annual subs

Dan Brem

13 Posts
Fri, 5th August 2011, 9:28pm

The best recipe I can think of is Ice Cream Scones which only have two ingredients; ice cream and self raising flour. If you use different flavours of ice cream you can get quite a variety and they should sell like hot cakes (sorry, bad pun).

Looking through the archives of our shed I see that our first work bench was built from reclaimed timber from some old fences and some hand tools that could well have been found in any council cleanup. The very first two benches built this way are still in use and are often the best benches to work at.We now have fourteen benches in the wood work area.

We also pay rent and it is a LOT more than your group and all utilities are ours to pay too. The solution is to grow as quickly as you can and be open to all activities. The more people that come the better chance you have of getting gear and raising money.

I would think that a great way to get started might be to have a car boot sale. You will find that a lot of people would come along and quite a few donations will be made. But I guess this is a big city solution and you may only be in a small town.

Our membership fees are $50 per year and we expect some money in the kitty for coffee or tea and if you use the consumables such as finishes or hardware (nuts, bolts, screws, nails, staples, etc) you are asked to also drop some money in to a donations box.

We also have a BIG tool sale every year and it helps us a lot but that takes a lot of luck and good management to arrange. Our next tool sale is on the 18th September 2011.

Every community has people who need a hand with some repairs or building a cubby house or a toy boat or rocking horses and there are some opportunities for some quid pro quo if you talk to your lions and rotary clubs. You would be surprised at what they want your help with and what they can do for you.

Ask your council what you can do to help them too and see where that leads.

Good luck

 

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Time flies like an arrow and fruit flies like a banana.

Peter Lines

4 Posts
Wed, 10th August 2011, 9:18am

Thank you to Dan Brem for replying to me question. Could other people please indicate what their membership charges are, and what financial support they receive?

It is useful to have a benchmark idea of what is the usual situation when setting up a new Men's Shed...

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Thanks

 

Peter

Kinglake Ranges Mens Shed Inc.

11 Posts
Mon, 22nd August 2011, 8:49am

Hi Guys,

We have an annual membership fee of $50 (employed) or $25 (unemployed/student/pensioner).  Members also 'purchase' the materials they require when doing their own jobs in The Shed.

We are a stand alone shed, not auspiced by council or any NGO.  Funding comes from a variety of sources, but mainly from a variety of different grants.  We also do quite a bit of work for a number of other community groups and councils i.e. Picnic Tables.  We have a "Shed Shop" where we sell a variety of different items to the public.

But, it's an uphill battle.  Always looking for the next source of funding.  Unfortunately, whilst Government says a lot of good things about Men's Sheds they do very little to provide a steady stream of funding to keep us all going.

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Men Talking Shoulder To Shoulder