Narromine Men's Shed celebrate 10 years of mateship

Keith Richardson, Roger Blackman, Allan Sly and Eric Wheatley gained the support from the then Narromine Shire Council General Manager Ian Rogan, to establish a Men's Shed to provide a social outlet for people who often had difficulty leaving their homes.

The men, along with Mr Rogan, travelled to Parkes, where they discussed the concept with the Parkes Men's Shed which in 2009 had been running for two years.

With the support of the neighbouring shire, on May 7, 2009, the group hosted their inaugural meeting at the Narromine Scout Hall, calling on anyone interested to come along.

Over 50 men attended the evening meeting gaining "full support", as Mr Blackman told the Narromine News in 2009.

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The shed was then officially launched on June 29, 2009, electing Mr Richardson as chairman, Alan Sly as vice-chairman, George Allen as secretary, and treasurer Arnold Wright. Shed managers were Eric Wheatley, Roger Blackman, Graham Wiltshire and Des Leighton.

It was then moved that the shed was open to men each Tuesday and Thursday from 8.30am to 12 pm.

For years Men's Shed members gathered at the old Scout Hall, but in 2015 they found a new home, next to the USMC, which has a larger workshop, bigger facilities and a morning tea room.

Mr Richardson said over the years the shed had been a place for men to come and keep themselves busy working on items or to make friends and have a chat over some morning tea.

Members of the shed each had a story to tell, about the support and benefits of the Men's Shed and the ways its members have helped one another overcome some of their most difficult days.

"It's been a great thing for the town I think," Mr Richardson said.

"There's a lot of men that come here, either they're on their own, or they never get out of the house otherwise. Some just come down, sit and talk and have a yarn, some come and do a bit of work.

"I've got my own shed where I've restored cars, but you're on your own there with no one to talk to, or you don't have a bit of fun.

"I think it's great to get the men out of their homes, and some of the women think it's wonderful to get rid of them for half a day."

The beauty of the shed, its members have several different talents, according to Mr Richardson.

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He said one of the most memorable challenges for members was resurrecting a piece of the town's history. One of nine, a 1938 Corben Super Ace built by young Narromine mechanic Jack Coomber with the help of Wal Treseder, which arrived with no motor.

"It was one of our big projects that one, Ted Davies was the main worker on that," he said.

"It was built here in 1938 from a kit plane, but disappeared after the war, no one could find it.

"One of the Narromine blokes eventually found it up at Boggabri. It was in a shed in a very dilapidated condition, we got it back here, and we did all the basic work on it ... and now it's in the museum."

Over the years, the Narromine Men's Shed has received donations from community groups; however, the shed has also worked tirelessly to give back to the community.

"We get enough money to keep us going and to keep us out of trouble, and we make a few donations to local organisations," Mr Richardson said. He said the shed is growing and looking for members.

Despite the passing of 31 members through the years, their memories live on in the surviving Men's Shed group.