Newsletter - March 2026

Wow – April already! And we’ve seen a time change for (hopefully) the last time in our lives! About the only thing I’ll regret about not having to shift the clocks is that it was my annual cue to change batteries in clocks and smoke detectors. I’ll have to find a different way to remind myself…

As always, suggestions and submissions for this newsletter are welcome and encouraged. I would especially like to have some more “Cool Tools” to display!

What has Bowen Island Men’s Shed Done Lately?

Workshop Projects

What with spring break and some other seasonal delays, it seems we haven’t made a lot of progressin the sea can. We’ve inched closer to having vises installed on the larger workbench; John H. ended up having to construct some precision shims to level the tops of the vises with the top of the bench, so this has entailed a bit more effort than originally expected.

Both Matt and Rosco have been ultra-busy in what they refer to as “life” (whatever that might be – they both have strongly suggested that I “get one”, but I checked on Amazon and there’s no delivery for that item to my house). As a result, we’re still working on dust collection piping and the wallstorage system. The latter requires some holes cut in the plywood to provide access to electrical plugs. We’ll be organizing a “doings party” to finish this off early in April.

Newly acquired Tools & Equipment

Mark Klindt very kindly donated a 10-gallon Shop Vac for our shop. It’s got a lot of “suck”, and we’ve laid in a supply of vacuum bags and filters for it. I’d encourage everyone to use it before locking up the shop every time there’s some dust created!

IPS Kid’s Workshop Project (update)

The kids are now in the home stretch on their woodworking projects. They should all be done this month – just in time for them to start on go-karts! Any shedders who’d like to help with this new venture, please let me know and I’ll pass it on to the teachers at IPS.

Sign-Up Sheets

Members have expressed a lot of interest in activities other than woodworking in our Shed –everything from fishing to 3D printing to axe-throwing and more! We’ve taped some sign-up sheets to the inside of the shed door and we encourage all members to put their name down for something that might get their blood pumping – there’s even a couple of blank sheets for you to suggest your own particular dream activity!

B.I. Men’s Shed Administration

Membership Dues

At our Annual General Meeting this year we passed a resolution to have shed members pay annual dues of $20 per year, starting now. Our official Treasurer and Pincher of Pennies has set up an email link direct to our bank account at First Credit Union – members are urged to e-transfer $20 to treasurer@bimshed.ca.

The fee covers membership for the calendar year 2026.

Code of Conduct

It is vital for the safety and well-being of our members, the students and faculty of IPS, and our relations with the public at large that we maintain high standards of behavior and decorum at all times when participating in Shed activities. To ensure that we’re all on the same page your board has created and adopted a Code of Conduct, which is attached to the end of this newsletter. It’s mostly common sense and courtesy, but it’s important that all members read and understand the

contents.

If members have any feedback, whether it be questions or suggestions, please talk to any member of the board – we welcome your input!

Bowen Men’s Shed E-Mail

Thanks to herculean efforts by Scott P. our Shed now has a complete set of email addresses for all the executive board members. Mail can be addressed to us simply by position title (rather than by name) so that there will be continuity of communication even if board members change or retire(!).

The mailing list is as follows:

president@bimshed.ca

vicepresident@bimshed.ca

secretary@bimshed.ca

treasurer@bimshed.ca

info@bimshed.ca

Bowen Men’s Shed Board Members (cont.)

Stay tuned – biography for our newest board member Lance to come shortly!

Upcoming Activities

Social Meeting – Pancake Breakfast

We invite you to our next social meeting, which will include our highly-anticipated Pancake Breakfast courtesy of Master Chef Park Hefelfinger! In addition to pancakes and sausages we’ll have coffee/tea and cookies; please remember to bring your own reusable cup if possible.

You can donate what you choose towards defraying costs if you like.

Date: Saturday, April 4th, 2026

Time: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Location: Men’s Shed sea can behind IPS – 671 Carter Road, Bowen Island

For suggestions, additions or subtractions, plaudits or complaints regarding this newsletter, feelfree to send me an email at vicepresident@bimshed.ca or at steve.elves@gmail.com

For more information about the Men’s Shed Association of BC, visit www.bcmensshed.ca

For more information about Men’s Shed Canada, visit www.mensshedcanada.ca

We hope to see you at one or more of our upcoming events!