Members of the Taieri Blokes' Shed have been given the opportunity to share their skills with the wider public by volunteering for the Department of Conservation.
The organisation is made up of 45 men and creates an environment where they can chat and be social while giving members a chance to exchange their knowledge and abilities with each other.
Since volunteering for the past three to four months, the men have been building palisade battens for a fence around the Huriawa Pa site at Karitane, as well as sign frames for the department.
Doc ranger Simon Alefosio-Tuck said the tasks the Blokes' Shed was doing were the sort that were left aside for a rainy day.
''It often takes some time before we get a chance to complete them.''
The Taieri Blokes' Shed president Ian Miller said most of the members were retired and enjoy helping with local projects.
''Everyone brings something to the shed, one way or another,'' he said.
The idea to be involved came to Mr Miller when he heard of the Alexandra Men's Shed making pest traps for Doc locally.
''With 45 blokes to keep busy, I was keen to see if the local Doc office wanted a hand with anything,'' Mr Miller said.
''The more we have to do, the more members are able to feel useful and give back to their community,'' he said.
The department has supported the group and provided timber for the projects.
Bookshelves and work benches for local preschools and play centres are some of the projects the Taieri Blokes' Shed has worked on previously.
''All members are putting something back into the community,'' Mr Miller said.
The Taieri Blokes' Shed will celebrate its seventh anniversary next month.
- Charlotte Haselden
