Glen Park Community Centre is located in Bayswater North and has a strong emphasis on community development and empowerment. The Centre undertakes a range of community development activities, including a community cafe and programs for people with disabilities.

One of the projects identified by Glen Park was the need for a Men’s Shed to provide a friendly and social atmosphere for men to participate in trades and woodcraft.

As a result, the need for a Men’s Shed became a priority for Glen Park and  this afternoon I was invited to open the Shed, a project that received State and Council funding, as well as in-kind support from members of the Glen Park Community Centre.

The speech delivered during the opening is available within this post:

Good afternoon and welcome to the opening of the Glen Park Men’s Shed.

On behalf of the Maroondah community I would like to thank Mike Symon, Member for Deakin, Shaun Leane, Member for Eastern Metropolitan Region, David Hodgett, Member for Kilsyth and Heidi Victoria, Member for Bayswater for their attendance here today.

I would also like to welcome my fellow Maroondah City Councillors:
<ul><li>Cr Paul Macdonald</li>
<li>Cr Tony Dib</li>
<li>Cr Ann Fraser</li>
</ul>
Cr Natalie Thomas is an apology due to work commitments but she sends her best wishes for this project.

I am pleased to see so many participants, committee members and staff here today from the Glen Park Community Centre.  It is also pleasing to welcome the Council staff that have been involved in the project, as well as staff and volunteers from Glen Park and other organisations.

It is very exciting to be here at the opening of such a unique facility, one that has been in the making for several years. This project was identified by Glen Park Community Centre  and endorsed by Council through the Glen Park Future Directions Plan.

This new facility will create more opportunities, increase pathways to further education and training, build stronger communities and improve health and wellbeing.

Men’s Sheds help provide:

• Practical ways for men to engage in neighbourhood houses
• A community space to promote a sense of belonging
• A place where men can meet and get to know others in their community while they learn or improve a variety of skills.

On behalf of Council and the facility users, I would like to extend our sincere thanks to the Victoria Government for its contribution of $50,000 towards this project.

Maroondah City Council also contributed $50,000 towards the project, demonstrating our commitment to deliver better services and strengthen local communities.

I would also like to acknowledge the $10,000 ‘in kind’ contribution to the project by Glen Park Community Centre.

Council would like to acknowledge the dedication of Wally Anderson, together with Peter Harris and the Men’s Shed user group for the hours of hard work they have put in erecting the internal walls to the shed to help bring the project to completion.

Congratulations to you all for your commitment and dedication to this project.