Te Puke Menz Shed builds pātaka kai and water table for local school

Kevin Heath with the wet play table built for Otamarakau School.

A group of Bay of Plenty men advocating for community initiatives and men’s welfare got their hands dirty building a pātaka (pantry) for kai, and a water play table for a local school.

The men from Te Puke Menz Shed constructed the new buildings for Otamarakau School last month, completing the two projects in three weeks.

Painted to represent the school colours of blue and yellow, the pātaka and water play table were built with a $500 grant from the organisation, while the school paid for the table and other material costs.

Menz Shed president Mike Harman, who has been a member for eight years, said both projects benefited the students and the wider Te Puke community.

“The water table is positive for the students and we’ve seen photos of the kids playing in it, and they just look so [excited] about it.

“It gets kids off their laptops and playing with each other, working together, learning how to share and grow together.

“The pātaka helps everyone in the community because it’s really for people who have surplus food in their gardens or excess items they can share with the community. It goes a long way.”

The water play table was initiated by Otamarakau School deputy principal Fleur Robinson, who approached the Menz Shed for help with design and construction.

“The students [now] play every day on the table and love to play with water and build filtering and drainage structures,” she said.

The pātaka was not a part of the plan. However, Robinson approached the team again during construction and asked if one could be built.

Wayne Hannah with the completed pātaka kai.

She said the pātaka and water table were welcomed additions being used every day at the school.

“As a school and community, we needed a pātaka to provide food from our school garden, a place for fruit, and food donations for all.

“[Both additions] are a place to share and care for each other, and the painted blue and yellow school colours on them was a really personal touch.”

The Menz Shed is a fully equipped workshop for men over 60 to participate in projects repairing and making goods for themselves and the wider community.

Harman said the organisation promoted “comradeship, health and wellbeing, fellowship and men’s welfare”.

The Menz Shed is at 48 Cameron Rd, Te Puke.

Malisha Kumar is a multimedia journalist based in Hamilton. She joined the Waikato Herald in 2023 after working for Radio 1XX in Whakatāne.