AS the Whittlesea Show approaches, community groups throughout the town and its surrounds are well underway with their preparations.
Part of these groups is one of Whittlesea’s lesser known endeavours, the Whittlesea Women’s Shed.
Started in 2024 by Jill McKeever and Cathy Finster after the Mernda women’s shed where they were originally involved closed, the Whittlesea Women’s Shed has grown from its humble beginnings to nearly 30 members and more than a dozen frequently appearing during their Wednesday sessions.
Much like the hundreds of men’s sheds across the state, the women’s shed in Whittlesea has become a bit of a haven for the ladies in the area who are looking to find a bit of connection in their lives.
“We’ve got a couple of ladies who just rock up purely for the social [aspect] and to just get out of the house,” Mrs McKeever said.
She added that this is exactly what she was hoping to create when she brought the Whittlesea Women’s Shed to life.
“A lot of the ladies, including myself, are widowed, on your own. It impacts you when you’re on your own and you don’t have another to have a conversation over coffee with breakfast.”
Still, there aren’t many women’s sheds in the state – less than two dozen according to the Australian Women’s Shed Association – which brings in people from beyond just Whittlesea.
Members come from Mernda and Doreen in the south as well as Eden Park and Wallan in the north to be part of something bigger than themselves.
The women work out of the same shed as the men do, and collaborate regularly through lessons and refresher sessions on some of the machines and equipment.
But despite their crossovers, Mrs McKeever was sure to point out that the two are operating as their own entities.
The men’s shed operates on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, often working on bigger projects that are built to order, while the women are in there on Wednesdays and predominantly working on passion projects.
Currently, the shed’s members are working hard on Christmas-style ornaments and decorations to sell off at the Whittlesea Show on November 7 and 8, which will be an important way to raise money going forward.
“We’ve got no funding at all. That’s why we do a lot of fundraising, the Bunnings barbecues, that sort of thing” Mrs McKeever said.
“We try to get some money into the coffers so there’s a little bit of money behind us so if we want to do some big things and have to buy wood, then we have money to do it.”
But ever since she opened the shed up over two years ago now, Mrs McKeever said she’s had a ball.
“It’s been really good. I’ve just really, really embraced it, really loved it, and still love it,” she said.
“We’re not huge, but there’s potential.
“We’re here every week except for school breaks because of the grandkids and whatnot.”
The Women’s Shed will be setting up with a range of handmade items at the Whittlesea Show in a couple of weeks time, and hope to inspire more women to get involved with the shed which has for so long been associated with men only.
