Dundalk Women’s Shed continues to thrive

Women in the Dundalk area have been enjoying the emergence of the Dundalk Women’s Shed which was established in September this year.

The group meet every Monday in the Oriel Centre (Old Gaol) from 10am to 11.30am and have been enjoying a series of talks and activities each week.

Although the first Monday session was little more than a month ago on September 26th the group already boast a membership of over 100 members.

The Dundalk Women’s Shed initiative, which was spearheaded by Dara MacGabhann, the Community Development Officer, Louth Local Development was established through an obvious emerging need within the Dundalk area.

Women were expressing a need in their lives for more social interaction, gaining new skills and acquiring information on welfare, health issues and events happening in their area, A Dundalk Women's Shed spokesperson said.

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Under the guidance of Louth Local Development, a steering committee for the Women’s Shed has been established and already huge strides have been made to ensure the inclusion of all women over 18 years who live within the Dundalk area.

Members of the Shed have already attended meetings on a national level when they travelled to Dublin on Wednesday 19th of October to meet with Minister Heather Humphreys in relation to funding for Women’s Sheds.

As a follow on from this meeting national and regional structures are already being formed to enable shared resources, information and knowledge among groups nationwide.

Forthcoming activities for the Dundalk Women’s Shed includes: Emotional Freedom Technique workshop on November 28th and a wreath making demonstration on December 12th.

To show solidarity for the 16 Day campaign highlighting violence against women Ann Larkin from Women’s Aid will give a presentation to the group on December 5th– all in attendance are asked to wear orange at this session as this is the colour associated with the international campaign.

The Shed is not just about learning and trying new activities it is also very much about providing fun and social opportunities.

The Halloween event involved not just a presentation relating to Samhain but also involved a prize giving for the best costume and a few spot prizes donated by local businesses.

On December 19th there will be a Christmas Party atmosphere with music, prizes and hopefully lots of nice home baking!

There are also plans to run an evening event for Little Christmas ‘Nollaig na mBan’ on 6th of January.

The Dundalk Women’s Shed meet every Monday morning in the Oriel Centre, Dundalk Gaol.

Each session has a recommended fee of €3 per week.

The steering group come up with a schedule of events and are open to suggestions from other members.

The support for the Shed in the area has been phenomenal with local and national agencies stepping forward including Louth Local Development who established the initiative, Dundalk Credit Union, LMETB and the Local Sports Partnership.

The one thing really needed at this stage is an affordable venue that can become a dedicated home for the Dundalk Women’s Shed. If you are aware of such a premises they would love to hear from you.

If you are interested in being part of Dundalk Women’s Shed come along on Mondays in November and December to the Oriel Centre, Dundalk A91HD70 at 10am. (Nov 21st will be at the Tourist Office for a tour of the Town Murals)

For more information contact Dundalk Women’s Shed at womenssheddundalk@gmail.com