Rachael Lucas

3 weeks ago | abc.net.au | Danielle Pope |Rachael Lucas

Simon Lund has lived his entire adult life in uniform. After a stint in the navy cut short by a knee injury, the 56-year-old had his first shifts as a volunteer firefighter with the Country Fire Authority (CFA) in 1998. He loved it so much, he never left and spent the next 25 years working as a CFA senior technical field officer on some of the biggest fire emergencies Victoria has ever seen. "I do love my job. It's been great in the fact that I've been able to meet so many good people," Simon says.

4 weeks ago | abc.net.au | Rachael Lucas

Romance novels are enjoying a renaissance in Australia but their female characters are no longer just dreaming of marrying a knight in shining armour. The contemporary female protagonists in modern-day romance fiction deal with real-life struggles and dramas, are proactive rather than passive and have agency in their lives.

2 months ago | abc.net.au | Rachael Lucas

A sense of community pride and love for the arts appear to the secret to survival for a town's beloved venue celebrating its 100th birthday. The Wonthaggi Union Community Arts Centre in regional Victoria has survived much social, political and cultural change over a century. From the early days of miners' meetings to a hangout for teenagers seeing films such as ET, the venue, also known as the Union Theatre, has endured in the working-class town of Wonthaggi in South Gippsland.

Feb 3, 2025 | abc.net.au | William Howard |Rachael Lucas

A man is on the run after driving through a shopping centre in Victoria's east. Emergency services were called to the Gippsland Centre on Cunninghame Street in Sale about 3:40pm on Monday. Police said a person in a red Ford Falcon ute drove through the front glass doors of the shopping centre before exiting on the other side and fleeing the scene. Crews from Ambulance Victoria and the CFA were called to assist but no-one was injured.

Dec 23, 2024 | abc.net.au | Rachael Lucas

Christmas is for many a day of joy spent sharing food and gifts and catching up with loved ones. But there are also pressures caused by any number of issues, including financial stress, mental and physical health, isolation and grief. Then there are the logistics of Christmas — managing dietary requirements, travelling between different gatherings and catching up with people you haven't seen in a long time.