Mens' Shed Committee

Exciting stuff is happening with the Men's Shed in the Upper Hunter.

One thing we've been trying to achieve through the Virtual Shed Project is generate interest in the formation of a committee willing to take responsibility for getting a permanent Communal Men's Shed happening in or near Scone. The Upper Hunter is sorely lacking in this sort of community asset with only the one functioning Shed in Merriwa.

Late March saw the first meeting of a group of interested men wanting to make this a reality in other parts of the Upper Hunter Shire. Since then, three more meetings have been held each Friday at the Scone Neighbourhood Centre seeing a Steering Committee formed.

Over these meetings, some great energy has been shown with ideas flying thick and fast about how to make this all happen. Committee members have been active in following up leads, exploring options and getting their heads around the formalities of getting a Shed for men to participate in.

Strong interest in the Men's Shed has been shown not only by the men involved in the project, but several other Community Groups in the district who are very interested in working in partnership with the Men's Shed on future projects. This support is great to see.

For the Men's Shed to become a reality and sustain itself over the years to come it will need support from all quarters and in particular, involvement from men across the Shire - if not in the planning, at the very least in becoming a member or taking advantage of the opportunity to have a cuppa.

If you want to become involved, or just learn more about what's being planned, feel free to contact Bernie at the Scone Neighbourhood Centre (02 6545 2562).

Bunnan and Scone Update

Bunnan: Rural towns and villages have a strong history of close knit communities where people know and greet each other in the streets and look out for each other in tough times. The blokes of Bunnan kept that tradition alive on Sunday night when they gathered at the Bunnan Hall for a BBQ hosted by Scone Neighbourhood Centre’s Virtual Shed project.

A good turnout of some seventeen men from Bunnan gathered together to enjoy each other’s company, relax, share stories and hear speakers Linden Green and Tony Rockley.

Linden Green, from Interrelate in Newcastle gave an overview of the range of services offered by Interrelate including relationship counseling, family mediation and classes in parenting. Linden also spoke about the importance and value of developing and maintaining close knit communities especially as a way of “inoculating” against potential health problems. Mr Green said, “A real problem where communities have disintegrated is people lose their connectedness. This can increase the risk of depression in particular. Having a place like a hall, a shed, a tennis club or any other regular social get-together has huge benefits in reducing that risk.”

Tony Rockley, publicity officer for Muswellbrook Toastmasters entertained the gathering with a range of stories and offered valuable information about the NSW Ambulance service where he works as a paramedic. Mr Rockley spoke about how his involvement in Toastmasters has opened many opportunities for him and how it could do the same for others who are interested In participating.

This project is due to wind up at the end of June, so it was great to get back out to Bunnan. Blokes enjoying an evening out, getting a perspective on how things can change for the better; learning more about services, getting involved in activities and simply spending time with each other in a relaxed atmosphere is what this project is all about. Well done Bunnan!

Scone: Hot on the heels of the BBQ in Bunnan, the Virtual Shed had an evening in Scone last Friday. Thanks go to Michael Dooley from the Christian Information Centre for making the venue available to us, helping promote the evening and setting the venue up so all could go smoothly on the night.

It was a bit disappointing to see only about fifteen men turn up on the night, but despite the small turn out, it was a great evening. Dr Steve Sylvester from the Scone Medical Practice gave a very informative and entertaining talk about important men's health matters. As always, he was well received. Ollie Hall spoke about his experience with prostate problems and stressed the importance of getting checked out by your GP early. Many thanks go to Ollie who stepped in at the last minute to fill in after another speaker was unable to attend on the night.

The keynote speaker was Chris "Buddha" Handy who shared some fascinating insights into his life as a rugby player, commentator and community worker. "Buddha" proved to be very entertaining and interesting.