Focus On Volunteers: Projects and friendships are made at Menzshed

Ron Cheeseman working on a project at the Foxton Menzshed.

Across Foxton are volunteers from every walk of life helping the community in almost every way you can think of. In this occasional series of photo-articles, the MAVtech Museum’s photographer Jacob Brookie is using vintage cameras from the museum’s collection to show you a day in the life of our town’s volunteers.

The Foxton Racing Club has been operating since the 1870s and has seen some fine thoroughbred horses, including the famous Castletown. But the Foxton Menzshed are raising a very different type of horse under the grandstand - rocking horses made by their members. With many projects on the go, MAVtech’s cameras looked inside the workshop.

Foxton Menzshed members pictured outside the shed. Photo taken with a 1905 Kidak No 3 Folding Brownie.

The Menzshed charity was founded in 2013, and there are now 124 Menzsheds in New Zealand, including 10 in the Manawatū-Wanganui region. Each shed is equipped with tools, materials and space for a range of projects from woodturning to go-kart restoring. But most importantly, the sheds are places where knowledge is shared and practical problems are solved. Both men and women are members of the Foxton shed and you don’t need to be a DIY expert to join - some members have been making and building their whole career while others are just starting out.

Barry Cardiff with some of the rocking horses made and sold by the Menzshed.

A keen group of locals first discussed Foxton’s shed in 2018. Space was found under the racecourse’s grandstand in what was once the old dining room and bar. Aside from having plenty of space, the dining room’s kitchen is still a great place to have a break and a bite to eat. While the long dining table and bar have disappeared, there are many traces of the room’s past at the centre of Foxton’s racing community.

But it takes a lot of work to turn an empty dining room into the perfect workshop. Wiring was donated to install the workshop machines and the Horowhenua District Council provided free first-aid courses for members. Locals also donated everything from an electric drill to commercial lathes and planer machines to equip the shed for its opening in 2019.

The Menzshed members sometimes contribute funds to buy a much-needed tool they can share, and some members are learning how to master tools themselves. But the most important part of any project is the person using the tools - and the shed also provides resources to help with the health of its members.

Barry Cardiff transforms old lawn bowls into carved containers.

Many members make items as fundraisers for their shed. Barry Cardiff makes ornate containers from bowls balls. Another project on the go are rocking horses made to the same design as a vintage original. Some Foxton locals have sizable sheds at home but still love coming to the Menzshed.

“The shed provides support, camaraderie, and fellowship,” explains volunteer Kerry Johnstone. Iit is good to have access to tools to make items for myself or for the shed sales table. There’s plenty of variety on what you can do and there is always someone to help with advice or suggestions.”

Barry Cardiff agrees. “The shed provides me with companionship and a place to help others learn new skills. It is great to see how others delight in learning new skills and how to operate machinery. Some of the members do not have woodworking knowledge or skills. I enjoy woodturning and often have a bowl on the go.”

Barry Cardiff and Kerry Johnstone at the Foxton Menzshed with a donated machine.

Every Menzshed member works on personal projects, and these are made easier with the advice on hand. Ron Cheeseman’s project attracts lots of attention.

“I am building a small-scale house in my room at the rest home, much to the curiosity of staff and others.”

He adds that being at the shed is a chance to “use my skills and keep my mind sharp, and keeps me alive”.

As well as working on their own projects, the Menzshed members have volunteered their time with community projects, including helping make the fairy doors which decorate Holben Reserve’s Forest. Volunteering time and skills for the community is a hallmark of all Menzsheds, from picnic tables in Invercargill to restoring and upcycling items for charity sales in Kaitaia.

You can buy Foxton Menzshed’s rocking horses and other fundraising creations at the Foxton Farmers and Artisan Market held the last Sunday of each month at the racecourse, or visit the shed on Tuesday and Thursdays between 9am and 12 noon. If you are interested in joining the shed, phone Tony on 0275897076.

Ron sums up the benefits of joining by saying, “My quote in life is ‘learn every day, the more you learn the more you need to learn’ - and I am still learning every day.”

The Kodak No 3 Folding Brownie camera.

The panoramic group photograph in this article was taken with a 1905 Kodak No 3 Folding Brownie camera. This camera was an affordable model popular with cyclists, who could attach its leather carry-case to their handlebars. Many family albums were founded with this affordable, simple camera. It has been converted to use modern film, but let in a small light leak you can see on the photo. The other photographs in this article were taken with Jacob’s 1966 Marshal Press Camera. To learn more about the museum’s cameras visit www.mavtech.org.nz.