Section 8 bar hosts free ‘Orphans’ Christmas’ event

Or, as described by venue manager Amelia Enticott: “It’s janky, it’s messy, but it’s beautiful and it’s full of colour. It’s like an oasis in the middle of the city.”

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Enticott said that the annual party is one of the most popular days of the year. “We want to put on a Christmas for the community, because without a community, we wouldn’t still be here,” she said.

Friends Gracie Pountney and Edie O’Neill are perched on a seat in the sun at the very edge of the venue. A Southern Hemisphere Christmas is a far cry from what they’re used to at home in Bradford, England.

“It just feels like any other day. It’s really strange. Especially because we’re used to, like, minus 10 degrees,” O’Neill said.

Like many other Brits, O’Neill has spent December travelling along Australia’s east coast. Pountney has been living and working in Melbourne for seven months.

“It’s nice to have a different Christmas,” Pountney said.

At the other side of the venue, Book Kawin is waiting to be joined by a friend of his own. Currently working in Daylesford but originally from Thailand, he took a two-hour public transport journey to come to the event.

“Yesterday we celebrated [Christmas] with my friends. So today is a chill day,” Kawin said. “I think we’re going to stay here. Because a lot of [bars] are closed.”

Like every Section 8 event, admission on Christmas Day is completely free. Enticott said that this is to ensure the venue remains welcoming and accessible for everyone.

“It is those returning people that have come to love this space as much as all the people that work here … It’s like a family tradition,” she said.

“If you don’t have a home, come and be a part of our home for the day … It’s a family event, but we’re all from different ones.”

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