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Men provide some helping hands at Williams Lake community garden

Members of the Williams Lake Men's Shed enjoy hanging out and helping out in the community.

You won't find them on Facebook or Instagram, but you will find them in the community, doing some of the work needing done.

Members of the Williams Lake Men's Shed group were out rebuilding dilapidated raised garden beds at the Memory Garden on Carson Drive on Wednesday, June 26.

The men have been meeting for the past six months, and the group is part of a movement across many western countries to offer opportunities for men to come together, socialize, and do volunteer handiwork in the community. The original movement began in Australia about 30 years ago, according to Bert Groenenberg, who is one of the local shed members.

The idea is simple, according to Men's Shed Canada: "Improve our members' physical and mental health through activities men will actually join."

In Williams Lake, the group got together for the first time in December of 2023 and have been meeting weekly since January.

One member has donated the use of his two-car garage to provide a physical space for the group and there are enough skills in their group, they can do virtually anything, said member Mike Desautels.

Some members helped with a Repair Cafe at the Inspired Builder's Market on North Lakeside Drive organized by the Cariboo Chilcotin Conservation Society in April.

On June 26, members were once again getting it done, rebuilding the garden boxes at the Williams Lake Food Policy Council Community Garden.

The group also welcomes members who aren't physically able to do much, but just come for coffee and hang out instead.

"It's a lot of b.s.," joked Doug Hamm, who was also in the community garden on June 26.

The garden was started by a high school student initiative around 2012, said Tatjana Bates, registered dietician with Interior Health (IH) who is the lead helping oversee the garden. She said the garden is part of food security work IH does for the area and it is all volunteer-driven.

"It takes many helping hands to run a large community garden," she said.

She said it is hard to thread the line between keeping the garden manicured enough while also supporting the bees and pollinators which help support the garden.

"It's kind of like a bit of a dance trying to keep it as pollinator-friendly and manicured as best we can," she said.

Bates said the Memory Garden was meant to help create positive memories in what had been an abandoned space. After a young nurse Rayel MacDonald was hit and killed by a driver on Carson Drive in 2012, the name took on even more meaning and a bench and sitting area became part of the Memory Garden.

"We really appreciate all the volunteer time that has gone into our garden," she said.

Anyone interested in gardening in the Memory Garden or volunteering their time can email foodpolicycouncil@hotmail.com.

For those interested in checking out the Williams Lake Men's Shed group, contact Mike at 250-267-6466, or Bert at 250-398-0184.

 



Ruth Lloyd

About the Author: Ruth Lloyd

I moved back to my hometown of Williams Lake after living away and joined the amazing team at the Williams Lake Tribune in 2021.
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