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Education through food With cream of vegetable soup, salads from coleslaw, beetroot carpaccio, herb focaccia and carrot and zucchini fritters, it didn’t take long for the aroma of a hearty and nutritious meal to fill the kitchen at Hallam Primary. On the morning of Monday 16 Decem-
ber, children from as young as seven took the mantle of chefs, guided not just by elder students, but by the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation and VicHealth, who announced a $2.7 million partnership. Story page 8
Mahrira enjoyed the soup once everyone had gathered for lunch. (Stewart Chambers: 449743)
Fire investigation Taskforce Lunar detectives are investigating a fire at two tobacco shops in Springvale. It’s believed offenders arrived at the Buckingham Avenue stores just before 2am on Thursday, 9 January in a white Toyota Hiace van.
The exact circumstances are still being established, however two neighbouring stores were set alight before the offenders left the scene. A resident of one of the apartments above the stores called triple zero (000) with police and Fire
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Rescue Victoria attending shortly after. All residents of the 20 apartments above the stores had to be evacuated as a result of the fire. An arson chemist attended the scene and it was understood the building had sustained sig-
nificant structural damage. No one was physically injured during the fire. Investigators believe an attempted arson at the same stores on 7 October last year is also linked. Story page 3
Ann-Marie Hermans MP Member for South Eastern Metropolitan Region Shadow Assistant Minister for Education
1/31 Princes Hwy, Dandenong VIC 3175 ann-marie.hermans@parliament.vic.gov.au
Ann-MarieHermans.com.au AnnMarieHermansMP
03 9794 7667 12742323-JV02-25