Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/265009
Events 44 maltatoday, Sunday, 23 February 2014 The National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS) recently paid a visit to GO's Head Office in Marsa, where a significant number of staff took the opportunity to donate blood, and help save lives. Ayrton Caruana, Head of Human Resources at GO, said, "GO has been a consistent supporter of the NBTS, having also sponsored the refit of the mobile blood donation unit. It's also rewarding to see that our employees also appreciate the importance of donating blood and participate in such good numbers whenever we organise a blood donation activity. I thank all blood donors and encour- age GO employees to continue do- nating blood on a regular basis and others who still lack the courage to experience donating blood – so ap- propriately termed 'The gift of life'." The Mobile Blood Donation Medi- cal Team who supported the blood donation session, in the name of the NBTS, thanked GO for its ongoing support and said they hope other large locally-based companies would continue to follow the example. The team said that a large number of pa- tients, including children, depend on the continued generosity of oth- ers who are healthy and pointed out that blood transfusions may be the difference between life and death. The NBTS constantly needs more donors and volunteers to come for- ward to ensure Malta's hospitals have the supply of blood they need. For more information one may visit the Blood Donation website https://ehealth.gov.mt or Facebook Page National Blood Transfusion Service- Malta, www.facebook.com/ bloodmalta GasanMamo Insurance is once again lending a helping hand to the local community and is supporting this year's edition of Maratona bir- Roti held between 14 and 16 March. This year, the event will specifically address a very sensitive issue for the Maltese, safety and first aid in schools. As always, the event will be held at St George Preca College Boys Secondary in Hamrun. "GasanMamo is delighted to be part of the marathon," said Mark Mamo, General Manager at Gasan- Mamo. "Supporting such initiatives with such strong social involve- ment sustains our corporate social responsability and further reflects our strong social consciousness. We would like to take this opportunity to wish the best of luck to everyone involved in the Maratona bir-Roti 2014," he said. The Maratona bir-Roti is organised by teachers, students and parents of the Boys' Secondary, Hamrun, joint- ly with the Association of Lyceum Past Students in collaboration with the 13 school within the College. Every year the organisers ensure that funds donated are transformed into tangible, concrete projects. This year they will be addressing safety and first aid in all public and church schools. The funds will be used for schools to be equipped with Automated External Defibrillators, a life saving device that will help in scenarios of heart failures. Children will also be introduced to basic first aid and teachers and staff will also be informed on how to use the AEDs. Manwel Borg from the Maratona bir-Roti team of organisers thanked GasanMamo for their support and said that the success of such an event depends on the generosity of caring companies such as GasanMamo and hefty donations from the public. The Ministry for Tourism and the Malta Tourism Authority will be organising the 13th edition of the Malta International Fireworks Festi- val. The Festival has become a land- mark event in the Islands' calendar of events, with the Grand Finale taking place in the unique settings of the Grand Harbour in Valletta. The festival forms part of the an- niversary celebrations of Malta's ac- cession to the European Union and the colourful spectacle annually at- tracts thousands of locals and visi- tors alike. While each year is special in its own way, this year there will be an additional bonus, marking the 10th Anniversary of Malta joining the European Union. Following last year's success, this year's events shall kick off once again in the picturesque fishing vil- lage of Marsaxlokk, on Friday 25th April. The spectacle will continue on the following day, Saturday 26 April, in the tourist hub of Bugibba and the spectacular Grand Finale will come to a close with a bang in Vallet- ta's Grand Harbour on Wednesday 30 April with a Pyromusical show. The festival has rightfully earned the title "International" as over the years it has attracted foreign pyrotechnic com- panies from as far afield as Australia, Canada and Venezuela and closer to home like, Italy, Austria, Spain and Poland. Several Maltese and foreign fire- works factories will be taking part in this year's Malta International Fire- works Festival, who will together put on a spectacular pyrotechnic show with fantastic fireworks displays syn- chronized to music. The foreign par- ticipants competing in the Interna- tional Pyromusical Competition will be SteyrFire from Austria, Brezac Ar- tifices from France, Pyrotex Fireworx from the UK and St. Joseph Fireworks Factory from Zebbug, Malta. The participants competing for the National Fireworks Competi- tion will be Banda Sant' Andrija Fireworks Factory from Luqa, St. George's Fireworks Factory from Qormi, Santa Marija Fireworks factory from Mgarr and Banda l- Unjoni St. Andrew's Fireworks Factory from Luqa. Winners will be conferred with a special trophy according to their ranking, whilst the other participants will receive commemorative trophies. Our Islands are renowned for the love of fireworks, which form a core part of almost any celebration or event organised, be it secular or re- ligious. This year's event will prove to be an added reason to visit some of Malta's most scenic and historic spots during the month of April. For more details and recent up- dates please visit www.maltafire- worksfestival.com After readers of the specialised German magazine 'Auto Zeitung' named the new Alfa Romeo 4C winner of the 'Imported Sport- scars' category in the 26th edition of 'Auto Trophy' and men's lifestyle magazine FHM Magazine in the UK named the Alfa Romeo 4C 'Car of the Year 2013', the Alfa Romeo 4C started off 2014 with four new accolades that keep confirming this model as the most admired and de- sirable of all. In France, the Alfa Romeo 4C won the prestigious grand award being named the 'Most Beautiful Car of the Year 2013' at the 29th International Automobile Festival. The 4C was elected in a worldwide Internet survey conducted with the collaboration of multimedia part- ners of the event Le Point, Auto Addict, Automobiles Classiques, AD and JC Decaux. In Germany, the readers of the specialist magazine 'Auto, Motor und Sport' chose the Alfa Romeo 4C to receive the title of 'Best Cars 2014' in the Importers ranking – 'sports cars' category – ahead of 28 other models and super sports cars. In voting for the 'Best Cars 2014', more than 115,000 readers chose the Alfa Romeo 4C as the most ex- citing import sports car of the year as a model that 'represents the es- sential sportiness embedded in the 'Alfa Romeo DNA': performance and technical excellence for maxi- mum driving pleasure combined with a breathtaking style.' And only very recently, 'Motor weekly' and 'Auto Moto' monthly in Poland, published the results of the 'Auto Lider 2013' competition, in which Polish readers were asked to express their preference for their favourite car models, technologi- cal innovations and automotive marketing projects of 2013. A total of over 160 thousand votes were cast on the web and in texts. The first prize for the readers of both magazines in the 'Sports cars and convertibles' sector went to the Alfa Romeo 4C well ahead of the other 20 finalists in this category: the beguiling Italian supercar was followed on the podium by BMW 4 series and Porsche 911 Turbo S, second and third in the ranking, respectively. The Alfa Romeo 4C, which will be launched in Australia later this year, has also claimed the highest prize in the Sports Car category of the 'Le auto che preferisco' (The cars I like) from Italian monthly Quattroruote. The 4C was designed by Alfa Romeo engineers and is built at the Maserati plant in Modena, Italy. It features extensive use of light- weight materials including carbon fibre to give it a total dry weight of just 895kg. The sports coupe ac- celerates from 0-100km/h in 4.5 seconds on the way to a top speed of 258km/h. An optimal weight distribution of 40 per cent over the front axle and 60 per cent over the rear aids its racecar-like handling. GO employees donate blood to save lives GasanMamo supports Maratona bir-Roti in raising awareness on first aid Fireworks Festival set for end of April The Alfa Romeo 4C remains the 'most beautiful' Six new accolades in just three months