It’s been a busy week or so.
Doug Mackies was able to come to our last meeting. I think of Doug as Mr Men’s Shed Canada, he started the first Men’s Shed in North America in Winnipeg. Doug’s enthusiasm for Men’s Sheds is infectious. He is also a founder member of the Coquitlam Men’s Shed.
Doug had visited with some people from the Mount Pleasant Community House in Vancouver where they have a men’s group. He suggested that they might consider making walking sticks as a way to get started with a project. Walking sticks don’t require a lot of equipment but you do need the sticks and there isn’t much forest in the middle of Vancouver so he asked us if we could provide the sticks.
We were planning to visit the Hope Men’s Shed which is situated in 20 acres of forest so we were glad to undertake a little logging.
Hope Men’s Shed is situated on Kawkawa Lake just east of Hope, beautiful. Their hospitality left nothing to be desired. We left with a trunk load of potential walking sticks and there were still a few trees standing so we have an excuse to return and harvest the rest.
While he was on the west coast Doug also visited Kirkland House in Ladner. This century old house has been renovated by a group of volunteers; they have done a spectacular job, see http://www.kirklandhouse.ca
The sticks will be delivered to Mount Pleasant this evening but we have held a few back. If you can make it to our next meeting, which is in Blue Mountain Park at 10am on the 11th August 2015, you may be able to have one for yourself.
The bottom line is, it has given us great pleasure to collaborate with these other, existing and potential, Men’s Sheds.
Mike Jennings.
6th. August 2015