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Celebrating culture The Australian Tamil Sangam Inc, with the support of the Cardinia Shire Council, hosted a successful Pongal festival on January 17, 2026, celebrating Tamil culture and heritage. Pongal is a traditional harvest festival observed by the Tamil community to express gratitude to the Sun, nature, and farm animals for a fruitful harvest. The festival also marked the beginning of the Tamil month of Thai, regarded as an auspicious period. See more photos on page 4
Bharatanatyam dance from Kala Vidhya Dance School. (Supplied)
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Elle said people travelling could still help out. “We have donation options around the country.” “If you’re travelling, we encourage you to check our website for a nearby donor centre or mobile unit and donate somewhere new. Donating blood only takes an hour out of your day, which leaves plenty of time to enjoy the rest of your holiday. “With one in three Australians needing blood and blood products in their lifetime, you never
51 James Street Pakenham VIC 3810 renee.heath@ parliament.vic.gov.au reneeheathmp Renee’s message to Pakenham residents
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know whose life you could be saving.” Every week Lifeblood needs 33,000 blood and plasma donations around the nation to meet patients’ needs. Pakenham’s pop-up donor centre is located at James Bathe Community and Sports Hub, 67 Caversham Drive, Pakenham, VIC, 3810 and is open until Friday 30 January. To book a donation call 13 14 95, visit lifeblood. com.au or download the Donate Blood App.
Renee HEATH MP
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catching up with family and friends and perhaps enjoying some travel,” she said. “Donated blood can’t be stockpiled. Some blood products have a shelf life of just seven days, which means Lifeblood needs regular donations throughout the long weekend to meet the demand for patients. “The need for blood doesn’t take a break and there are people in hospital right now relying on donations for many reasons, including surgery, cancer treatment.”
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An extra 70 people are needed to donate blood in Pakenham to bolster supplies over the Australia Day long weekend. As Victorians prepare to take a break for the upcoming public holiday, Australian Red Cross Lifeblood is calling on people who may not have donated in a while or new donors to roll up a sleeve and donate. Lifeblood spokesperson Elle Giles said public holidays can be a challenging time. “We know many of our regular donors will be