Men's Shed in Offaly officially opens its new premises

Enda Egan – CEO Irish Men’s Shed Association, along with his son Donnacha, cutting the ribbon to officially open Banagher’s new Men Shed on Cuba Avenue. Also in the photo are (l. to r.) Bill Coffey, Carol Nolan TD, Cllr Audrey Hennessy Kennedy, Frank Larkin, Declan Costello - Offaly Local Development. Tony Cormican – Chairman. Cllr Eleanor Clendennen, Damien Martin, Cllr John Leahy, Hughie Coughlan. | Pic: Rose Mannion.

placeholder image — Enda Egan – CEO Irish Men’s Shed Association, along with his son Donnacha, cutting the ribbon to officially open Banagher’s new Men Shed on Cuba Avenue. Also in the photo are (l. to r.) Bill Coffey, Carol Nolan TD, Cllr Audrey Hennessy Kennedy, Frank Larkin, Declan Costello - Offaly Local Development. Tony Cormican – Chairman. Cllr Eleanor Clendennen, Damien Martin, Cllr John Leahy, Hughie Coughlan. | Pic: Rose Mannion.

Old fire station on Banagher’s Cuba Avenue has been transformed into a cosy meeting place

THERE was a large turn out of both men and women for the official opening last week of the Banagher Men's Shed new base.

The old fire station on Cuba Avenue has been transformed into a cosy meeting place where local men can come together, have a chat over a cuppa, do a bit of work on a project or two or just sit and chat and enjoy each other’s company.

The group, which consists of about 20 members, signed a 30 year lease with Offaly County Council earlier this year and since then they have been working on transforming the inside into a nice comfortable area complete with chairs, table and workspace and kitchen.

Well known local historian James Scully, speaking on behalf of the group, said “we are grateful to all those who contributed to making the former fire station a new home for Banagher Men's Shed. We received €7,000 in funding courtesy of the Bord na Mona Community Benefit Fund and also we also received a generous donations from local businesses like Loonam Motors, Grant Engineering, La Sainte Union and Flynn's Bar & Restaurant and of course we also expressed our gratitude to Offaly County Council and its members for agreeing to lease the former fire station to the group.”

The group meet every Tuesday from around 3pm for about two hours or so, and everybody is welcome to drop in for the chat and take a look around the new comfortable surroundings.

Presently, the gathering consists of people of all trades like, stonemasons, former hurlers, singers and musicians, historians, and all of them contribute significantly to the group at their meet up.

They also go travelling and so far have enjoyed outings to historic sites this year, with members visiting Ardnacrusha Power Station and Kilmainham Gaol.

They also are planning a trip to the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin while a visit to the Shackleton Museum in Athy, County Kildare is also in the plans for early 2027.