Navan Men's Shed face ‘mammoth task’ of fundraising to build permanent home after new site is acquired
A PERMANENT new home for the Men's Shed group in Navan is on the horizon.
The group, whose current workshop is a 40-foot container at Claremont Stadium has been given a site by Meath Co Council and they now plan to fund-raise to build their own premises.
This Friday they are holding an open day to relaunch Navan Men's Shed and start their fund raising campaign. It takes place at Claremont Stadium and runs from 2-4pm.
Chairman, Alan Brady, explained they want new blood to join the group. "We will be outlining our plans for the new premises, but we will have to continue to operate out of Claremont until the new premises is ready.
"We have a mammoth task ahead of us. The council has granted us a sizeable site for lease on a site adjacent to the Clonmagadden and Windtown Roads.
"We hope to raise the funds to build a premises and we need to do some remedial works on the container at Claremont to keep us going until the new premises is built.
"We will need a lot of help and we will have to put our thinking caps on for fundraisers like Gala nights, table quizzes and sponsored sports events.
"Meath Leader has pledged to help and we hope to apply for other grants as well."
"Claremont Stadium has been very good to us, but we are restricted in our activities."
"There is a huge demand for Men's Sheds - it is a great social outlet and is particularly important for mental health especially in these times of turmoil both domestically and abroad.
"Some people think you have to have a skill to join, the opposite is the case. You don't need to be skilled to join."
Some of the projects the group has undertaken in the past include making up picnic tables and flower boxes. The group is also a social outlet where you can enjoy a cup of tea and a chat.
The Mayor of Navan, Cllr Eddie Fennessy is secretary of Navan Men's Shed.
"We are growing from strength to strength. We've got a lot of big plans and we're looking for new members to help drive those initiatives," he said.
"Over the past few months we held a number of discussions with Meath County Council and it looks like we will be offered a site in the Windtown area.
"It is our intention to develop a state of the art centre on that site - a base from which we can tend to the needs of the local community.
"It will take a couple of years to realise that dream but we've got a determined committee in place and a growing membership of very capable people. We urge anyone who wants to join our team and help us to develop the new centre, to attend our open meeting on Friday," Cllr Fennessy concluded.