The modern Men’s Shed is an updated version of the shed in the backyard that has long been a part of Australian culture. If you looked inside one you might see a number of men restoring furniture, perhaps restoring bicycles for a local school, maybe making Mynah bird traps or fixing lawn mowers or making a kids cubby house for Camp Quality to raffle. You might also see a few young men working with the older men learning new skills and maybe also learning something about life from the men they work with. You will see tea-bags, coffee cups and a comfortable area where men can sit and talk. You will probably also see an area where men can learn to cook for themselves or they can learn how to contact their families by computer.
So what is so special about this new type of Men’s Shed? Most men have learned from our culture that they don’t talk about feelings and emotions. There has been little encouragement for men to take an interest in their own health and well-being. Unlike women, most men are reluctant to talk about their emotions and that means that they usually don’t ask for help. Probably because of this many men are less healthy than women, they drink more, take more risks and they suffer more from isolation, loneliness and depression. Relationship breakdown, retrenchment or early retirement from a job, loss of children following divorce, physical or mental illness are just some of the problems that men find it hard to deal with on their own.
Good health is based on many factors including feeling good about yourself, being productive and valuable to your community, connecting to friends and maintaining an active body and an active mind. Becoming a member of a Men’s Shed gives a man that safe and busy environment where he can find many of these things in an atmosphere of old-fashioned mateship. And, importantly, there is no pressure. Men can just come and have a yarn and a cuppa if that is all they’re looking for.
Members of Men’s Sheds come from all walks of life – the bond that unites them is that they are men with time on their hands and they would like something meaningful to do with that time.
(Australian Men’s Shed Association, 2013)
Come and see for yourself.
Men’s Sheds are an alcohol, drug and smoke free ‘workplace’. Every effort has been and will continue to be made to ensure that the work area is compliant with workplace OH&S standards to minimise risk of injury to participants. There are very few rules. The only obligation is for the member to enjoy his time at the shed and contribute to the enjoyment of other members.
The Wimmera Men’s Shed Network is hosted and supported by Wimmera Primary Care Partnership and meets regularly to share resources and ideas about further developing and supporting Men’s Sheds. For further information Horsham Mens Shed – 2019 please contact Geoff Witmitz on (03) 5362 3445.
