Men’s Sheds
Arklow: Men leave their shed in a boat LEFT to RIGHT – George Craine, Cyril Fitzgerald, Yannes Muller ( front rower), Michael Myler (back rower), Matthew Ryan, Joe Ryan.
BY ALAN JACQUES
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he 25 members of Arklow Men’s Sheds Group made waves recently as they kept their hometown’s long and proud tradition of boat building alive with the launch of their 20ft timber dory. Named ‘An Bád Inbhear Mór’, the rowing boat took 13 weeks to build at a workshop in Croghan Industrial Estate with timber sourced from the ‘TSV Asgard II’ supply. The Arklow Boat Project, captured the imagination of the entire community and 16 men from the local Men’s Sheds Group, ranging in age from 30 to 60, participated in the project. According to Katy Hughes of Arklow CDP, the project has played a huge role in getting the men’s group up and running in the community. “This project has brought about a great sense of hope and pride not only to the men involved, but to the whole town. The boat was paraded through the centre of the town with a pipe band on the day of its launch and there was a great buzz. There was such great excitement when it finally took to water and it did exactly what it was supposed to do,” said Ms Hughes. ‘An Bád Inbhear Mór’ has since been donated to Arklow Sea Scouts. The Sheds group also continues to put their boat building skills to great use having built dinghies and canoes in recent weeks. The training involved was conducted under Goal 2 of the Local and Community Development Programme which seeks to increase access to formal and informal educational, recreational and cultural activities and resources. Ms Hughes told ‘Changing Ireland’ that many groups contributed to the success of the project including Arklow Pipe Band, Arklow Sea Scouts, Arklow Women’s Club, the Harbour Bar and other local businesses. Arklow has a long and proud tradition of boat building, most notably for building timber boats such as Francis Chichester’s ‘Gypsy Moth III’ and the ‘TSV Asgard II’ from which timber was sourced for the making of ‘An Bád Inbhear Mór’. The men’s boat project was coordinated by Arklow CDP which is part of County Wicklow Partnership and received funding from the Department of Social Protection and County
VOLUNTEER… to make a difference.
Australia gives us Ugg boots, Fosters and now Men’s Sheds
By Conor Hogan
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maller housing complexes had, by the early 90s, left less room for Australians to have their traditional large back-yard sheds. Men, especially retired ones, therefore, were often left without a place to go or activities to get on with. As a result, the concept of community sheds was born, and it has since become something of a phenomenon in that country. Like Ugg boots, Fosters and Home and Away, the export has since taken off in Ireland. “Each shed is as individual as the men involved, “ John Evoy of the Irish Men’s Sheds Association told us. “Most involve the use of tools, fixing motorbikes, upholstery, that kind of thing. There are usually about five or six projects on the go at once. At the same time, there will be men there drinking tea or playing darts – they are a hive of activity.” As traditionally men have been less encouraged than women to be interested in their own wellbeing, the sheds have become an excellent medium by which to
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tackle the problem of mental health. Australian professor and Men’s Sheds researcher Barry Golding estimated that since the Australian network began, it has saved roughly 2,000 lives from suicide in that country. “Feeling isolated and having a poor social network,” John Evoy says, “is equally as bad for your health as being a heavy drinker, and twice as bad as being a heavy smoker or obese.” Potential members shouldn’t be put off by the prospect of boring seminars, however, as that is not the approach the organisation take. John says: “A coordinator in the country told me that they had trouble getting people to join, as the men didn’t believe there was anything wrong. The problem isn’t the reason to join. We aren’t called the Men’s Health programme and we don’t give lectures. We want people to come along because they have assets like time and energy. “I’ll give one example of how problems end up getting discussed. There was one shed where there was no running toilet at the time and the men kept having to go outside. This led to a conversation about how many times each was going to the toilet, which resulted in a spontaneous discussion about the prostate, and the importance of getting it checked.” You can find out how to join a local Men’s Shed, or set up a prospective one near you, by contacting the Irish Association at their website Menssheds.ie.