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June 12, 2026
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A Circle of Care
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The Geelong community can help bring quality healthcare for women and children closer to home through a new fundraising collective. Barwon Health Foundation invited people to join the Circle of Care to help bring the Barwon Women’s and Children’s facility to Geelong. Geelong mum Amy MacDonald said Barwon Health made a big impact on her family’s life after her son Freddie was born prematurely, and she encouraged people to get behind the Circle of Care collective. “There is nothing more important than access to expert, life-changing care within reach,” she said. “The Barwon Health team supported Freddie with skill, dedication and compassion, and they cared for us as parents just as thoughtfully.” Ms MacDonald is pictured with her husband Trent and son Freddie, who is a very happy 18-month-old, along the Geelong waterfront. Turn to page 8 for the full story.
Speeders nabbed By Jena Carr
“I remind all road users to take responsibility for their actions on the road to help make our roads safer for everyone,” she said. “Every decision you make can affect not only your safety but also the safety of others, and together we can work towards a safer Victoria for all road users. “The majority of road users are doing the right thing, but unfortunately, there are those who continue to put the safety of themselves and others at risk.” Police conducted 2357 PBTs in the Surf Coast Police Service Area, with one drunk driver detected across the region during the operation. Fifty-one people were caught speeding across the Surf Coast during the
operation, which also identified three drivers disobeying signs or signals, one disqualified driver, one unregistered vehicle, and one seatbelt offence. Road Policing Assistant Commissioner Mick Hermans said 7221 traffic offences were detected across the state from 5 to 8 June, a 20 per cent increase on the same period last year, when 6005 offences were detected. “The reality is, we will only issue infringements when there is blatant non-compliance with the road rules,” he said. “We will continue to enforce against those who engage in any risk-taking driving behaviour, and we make no apologies for this.”
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Police had their hands full across Greater Geelong during the King’s Birthday long weekend, with many road users caught speeding during a statewide operation. Operation Regal was conducted to target high-risk driving behaviour across the state’s roads to reduce road trauma, with police conducting 1747 Preliminary Breath Tests (PBTs) across Greater Geelong. Victoria Police Western Region Acting Superintendent Leesa Johnson said police detected 90 speeding offences across the region over the four days. “Police targeted high-risk areas, with a focus on major arterials, holiday hotspots and travel on regional roads,” she said.
“Police were highly visible and enforcing across the state to reduce road trauma and positively influence road user behaviour.” Offences identified in the Geelong Police Service Area included 14 drivers disobeying signs or signals, 13 unregistered vehicles, eight disqualified drivers, eight unlicensed drivers, two mobile phone offences and one seatbelt offence. Police also caught nine drunk drivers, four drug drivers and one person driving with drugs and alcohol in their system, with two vehicles also impounded over the weekend. Superintendent Johnson said the operation focused on speed, impaired driving, fatigue and distraction offences, along with seatbelt compliance.