\u201cWe constructed our own composting dunny, come check it out,\u201d announces John Davidson, as he proudly throws open the door to the official throne of the Robe Men\u2019s Shed.<\/p>\n
Boldly forging their own path through the national Men\u2019s Shed movement, this crew of happy-go-lucky Robe locals are happy to smash any misconceptions out there about what goes on when the roller door rises.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not very corporate,\u201d Geoff said, with a grin. \u201cThere\u2019s no strategic plans.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re all different – Men\u2019s Sheds,\u201d John adds, \u201cand there\u2019s a preconceived idea that we fix things that are broken.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, occasionally we rattle the tools, but we don\u2019t make wooden toys, we\u2019re not a resource for folks in the community who want things fixed and none of us are particularly skilled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a focus on mental health and community.\u201d<\/p>\n
On a Tuesday morning, like so many other mornings before them, John and Geoff Wells are shooting the breeze, fuelled by numerous brews of strong John-made coffee.<\/p>\n
Now President and Secretary and fast friends, the pair were instrumental in the original shed concept back in 2014.<\/p>\n
Continually coming across each other at council meetings, it was an idea planted by Robe\u2019s then-Mayor, who kept on mentioning how good it would be to have a localised version of the fast-growing Men\u2019s Shed concept.<\/p>\n
With solid professional backgrounds between the pair, the two men put their skills to work, writing a constitution, organising insurance and arranging a peppercorn lease with council on a vacant block of land on Evans Cave Rd.<\/p>\n
Applying for two grants, the pair\u2019s hard work was rewarded with $10k from the Stand Like Stone OneFortyOne Community Capacity Building grants, and an additional $10k from local organisation Barefoot Benefit.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat gave us the $20k to get started. So, we built a shed,\u201d John said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout OneFortyOne and Stand Like Stone Foundation, there wouldn\u2019t be a Robe Men\u2019s Shed. it\u2019s as simple as that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Local contractors and organisations gave their time and energy to help the level the block, get the shed up and add in a water tank and pump, while member Gary Thomas built the composting toilet they\u2019re so proud of.<\/p>\n
In 2017, the newly christened Robe Men\u2019s Shed opened its roller doors for the first time.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs you can see, we haven\u2019t done any major improvements,\u201d Geoff tips a wink, while surveying the bare interior. \u201cIt just works for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whatever your background or demographic, when you walk in the door, you\u2019re equally welcome and \u2018floating\u2019 is how Geoff describes their membership.<\/p>\n
A more solid indicator of numbers is the 22 coffee cups on the wall.<\/p>\n
From early in the morning, the group of regulars start to wander in, make a coffee and sit down for a banter.<\/p>\n
Members might choose to pick up a \u2018work-tray\u2019 and get stuck into wood carving to ceramics, or head out the back to sort through the huge amounts of bottles and cans recycled from the town\u2019s pubs and hotels, which have helped make the organisation financially self-sufficient.<\/p>\n
But many come for the banter alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cTalking is one of the lost arts,\u201d John said. \u201cIt\u2019s a talk fest for people who don\u2019t have a voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nothing is off topic and downloading is welcomed, but there\u2019s a strict five-minute limit imposed on so-called \u2018medical nonsense\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe shed is a place where you can come, be yourself and not be required to do anything,\u201d John said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can sit on the couch, you can sit by the fire, read a book, you don\u2019t have to justify anything, apart from respect and decency.\u201d<\/p>\n
Today, the conversation rambles from council matters to the day\u2019s surf forecast, ageing bodies and local indigenous recognition, but Geoff recalls many times over the shed\u2019s history when members have brought in far more than small talk.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to have that small talk to create an environment of trust so then people will share,\u201d said Geoff.<\/p>\n
Geoff remembers one night a regular came in, in dire need of some help.<\/p>\n
\u2018He wasn\u2019t looking well, and I asked him \u2018how you doing mate?\u2019 and then he got talking.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt turned out he was a Vietnam vet, returned, and part of a little group who\u2019d stay in touch and one of them went out and shot himself. That\u2019s what he was dealing with.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd he was able to talk about it enough. I guess that\u2019s part of what this is about.\u201d<\/p>\n
To John, the shed serves as a place where people who haven\u2019t felt particularly \u2018heard\u2019 in their lives can feel safe to speak out.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s face it, we\u2019re all in some level of mental health and wellbeing at various times of our lives or the year, or week, or month,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt our age, things turn up, let\u2019s be honest and you just have to deal with them,\u201d Geoff adds.<\/p>\n
Eight years on, there\u2019s a few plans on the horizon for Evans Cave Road but nothing too stressful.<\/p>\n
The freshly planted vines will be coaxed over the back of the shed as a shade house so the members can enjoy the famous Robe summer. Perhaps some shed fortification, maybe some solar panels.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to keep it simple. We\u2019ve resisted getting ahead of ourselves.\u201d John said.<\/p>\n
As Geoff quips, they could spend time lobbying and seeking extra funding but \u201cI\u2019ve spent forty years doing that\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe more that the community is aware that the Men\u2019s Shed is a no-pressure environment, that you don\u2019t have to be a man to roll up here, it\u2019s a community space. If you can\u2019t find anywhere else to go, come to the Men\u2019s Shed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s comforting, I find it a great comfortable place. The security of this place is something I value a lot and it\u2019s a home away from home,\u201d John said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a sacred place,\u201d Geoff adds. \u201cThere are no expectations. You can be who you are.\u201d<\/p>\n
This story is part of Stand Like Stone Foundation\u2019s 20 Years of Giving Back storytelling project.<\/p>\n
PHOTO COURTESY OF KATE HILL<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cWe constructed our own composting dunny, come check it out,\u201d announces John Davidson, as he proudly throws open the door to the official throne of the Robe Men\u2019s Shed. Boldly forging their own path through the national Men\u2019s Shed movement, this crew of happy-go-lucky Robe locals are happy to smash any misconceptions out there about […]<\/p>\n