Whitlam MP Stephen Jones has today presented Kanahooka Mens Shed with a cheque for $7,121 so that they can install water tanks and solar electricity.

Stephen Jones said that Mens Sheds played a valuable role in the Illawarra and Southern Highlands communities.

I always enjoy dropping in to Mens Sheds and having a yak to the men there about what they gain from their visits. The Mens Shed at Kanahooka has about 25 members from the Kanahooka and Dapto area; its a great place for men to meet, banter with each other and learn a new skill or two like gardening.

Ill make sure to stop by again soon to see how the water tanks and solar panels are coming along.

Kanahooka Mens Shed Treasurer Neil Preston said that the cheque, provided under the Stronger Communities grant scheme, would make a real difference.

The money will go towards two tanks, a watering pump and a watering system for the garden here at the shed. Our garden is a real asset; it has raised gardening beds so that those with bad backs can still get involved.

We grow our plenty of our own vegetables in the garden, some of the guys tell me that they dont like eating veggies but they are always keen to help out in the garden.

We are also going to put a solar electric system on the roof. The benefit of that is that we will save on electricity and potentially even feed some excess electricity back onto the grid.

That will help reduce our carbon footprint, which is something that we should always be trying to do. It was great having Stephen here today at the shed and we look forward to seeing him again soon.