The 100 members of Morpeth Men's Shed are finally getting a new home.
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In fact, they are getting two.
The members learned this week that they would receive a state government grant of $75,000 towards building two sheds on crown land off Duckenfield Road at Morpeth.
With the $60,000 the members have already raised themselves, this means building can go ahead, Morpeth Men’s Shed secretary Paul Lindeman told The Mercury on Thursday.
One of the new sheds will be for metal working and the other will be a general gathering room with a kitchen, to be used for computer training.
The group was formed in 2009 and for the past 12 months they have been meeting in the Uniting Church in Morpeth.
“The news of this state government grant is very exciting and it means building can start this year,” Mr Lindeman said.
“We still need to raise another $100,000 for the completion of this whole project, but at least we can start building work.
“Our members can do a lot of work themselves because we have people with a lot of skills.
“This will not only be a major boost for our members, but it will also be a positive development for the town too.
“There are a lot of retired men coming into this area and we think there is a need for a well established men’s shed in Morpeth.
“We also have some unemployed and disabled people whom we can assist and I think our men’s shed is an asset for our town.
“Now we have a total of around $140,000, more people are coming aboard as they see what we are doing.”
Mr Lindeman said they were grateful to the Uniting Church for having accommodated them.
“It is largely due to the tenacity of our committee that has kept the pressure going,” Mr Lindeman said.
“We now have more than 100 members which shows the need for a group such as ours.
“Our group finds we can help so many men who have retired or who are unemployed, giving them back a sense of self worth they had lost.”