Shed men at work

By Melissa Donchi
REPAIRING a barbecue table is the first item on the agenda at the Mens Shed in Warburton.
At their first meeting for the new year the men are already hard at work, painting, sanding and being, well, busy.
“There’s always something to do here,” organiser Charlie Johnston said, “and you don’t need any experience to be able to do it.
“Some of the guys who have turned up today have no woodwork experience at all but it hasn’t stopped them from having a go.”
When the Mail visited, the men were painting planks of wood and setting them out to dry while others are doing a bit of heavy lifting and hammering in nails.
While there’s not much of the chit-chat you’d find in a women’s group there is constant flow of communication with calls of ‘coming through’ and ‘how you going there’ coming from all corners of the shed.
There is also a sense of purpose with some of the men gathering materials for future projects.
“We ask them to bring their own jobs in as well,” Mr Johnston said.
“If they’ve got something broken around the house or something they want to make they can bring it in and we can all work on it together.”
There are 200 Men’s Shed’s around Australia that are funded through the Federal Government’s Department of Health and Ageing.
The Upper Yarra Community House entered a submission for funding a few years ago and the Warburton’s Men’s Shed has been running ever since.
“We welcome any men of all ages to come along and have ago,” Mr Johnston said.
“It’s a great way to find companionship and learn new skills.”