Augusta, GA
VA Augusta hosts Memorial Day ceremony with American Legion Riders
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – VA Augusta and the American Legion Riders held a Memorial Day ceremony Sunday morning to honor service members who died in military service.
The Ride 2 Remember event took place at 11 a.m. at the VA Augusta Uptown campus at 1 Freedom Way. The ceremony included a motorcycle tribute ride and wreath-laying.
Thomas Pinckney, senior department vice commander for the American Legion Department of Georgia, said Memorial Day serves a specific purpose for veterans.
“Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for our fallen comrades, the ones that didn’t make it back home,” said Pinckney, who served 20 years in the military. “A lot of people say Memorial Day is a day to have barbecues and have parties or what have you. But for a veteran, that’s not what it’s about.”
Pinckney said the holiday is often confused with Veterans Day.
“People sometimes forget what Memorial Day is, and Memorial Day is for the dead, and Veterans Day is for the living,” he said. “We want to make sure that we honor the people that gave that ultimate sacrifice.”
Casey Zwirtz, acting associate director for VA Augusta, said the event brought together multiple groups to support veterans.
“It’s very important for us as the VA to be able to celebrate Memorial Day and celebrate those that had fought for us and died,” Zwirtz said. “We were here to pay our respects to them and to even to those that are still uniformed and those that have hung them up.”
The VA’s volunteer services collaborated with the American Legion Riders to organize the event. Zwirtz said the ceremony allows veterans to support each other and remember those who have died.
“I think that veterans are excited to be here and be able to support each other and be able to provide comfort and remember those that have fallen and be able to continue their legacy long term,” Zwirtz said.
VA Augusta inpatients, staff, community veterans and American Legion Riders attended the ceremony.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The South Augusta YMCA will not renew its lease at the Tobacco Road location, the Y confirmed.
The shopping center is being sold, and the current lease ends in October.
The Y has not announced a final day at the current location. Officials said they plan to announce that date and next steps for South Augusta later this month.
The YMCA said it still plans to serve South Augusta after the lease expires.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A man who was previously wanted for questioning in an Augusta deadly shooting has now been charged with murder in the case, according to authorities.
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office says Kemfton Quewanaki Kenon, 27, was arrested on Friday in connection to the shooting death of Khyla Rodriguez, of Augusta.
Kenon is booked into the Charles B. Webster Detention Center and charged with murder and possession of a firearm during a crime, according to jail bookings.
Rodriguez, 25, was found dead after deputies received a call about a shooting on May 15 at 1:11 a.m. on Cameron Drive.
The Richmond County Coroner’s Office said Rodriguez was pronounced dead at 2:27 a.m.
Kenon was previously wanted for questioning in the case and was located in Miami-Dade County, Florida. He was interviewed and arrested on an unrelated warrant.
Deputies were also interviewed two other subjects in the case. They were not arrested in the case.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – People who live in South Augusta are raising concerns about the future of the Family Y on Tobacco Road.
Officials say the facility has been operating at a loss for years, and have had a low number of memberships. The location also has a new owner. The cost of the lease is too high and the facility is also in need of renovations, which are said to be costly.
“The reality is we couldn’t afford the current lease that we were in,” said Catie McCauley, president and CEO of Family Y of Greater Augusta. “Over the last 10 years we’ve been subsidizing this lot. So we got to look at a model that we can sustain for the next several generations not just the next couple years.”
The location is set to close in October, but officials say they are working with community members and contractors for a new building that they can move into and are committed to staying in South Augusta.
Photojournalist credit: Gary Hipps
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