adds, “With spring and warmer weather coming, people need to be careful around debris piles because they are prime habitat for snakes.”

Parnell also says animals likely are shifting in the area rather than leaving altogether. Tripp Williams, Columbia County Extension coordinator and agriculture and natural resources agent, agrees.

“From small birds to white-tailed deer, there has been a shift in their travel patterns,” he says. “Plants and trees will start to regrow, though, and wildlife will potentially come back.”

To encourage wildlife to return, McPherson recommends that people put birdfeeders as well as native flowering plants and trees in their yards. Native tree species include ash, beech, birch, black walnut, cedar, cherry, elm, flowering dogwood, hickory, magnolia, maples, oaks, pines, sassafras and sycamore.

“People shouldn’t plant Bradford pear trees,” adds McPherson. “I know people like them, but they’re an invasive species. They’re brittle, and their limbs break off in windstorms.”

While fall is the best time to plant, Williams says, people can plant any time if they have the proper irrigation.

McPherson also says the hurricane allowed sunlight to reach the forest floor.

“That sunlight allows seeds that have been germinating for years to start their regrowth process. That’s good for deer and turkeys. It will open up feeding areas for wildlife,” he says. “It’s possible that we’ll see more wildlife in the area because of the increase in their food sources. You have to look for the silver lining in everything.”

Williams sees another silver lining on the horizon as well.

“With the amount of regrowth that will be happening in the area,” he says, “the spring should be pretty green.”

The inaugural Columbia County Cultural Festival is coming to Evans Towne Center Park.

The event, which will be held on Saturday, March 29 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., will give festival-goers an opportunity to experience different cultures through food, music, dance, arts and other entertainment. Admission is free.

For more information, visit columbiacountyga.gov.

Pictured is “Nitrogenous” by Hanna Jubran.

Ten new sculptures recently have been installed along the Augusta Sculpture Trail by the City of Augusta and the Greater Augusta Arts Council. They were selected from more than 70 submissions from across the country and will remain on display for two years.

The trail now features 18 sculptures, and eight of them are permanent donations to the collection.

A digital walking tour can be accessed from any mobile device to help visitors learn about each work of art. For more information, visit augustasculpturetrail.com.

Augusta Symphony will entertain audiences this month with two concerts – Sounds of the Classics on Saturday, March 8 and Sounds From the East on Saturday, March 29.

Cellist Santiago Cañon-Valencia will perform as a guest artist with the orchestra for Sounds of the Classics. The program will include Abels’ More Seasons, Haydn’s Cello Concerto No. 1 and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 1.

Guest artist Adam Golka will join the symphony on the piano for Sounds From the East. The symphony will perform Mozart’s Overture from The Abduction from the Seraglio, Saint Saens’ Africa, Say’s Silk Road and Rimsky Korsakov’s Scheherazade.

Tickets for both shows are $27 to $79. They will begin at 7:30 p.m. at Miller Theater. For more information, visit augustasymphony.com.

The Columbia County Historical Society will award a $2,000 scholarship to a Columbia County resident who is graduating from high school in the Class of 2025 and planning to pursue a college education in the fall.

While students must reside in Columbia County to qualify for the scholarship, they can attend any public, private or charter high school in the area.

Homeschooled students are eligible for the scholarship as well. The scholarship money will be paid directly to the higher education institution that the winning student will attend in the fall.

The completed application packet must be postmarked no later than April 1 and sent to the Columbia County Historical Society, Attention: Scholarship Contest, P.O. Box 203, Appling, GA 30802.

For more information, visit the organization’s Facebook page: Columbia County Ga. Historical Society.