In August 2023, Brandon Seniors for Seniors (BSFS) proudly celebrated 40 years of serving older people in their small Manitoba community. Today, they offer a wide range of programs and services that empower older Manitobans and inspire them to get involved. From the computer club to yoga classes – BSFS has something for everyone!
The Men’s Club is a Men’s Shed run by BSFS that has served Brandon and the surrounding areas since 2021. It is an in-demand program, with twenty-five men gathering in the building’s dining hall every Wednesday morning, and it all started with one big goal: to help men connect with one another through their shared interests and hobbies. Today, the Men’s Club has become a place for older men in the community to build lasting friendships.
“This group is absolutely important to the men in our community – they could do the same thing at McDonalds, but they want their own place to call home, and I think that’s why the Men’s Shed is so important to them. It’s an opportunity for men to feel free, sit down, drink coffee, and share something that they probably wouldn’t share with people at home” said Rob Lavin, the Executive Director of BSFS.
Members of the Men’s Club organize projects and workshops based on the interests of the group. A recent workshop the men organized featured a guest speaker from the Brandon Police Service, who educated the group on common scams against older people online – over sixty people attended. Following the workshops, men often stay for casual conversations, enjoying coffee and cookies while sharing stories. The workshops are a practical outlet for men to engage in topics and projects they’re passionate about, fostering a sense of community and connection beyond their scheduled meetings.
In Canada, a staggering 500,000 older men are socially isolated. A driving factor behind this statistic is that after retirement, men lose the structure and social opportunities they had in the workplace, leaving them without a space to work alongside others. Men tend to connect shoulder to shoulder, not face to face, which is why Men’s Sheds are such an important opportunity for older men – it’s a low-pressure, fun space where men can talk while working on projects that matter to them.
HelpAge Canada, a charitable organization dedicated to helping older people lead healthy and engaged lives, provides grants to communities looking to launch a Men’s Shed, and funding for existing Men’s Sheds to take on new projects. They awarded BSFS a grant to buy tools of their own for the Men’s Club, giving the group a sense of ownership and pride:
“The Men’s Club was just so ecstatic to learn that we received funding from HelpAge Canada to support them, and they could actually put the Brandon Seniors for Seniors Men’s Shed labels on the equipment – they own all their tools now. The men were over the moon – they felt like they had a voice.”
You can follow along with the adventures of the BSFS Men’s Club on their Facebook page. For more information about HelpAge Canada’s Men’s Shed Start-Up and Project Grants, please visit their website.