MEN are back at the local Men's Shed and putting the tools to work after a three-month shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The Tamworth Community Men's Shed (TCMS) reopened last week with a "serious" COVID-safe plan in place, and members flocked back to catch up with their mates and continue working on their projects.
Paul Cavanagh has been going to the Men's Shed in Tamworth for more than a year, and said it helps him keep busy and connect with people.
"I'm glad to be out of the house, this gives me something to do, get my mind off all the things that stress me out," he said.
"It's good we can come here and talk to our mates and help each other out, we've all got each other's backs and the guys are just like family."
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Mr Cavanagh's working on building a rocking horse from scratch, and also does repairs and refurbishments of rocking horses and other projects brought in by local families.
"I surprise myself half the time, when people come in and have a look at them, they're over the moon," he said.
"We need the support of the public because we've been shut down for three months and our finances are a bit low."
Some of Mr Cavanagh's projects, and the other men's creations, will be up for sale to the public at a car boot sale on June 27, at the Piper Street Men's Shed. He also said people can bring up projects for the men to work on, for a small fee.
TCMS Secretary Mark Smith said having the members back on deck in the shed was exciting.
"Lots of smiles, lots of joking about, it's obvious it's been good to see people again, it's given us some more appreciation of what the Men's Shed means to us individually - mental health, friendship and talking," he said.
Although the members are back three days a week with the same hours and times as pre-coronavirus, it's not the exact same experience.
"It's not the same as it used to be, we've got a pretty serious COVID-safe plan about keeping everyone apart and lots of options to wash hands and keep everything clean ... a lot of the men up here are in the age group that puts them smack in the crosshairs of high-risk so we have to try and keep them as safe as possible," Mr Smith said.
The Men's Shed is designed to give local men a place to go to chat to one another, nurture their mental health and keep their hands busy with building, fixing and creating things.
Mr Smith said it's great timing for the shed to reopen, because the pandemic has taken its toll on mental health.
"I didn't think it was going to have too much of an effect on me at all, but I started to realise I was feeling down and a bit bored, and I realised it was impacting me personally and my mental health," he said.
"I thought it was so important we get back here ... being around people is what humans do."
About 30 to 40 men are members of the local Men's Shed and Mr Smith said any man is welcome to join.
Police and crime reporter at the Newcastle Herald. Email: afalkenmire@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Police and crime reporter at the Newcastle Herald. Email: afalkenmire@austcommunitymedia.com.au
