(L-R) Nanaimo Men's Shed Society member Charlie Pickard, along with Yvonne Sinkevich, Angie Mounsey, Kevin Mounsey, and Mike Hample. (Kenn Hample)

By Jordan Davidson

man things

‘Provided a huge spark:’ Nanaimo Men’s Sheds group building foundations

Aug 2, 2023 | 5:25 AM

NANAIMO — A local group where men are encouraged to be men has been making huge strides since first going public in the spring.

The Nanaimo and District Men’s Shed group was started earlier this year by a father and son duo who wanted a place for men to hang out, socialize, and improve their mental health.

Founder Kenn Hample said they received about two dozen replies once their story first aired on NanaimoNewsNOW, and have since settled into a core group who are working to see the local society become fully formed.

“Once the shed gets set up, they’re interested in coming out, but we have a few guys, the group of nine, who are interested in establishing the physical and operation aspects of the shed, and so that’s what we’re working on at the moment.”

The current group members range in age from 45-80, with the meetings taking place inside the Nanaimo Family Life Association’s building on Townsite Rd. until they can find a permanent location.

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In the meantime, they are working to establish community partners and a local network of contacts who might assist them, including government leaders and local groups whom they’ve already been in touch with.

“There will be others that we will contact as we have the capacity and the resources to create kind of a local network of opportunities and things that we might work with to provide a place where men can come and just be themselves.”

Support appears to be coming from all over, as they recently received a large donation of woodworking and other tools from Nanaimo resident Yvonne Sinkevich, in honour of her late husband Walter.

Sinkevich was in the process of moving and was being helped by her daughter Angie and son-in-law Kevin Mounseys who live in New Zealand.

New Zealand has over 140 Men’s Shed groups, so Kevin recognized the group may be able to put the tools to good use and reached out to the Nanaimo chapter.

“He sent an email to I think it was a shed in Auckland, and they responded very quickly with information and with advice. Now we’ve got a connection internationally as well as local sheds around us,” said Hample.

Donated items include a large table saw, a planer, and numerous other hand tools and supplies.

Nanaimo and District Men’s Shed members unloading the newly donated tools and equipment. (Kenn Hample)

“That really provided a huge spark for us to get moving and to start looking for a space,” said Hample.

Men’s Shed member Charlie Pickard said they were blown away by the donation.

“I’m still quite overwhelmed with how much was donated.”

Since the non-profit group doesn’t have a permanent home yet, they are looking for a local place to store their tools in the meantime.

“We want to be able to have meetings where guys can come in and just have a cup of coffee and chat with folks who are working, come in and work on individual projects, come in and work on perhaps group projects, that sort of thing. That’s our major need right at the moment.”

If you have space you’d like to provide for low or no cost, or for more information on the Nanaimo and District Men’s Shed, you can email them at info@nanaimomensshed.org.

The group is open to anyone over the age of 18 who identifies as a man.

Join the conversation. Submit your letter to NanaimoNewsNOW and be included on The Water Cooler, our letters to the editor feature.

jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow